Every now and then comes a game that has a lasting impression on those who play it. It doesn’t happen very often, but the last one that affected me in such a way was Spec Ops: The Line; a napalm section ensuring I didn’t want to play it any more.
And now we have another game that has a very dark and twisted subject at its core – The Kindeman Remedy, from Troglobytes Games and 3D Realms. Let it be known, this is a very disturbing game. In fact, this is one where the obligatory trigger warning at the start is quite well deserved! Are you ready to venture to the dark side of human nature? If so, come with me!
The story found in The Kindeman Remedy is pretty dark in and of itself, and that is even before we get to the gameplay itself. Dr Carl Kindeman has lost everything as the game opens – reviled by the medical community due to his “questionable” methods of experimentation, cast out from the profession he once enjoyed. He is therefore left to accept the only job he can find: that of the duty doctor at a prison. However, Kindeman has an ulterior motive for taking the job. Where better to carry on with his evil experiments than in a prison, full of people that the world won’t miss?
As such, you have a variety of choices ahead of you, and how you perform will affect the way the story ends. With the capable assistance of Sister Anna, a nun who has a twisted way of looking at the role of religion in a prison, the world is the mollusc of your choice…
Presentation is quite good, based largely around a management style. The majority of the game is presented from a side-on perspective, with Kindeman working behind the scenes, Sister Anna being in the “customer facing” role. The graphics are fairly simple, but entirely adequate, while the various rooms that Kindeman and Anna can frequent are depicted pretty well. The cutscenes that show the story are very nice, with a definite style to them that explains what has happened – and what is happening – in great detail.
And you could say that the sound is also pretty good, with voice acting and music that fits in with the narrative and style of the game. All in all, the presentation, whilst quite sparse, works for what the game is trying to achieve.
Now, on to the actual gameplay, which is a mixed bag. There are day to day management activities to take part in, with Kindeman making pills and other medication in the lab. These medicines need to follow a certain routine – get a container, fill it full of drugs, then make the medication in a machine, before sending it upstairs to Sister Anna. She’s then left with a choice about the pills or the drips that she receives, – she can give them as is, helping patients to get better, or she can choose to poison them, killing the inmates as they walk away. If she chooses the latter then the corpses will appear in the morgue, where Kindeman can do further experiments, before disposing of the bodies. Of course, if too many patients die, then the suspicion of the Governor will be raised, and then the whole loop of the game will be made more difficult.
Keeping all the prisoners looked after, either by curing or killing them, is a pretty full on job, and luckily you can queue things up for each character – so Kindeman can get the medicines made in one step, before Sister Anna decides what to do. Keeping an eye on multiple rooms at once does get challenging the further on in the game you go, and there are also other things to consider.
For instance, this is a prison where executions take place, and so it is a place where Kindeman has a supply of fresh victims to experiment on. You see, Kindeman has an accomplice, and when the electric chair is used, you can prevail upon the man actually pulling the switch to reduce the voltage, allowing you to falsely claim the inmate is dead, giving you a new plaything in return. Once you have a living victim, you can experiment on them in a number of ways, by performing various brutal actions – hammer to the genitals, anyone? Yep, that trigger warning is looking very necessary.
We have to keep going with this loop to progress towards our goal, which is the development of The Kindeman Remedy, a way to cure any ill, it appears. The ends justify the means, apparently, and the faster you move towards the goal, the better. Of course, it is like spinning plates – keeping the inmates supplied, keeping the bodies coming, and moving the story on is really hard.
With multiple story endings to work towards, there is a deal of replayability built in, and this adds to the longevity. And once you have beaten the story mode, there is also an Endless mode to try your hand at, which is the same as the main game but does exactly what it says on the tin – you just keep playing and playing until the wheels fall off.
Be aware – The Kindeman Remedy is a very dark and disturbing game; one that deals with twisted themes in a very matter of fact way. The actual gameplay is okay, with a good gameplay loop to follow, but the way it all deals with certain issues is quite chilling. This isn’t going to be for everyone, but I have to admit to ‘enjoying’ my time with The Kindeman Remedy. But I’m not sure what that says about me!
