Normality Download (1996 Adventure Game)

At first glance, Normality looks like an "idiotic" or "dumb" game. The box features a teenage punk, Kent, on it and it's littered with immature remarks and phrases. It just doesn't appear to be a serious game at all. But all these ideas are thrown out the window once you actually start playing the game. Normality is a big breath of fresh air for the graphic adventure genre and is quite innovative and unique.

In Normality, you are Kent, an imprisoned "grunge-head." He was jailed for having whistled a tune that he wasn't allowed to. In the city of Neutropolis, you aren't allowed to show any signs of life because the people in charge want everyone to be dull and mundane. Well, you're out to change this and overthrow and stop the evil dictator ruining from ruining the lives of innocent people .

You'll do this by immersing yourself in a 3D first-person world. As I mentioned earlier, this is actually a graphic adventure game. It is through the first-person view that gives this game an original feel. You're actually in Kent's world, interacting with various hot spot items.

Instead of just pointing-and-clicking to get items, you'll actually have to walk and maneuver your way over to the items. This adds a great sense of depth and feeling to the game. At times, though, it can be a bit confusing as to how you're supposed to interact with things. Sometimes you can simply walk to a thing you must interact with while other times you must use a command, such as use, to interact with an object.

For example, there's some doors that you can just walk through while other doors require you to actually use the door rather than simply walking through it. So it's a bit inconsistent at times, but it doesn't really detract from the game. As in every graphic adventure game, you'll be required to solve various puzzles. For the most part, the puzzles will actually require you to think and use your brain. You'll be stuck a lot in this game, yet almost all the puzzles can be solved using common sense.

You'll also get to interact with various people in the city. You must converse with people in order to obtain clues or learn about various sub-quests that you can accomplish. Conversations are fully voice acted and the acting is quite decent. Corey Feldman lends his voice to the hero Kent and the supporting cast is very good, unlike most voice acted games. If you don't like the voice acting, there's the option of turning it off, which is a nice option to have.

So, overall, Normality is a really fun game with lots of innovation, wit, and a good challenge. I recommend this game to any fan of the graphic adventure genre or anyone looking for a unique gaming experience.

Graphics: While the graphics aren't the most earth-shattering visuals in the world, but they're adequate. The animations are pretty smooth looking and the CG movies look pretty good.

Sound: The voice acting in this game is quite good (much better than your typical voice acting) and the music isn't bad at all.

Enjoyment: Though the game can get difficult at times and the interface isn't always consistent, Normality is a very fun game. The dialog is entertaining, the story is good, and the gameplay is innovative.

Replay Value: As is the case with most graphic adventures, once you complete it, there's not much reason to play it again.

Kent lives in the police state of Neutropolis where everyone and everything is supposed to be normal. But Kent doesn't want to be normal.

In this 1st-person 3D animated graphic adventure (ala Tex Murphy, but more cartoony), you must elude the police and solve puzzles as you travel through the many locations.

No doubt one of the most original adventure games ever, Normality is like a tongue-in-cheek version of George Orwell's classic 1984: You are Kent, a very -erm- independent lad who's being persued by the cops (the "Norms") for deviating from the strict norms imposed by the new leader Paul.

Puzzles are obscure at times, but their wacky logic is self-consistent and becomes evident when solved. Great 3D engine, plot, and characters make it one of the best underdogs ever, and it will also take you a long while to finish. Highly recommended!

How to run this game on modern Windows PC?

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