Kona II: Brume

Stands out for its evocative writing and understated narration, using atmosphere and environmental storytelling. A perfect winter game, just like The Long Dark.

When I started Kona II: Brume, I hoped for a strong atmosphere and a good story. In many moments, those expectations were met. The game looks better, the narration feels smoother, and there is more attention to detail in the environment. There is less walking around and more real investigation, with a dark, cold atmosphere that works well.

On the other hand, the game could be more dynamic. The pacing sometimes slows down, and even though the world feels bigger, it does not always use its full potential. The limited interactions and simple puzzles make it feel a bit flat at times.

For me, Kona II is a step in the right direction and clearly better than the first one. It is not something I will remember for years, but it is still a good and calm adventure with a great winter mystery vibe. If you enjoy slow and atmospheric games, it is worth playing.

I just finished the game for the first time, and as the credits rolled I actually felt like applauding. I wasn't sure if the sequel would be able to match Kona, but it succeeds in spades. The story, the art and the music... wow! Kona is fantastic, but Brume manages to top it. Well done!

Quite a bit different from the pacing of the first game, but I still enjoyed it quite a bit! Recommend on sale.

Pros:
+Might be the only I've played that you can set to Canadian french, and is set in Quebec
+Really nice winter/snow/cold visual and sound effects.
+Fantastic story that got me hooked. Narrator sounds great, esp. in the original french.
+Loved the journal. Taking pictures of things (highlights when it is relevant to the investigation) was very cool, though a bit underutilised and completely optional. The fact that ghosts don't appear in the pics is a nice touch (except the ghost dogs in the lab kennels, oops!).
+Supernatural sequences were very cool. Reminded me of the scrying magic in Clive Barker's Undying, seeing ghosts of the past and all that. Kinda wish we had some measure of control over it somehow... maybe for a sequel?
+The lab level was very clever in the way you unlock it bit by bit and fun to explore. I was really dreading/excited to find some messed up stuff and some sections certainly delivered... others were a bit barebones and a little boring.
+The manor had a great vast layout with multiple floors, beautiful decor and smartly used locked sections to funnel you through without feeling too linear. I appreciated the real-life art and literature you could pick up and read. Fantastic place to investigate and piece out what happened.
+The few guns have kick, good animations, are loud and have a good feel.
Neutrals (things you might like or dislike) :
~The game lacks survival mechanics. No thirst/hunger. No hunting. Game actively discourages killing animals, even as they are attacking you. You get an achievement if you don't kill anything (I defended myself from a wolf that I thought you couldn't avoid at the start so I didn't get it, sadge).
~Game is very easy. Even on highest difficulty. Resources are plentiful (with a bit of searching) while threats are limited. The game is more focused on story/narration/exploration/investigation.
~No explicit references/connection to first game, except the first page of journal. I didn't play the 1st one (yet), so I didn't mind. While it's nice to be standalone, it's also nice to get to know the character's past experiences a little.
~Dogsled is a cool method transportation, but it's kinda slow. Kinda felt like it padded out the gametime without adding much significant to the story. Also you can't use any items while riding. It was alright but had potential to be much better.
~A bit on the short side. You could probably beat it in 8-10 hrs (I took longer due to backtracking and finding optional stuff). Doesn't overstay its welcome nor get repetitive though, story keeps moving forward.
Cons:
-Load times could be pretty long at times.
-A bit buggy. One time a ghost wolf hit me and I phased into the decor, stuck and had to reload. I had a crash when opening the garage door in the lab. Dogsled went out of world when going uphill, then I teleported back up with two dogs missing, which was a little weird but funny. Enemies can instant-spawn on you and instantly hit you with attack animation.
-Can't skip dialog.
-Ending felt rushed and unsatisfying. There is no outro cinematic of any kind, not even a narrated voice conclusion, which considering the narrative form of the game story was pretty surprising. I hope our detective got well paid at least.
-Animations are tedious and slooooooow. Esp. going up ladders, climbing ice walls... and going down is just as slow. Sometimes anims are seemingly in your way just to slow you down. Remember : fun trumps realism every time, plus a lot of us don't have much time for video games. Also if you HAVE to make them, make them controlled and have surprises with them like in Outlast.
-Not a single shootout. You get chased at the intro by some hostile humans, but they never show up again, except as corpses. The game gives you 3 guns, loads you up with tons of ammunition and then all you get to use it on is ghosts. Was really disappointed there wasn't even A SINGLE hostile person to at least sneak around.
-Lack of enemy variety. I won't spoil the little there is, but suffice it to say there are 4 enemies. Yep. 4. Plus alive variants of 3 which you are supposed to avoid. They get the job done I guess, but damn.
-Map isn't really helpful. Several times I had a hard time finding things/where to go with it. Would be cool if it told you if there was unfound collectibles in the area like in RE Village. Therefore, wasn't interested in collectible hunting. Also, can't leave notes, just a single waypoint (better than nothing I guess).
-There are a few friendly NPCs, but their dialog was a bit stiff, unconvincing and I'm guessing the actors probably lacked experience. Main character doesn't have a voice (this can work just fine, just look at Deus Ex). Dialog options are limited. As a detective communication are an essential part of your job, incl. detecting lies, pushing for more information, asking the right questions, building rapport, adapting to different persons, etc etc. Again, though I liked that there was french canadian voice acting, that's great! I hope this can be really pushed to the next level in the next game.
Conclusion:
As a whole I really enjoyed the experience. A very decent and immersive horror game with enough unique mechanics to set itself apart from the pack, but nothing groundbreaking. They've joined Frictional Games in this niche which I'm very fond of and I'm very much looking forward to the next game in the series, hopefully following the events of this game. There's a ton of unexplored potential with the detective and supernatural themes at work here.
Highly recommend, especially if you speak french!

Went back to play Kona 1 in anticipation of playing this after it being on my wishlist for a few years. Kona II is a drastic improvement over the last game, and I have enjoyed both very much. In my opinion Kona II has a much deeper story, better gameplay, better visuals and was generally easier to keep engaged with.
The other thing I really enjoyed was the overall environment and feeling of the world. Both Kona 1 & 2 feel distinctly different to me than other similar games. The narration and style really feels like Northern Canada, as someone who only has minimal experience with the area.
All in all definitely a step in the right direction, and I hope they get to make Kona III!

PROS
+ good gameplay
+ ok story for the most part
CONS
- devs incapable of fixing bugged achievements after 2 years of aknowledging them
- story finale
- juggling items