Alt-Frequencies review: a time-looping radio mystery that doesn't quite get there Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Alt-Frequencies review: a time-looping radio mystery that doesn't quite get there Static. Review by Robert Purchese Senior Staff Writer Updated on 28 May 2019 3 comments A promising conspiracy that's over before it's begun. In George Orwell's 1984, you're swept along in a revolution you don't really know anything about. It's so secretive because the stakes are so high. One wrong move and, kachunk, you're disappeared, and it's frightening. Alt-Frequencies Developer: Accidental Queens Publisher: ARTE France / Plug-in Digital Platform played: PC Availability: Out now on PC, iOS, Android It feels the same in Alt-Frequencies. From the moment it begins, you know you have a role in something bigger. There's something very wrong going on at a state level and you know the truth is out there somewhere. You know that because a pirate radio station told you. You heard an illicit truth and now you want more. But who are you, who are they, and what is the truth? You will have barely scratched the surface of the answer before time will loop on you. The five-to-10 minutes of radio you've been listening to will, after the screen fades to white, repeat on you. This time-loop is central to everything. It is the story you're chasing and how you chase it. The other central conceit is radio. It's all you have. You are a bodiless character in a room with a radio and everything you do - all your interactions, all of your resistance - goes through the radio. You flick between stations, record clips and send them in. That's it, nothing else. This happens at the very beginning and this is how the game looks throughout. Interesting choice of character name! Maybe you send in a clip of a pirate radio broadcast to another station; maybe you send a clip of one presenter to another; maybe you crack a garbled code and hear something you shouldn't. Whatever the jackpot, when you hit it, time moves on, and in this way the story unfolds. It's a simple game and well put together, with a clean look and believable set of radio stations, although some of the actors' performances are irritating. But just as things really get going, and the story grips you, and the time-loop radio mechanic starts to work in complex ways, it ends. I went back through to see if I'd missed something and could somehow push deeper, but I couldn't, that really was it. It doesn't make sense to spend three hours slowly growing a conspiracy and pulling people in, only to end it as abruptly as it does, and I wonder why developer Accidental Queens did it, unless it simply ran out of time. It also adds to the feeling the game never really gave you much choice all along, although perhaps, as with 1984, that's ultimately the point. It's a shame, because in the moments leading up to the finish, I was hooked. I'd gotten to know the characters and I cared about the story. Alt Frequencies just doesn't quite fulfil its own promise. This isn't how the game looks but it is how it sounds. Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More Reviews Digital Foundry Das Keyboard MacTigr review: a brilliant typing experience A lesser spotted mechanical keyboard for Mac. 11 Recommended Prodeus review – a fearsome hybrid of old and new FPS ideas Time to kill. 96 Digital Foundry Intel Arc A770 and A750 review: welcome player three Aggressive price/performance, new features. 54 Review Dome Keeper review - not quite digging it Miner annoyances. 5 Latest Articles Digital Foundry Sennheiser's legendary HD 599 open-back headphones are just £70 at Amazon in the Prime Early Access Sale Comfortable with neutral sound and a wide sound stage. Preview Football Manager's new Console edition is the best you'll get without a PC Getting Touch-right. 1 Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 61 Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store