The Hero Project: Redemption Season

If you want to feel like you can actually do something about the political climate, then by all means go ahead and play (read?) But if you already feel bad for not being able to do anything, then this'll just make you feel worse

It's very difficult for me to write this review. On one hand, a large portion of the audience hates this game for being political, specifically with it's "left-leaning" message. To hate the game for that is utterly absurd, and these people clearly haven't played the previous games in the series if they weren't expecting politics. Not to mention there's no such thing as apolitical media. That being said, this is a bad game/story, period. It's bloated, poorly-written, choices don't matter or are forced on you, and the premise is silly anyway. I didn't like the reality TV show idea in the original trilogy all that much, but it being back after what happened in the first season is just laughable. It's a shame this game turned out so poorly, I have no idea how it happened after the excellent original trilogy written by the same author, but here we are.

Really hard to believe that this game was created by the same person that did the first three Hero Project games. This entry in the series is a drastic step backwards in every possible way. "Woke" is thrown around as a pejorative term too often, but the shoe fits in this case. The game tries to tackle various societal issues but does so in an absolutely ham-fisted manner that is just exhausting and preachy. Playing this game felt like being lectured by a D level high school student that just learned about Karl Marx and gender studies.

Not as good as Heroes Rise, but still good enough.

It's a good game and a fantastic sequel.

Redemption season is brave and changes things up- sometimes an unpopular move, as you can tell by the reviews. However, I feel in introducing a new player character, with a new background and new struggles, and letting you shape them from that and driving them forward, as either a cold-blooded opportunist fame hungry hero, or an advocate for justice for the less fortunate powered. This change is drastic, but welcome, and a new lens into the world. It still keeps the wonderful Golden Age tone, sliding between silly, sweet, and serious as the story demands, giving it a very human feel. It keeps what makes the series great - the casual queerness, the sense of humour, never taking itself too seriously (Remember Prodigal, chickens?) and making your decisions weighty with long term consequences. Highly recommended.