Remember, Don’t Blink!
I’m a big fan of Doctor Who and was excited to see a game that was essentially a sequel to the Blink episode from my favourite Doctor’s era and also the origins of the Weeping Angels. The game handles like a phone interface and you’ve essentially picked up someone’s random phone who has been nabbed by the Angels. You’ll need to work with UNIT operative Osgood to work out what has happened to the owner by searching the phone for clues.
You’ll have text conversations with Osgood, but you’ll also need to search photos, browser history and even voice/video messages for clues as to what went down. There are real photos taken on this, so there’s a great level of authenticity about it and in terms of story, it’s a great follow-up to Blink. You’ll uncover more of the phone’s encrypted data as you go, including the classic warning message from David Tennant telling you not to blink.
The interface is simple to navigate, though you may want to keep a pen and paper handy for writing specific details down that you’ll need to remember later on. It’s not a particularly long game if you can figure out what to do. I finished it in around the 2-hour mark but had to go back round again as I missed one clue and didn’t get the “Good” ending.
The good news is that the game is relatively cheap on whatever system you decide to play it on and while I can’t see any real reason to replay it once it’s done, it was definitely a memorable and clever experience and one I really hope we see more of, especially in Who form.
The Verdict
Doctor Who: The Lonely Assassins is a smart experience for puzzle enthusiasts and fans of the show. It has some really clever elements that immerse you into the plot and make me wish we’d get another game like this.