Review — Destino Indomable

Have you ever watched a soap opera and thought, “I could make better choices than this”? If so, this may be the game for you. Destino Indomable is an indie visual novel based on telenovelas. It is full of drama and intrigue, but most importantly, it allows the player a chance to be in the spotlight.

Content Guide

Violence/Scary Images: Lots of PG discussions of death and murder. A child is hit by a car. Dialog options allow players to slap characters, and a fight breaks out between two men.

Language: Any expletives are in Spanish.

Drug/Alcohol References: Adults drink. There is mention of someone potentially being drunk.

Sexual Content: Sexual innuendo. Multiple characters have affairs, and the player is involved in one of them (depending on the romance route). A lesbian romance route is available.

Other Negative Content: A major theme of this game centers around revenge. Most, if not all, the characters act selfishly with little redemption, except in death. This is all shown in a hyperbolized way that should dissuade the player from acting like them.

Spiritual Content: Characters are assumed to be Catholic and pray to a luchador saint whose portrait hangs in their home. This saint creates subtle “miracles” when the protagonist dies, bringing the player back to the decision which led to death.

Positive Content: As mentioned above, characters are selfish and unlikeable. However, the drama is part of the fun of the game. Between chapters, players see the “actors” encourage and flatter each other, even while their characters attempt murder.

Review

Destino Indomable‘s player takes the role of the telenovela’s female protagonist. In typical dramatic fashion, she learns her new job is the place of numerous strange deaths, and she finds herself embroiled in a murder plot. The wealthy hacienda is also home to a few romantic interests, which could result in scandal. Spanglish and some voiced Spanish keep the player immersed in the Latin American culture.

Though most of the game plays out through the show itself, chapters end with the actors and actresses taking a break. A talk show interviews the performers and discusses audience reactions before throwing players back into the telenovela’s world. These transitions are a good way to alert the player of advancement. However, every time a chapter ends, players have to watch an unskippable roll of the telenovela’s credits. This feature is nice for immersion, but it makes replaying the game difficult.

There are a different endings and romanceable characters in Destino Indomable. Besides the drama, these romances are the point of the game. The two major male characters are obvious, and their routes are easy to find. However, players may need to consult Steam achievements to discover alternative routes. As of this writing, there are no walkthroughs, and I had a hard time finding more than three endings. On the other hand, I did replay the game a few times, and each time I discovered new information related to the overarching mystery.

Scenes’ music is atmospheric, but songs are short and play on a loop. After the first playthrough, they started to grate on my nerves. Other aspects of the game are also less than ideal. The wording changed between “soccer” and “football” when referring to the same sport. Glitches occasionally made numbers appear in text boxes instead of words; some words were misspelled. The protagonist also had only one smiling sprite for dialog, which was awkward while discussing a hit-and-run.

The game’s user interface is fairly simple and includes a Skip button, an essential tool for VN enthusiasts. However, it does not include a log, which means players need to be paying attention to the dialog at all times. There are plenty of save file slots, but if they are all full, it significantly slows down the game’s loading time.

Despite these hiccups, Destino Indomable is an enjoyable game. The dramatic dialog, unpredictable scenarios, and over-the-top characters will hold players’ interest longer than expected. My favorite part was the option to “Slap” at nearly every dialog choice. The game itself is not as polished as others in the genre, but it is still worth a playthrough or two.