Time travel gaming is a difficult and intricate process. It was the main cause of numerous science-fiction plots, but only a handful of games have managed to depict the bewildering, butterfly-effect chaos of altering history as Old Skies did. Dave Gilbert and his Wadjet Eye Games crew have created a game that only messes around with time loops but actually gets you deep into the m and also reintroduces an old and new-like storytelling and gaming style.
Old Skies takes place in 2062 and shows a universe where time travel is not just feasible but also strictly regulated, a marketable item, and a total disaster in terms of human nature. Fia Quinn, a field agent of ChronoZen, is the one who is upholding the promise to keep history from being changed or twisted. ChronoZen is run more like a business and is flourishing. The visitors who are the customers of the time agency pay a lot to either relive their best moments or to try to influence the future a bit. But there is a system: each visitor must take a psychological test, and a complicated algorithmic method gives every historical figure a “timeline ranking,” which decides how much their life may be changed.
The design of the game world is very precise. Fia, as one of the ChronoZen agents, has a major advantage in that no matter how dramatic the changes in the surrounding world are, she and her teammates can always remember. This means that you, as a player, always have the knowledge that stays with you after every temporal ripple.
Fia doesn’t work alone on her assignments. Her handler, Frank “Nozzo” Nozzarelli, is the wisecracking voice in her ear, providing guidance (and sarcasm) from the security of headquarters. Then there’s Duffy, Fia’s mentor, whose steady know-how tempers the mayhem of fieldwork. The dynamic between the cast is a strong point, with Sally Beaumont (Fia) and Edwyn Tiong (Nozzo) giving solid performances that are full of wit, heart, and warmth. Their banter keeps the high-concept idea firmly anchored in realistic human relationships.
The tale is told in standalone chapters that take one or another client into a different time in New York’s long history. One assignment will deposit you in the 2040s, another on the rough streets of the 19th century. Each period is unique, down to the graffiti, billboards, and street sounds, which change as you jump between decades. Though the puzzles remain firmly rooted in point-and-click traditions, they also have a twist: you’re gathering data rather than tangible items. The built-in search function, where you can search through historic records, is a masterstroke of design. But to yield results, you will have to assemble full names and information from dialogue and clues, so every little bit of speech matters.
What Old Skies was most remarkable in was its handling of failure. The game does not offer death as an exit path—it is just another aspect of the game. Fia will be killed, and not once but many times. Due to the Paradox Field Excluder by ChronoZen and the resourcefulness of Nozzo, each time a mistake is made that leads to death, time is rewound as a result, and you are left with the teachings you got. There are actually several deaths in the middle of a puzzle when one finally gathers the necessary clues. Instead of punishing failure, the game system is made to integrate with advancement, each death bringing to the player either some sarcastic remarks or new thoughts.
On the other hand, the game is substantially excellent in conversation. The script is clever, the characters are unforgettable, and the emotional stakes are high. It could be a one-on-one duel of words with an acerbic ex-boxer or the messy politics of a divided family — in each case, not a single talk weighs less than others. Voice acting rather enhances these instances, as even the less present characters get some layer of softness and personality.
From an aesthetic point of view, Old Skies abandons Wadjet Eye’s typical pixel art in favor of richly detailed, hand-painted backgrounds. Each period is depicted in detail, from the neon light of future waiting rooms to the warm chaos of a 2020s apartment. Rotoscoped animation allows characters to have a smooth and emotive face, which is not commonly found in the genre. The music is the same, going from futuristic electronic tunes to past smoky jazz, always in line with the scene’s atmosphere.
Old Skies is not just a one-time show of love to classic adventure games—it is a breakthrough to the form. It is about living in the moment, understanding the seriousness of every choice made, and accepting the uncertain nature of a changing world. Anyone who loves time travel, the use of short, sharp prose, or the presence of well-drawn characters will be on this journey, not one of them will miss it, nd you might even feel like life needs a rewind button when the credits begin to play.