Originally released on PC in 2018 after a successful Kickstarter, Don't Give Up: A Cynical Tale has come to Nintendo Switch. Players take on the role of Tris, a socially awkward and struggling game developer who needs to overcome his negative feelings. Throughout the 8-9 hour campaign, the game bounces from the real world into the spiritual world where players will have to fight off Tris' literal demons in a unique battle system that is very reminiscent of off-beat RPGs like Undertale.
Don't Give Up advertises itself as a sarcastic and darkly comedic RPG about facing down inner demons. Those elements are certainly present in the art and storyline, but while it delivers on story it lacks in RPG mechanics. There is nothing that ties Don't Give Up with video game RPG-type adventures: no items, no XP, no leveling up, and no random encounters. The game itself is completely linear with battles happening when they happen story-wise, and a constant stream of 'I shouldn't go that way' messages if players try to stray off the path.
The battle system inside Don't Give Up is certainly unique and fun to play with for the first ten or so battles. Fights will start with an insult round that consists of players choosing random passive-aggressive comments about their foe. If the right comments are chosen it will offset the opponent in a number of ways, and is an enjoyable way to see the breakdown of a human psyche at first. After a few of these battles however, players will find themselves just clicking through to get to the actual fight. Once insults have been administered, the meat of the battle begins.
Tris stands on one of four squares and can move around them avoiding incoming damage all while button mashing the attack key in attempts to stun the opponent. Eventually, an ultimate attack will be earned and Tris will have the ability to cause massive damage through a summon-like attack that brings down random items on the foe. The battling system seems too simple at the beginning but definitely increases in difficulty during the late game.
The story of Don't Give Up: A Cynical Tale is definitely the main draw, as dialog and exploration take up most of the 8-hour runtime. There are many characters that the player can talk to as well as interactive objects that Tris will happily, albeit sarcastically, explain. The story is fairly interesting and does manage to keep the player entertained but later on, it starts to become quite convoluted and a little self-indulgent. The music in Don't Give Up is also very well done, making the long walks from A to B more enjoyable with its chiptune style.
It's hard to fully recommend Don't Give Up: A Cynical Tale. There is an interesting story here and fun characters to chat with, but overall the game comes up short. With its linear paths and lack of interactivity for the player, Don't Give Up ends up feeling more like a visual novel with a battle system than an actual RPG adventure.
Don't Give Up: A Cynical Tale is available on PC and the Nintendo Switch. Screen Rant was provided with a Nintendo Switch code for the purpose of this review.