If you want to play a simulator game that will make you laugh and curse in equal measure, then Speaking Simulator is for you. The quirky title puts you in control of an individual who is absolutely not a robot looking to dominate humanity and is in fact just a regular person learning to navigate social situations. Just pay no attention to👍 those t🍨eeth on the floor and the oil spillage.
Learning The Basics Of Speech
The game begins with you customizing your new human by choosing a few basic details such as gender, skin color, and hair color. However, these options are displayed as melanin, color, and junk, giving you an accurate indication of the sense of humor that went into this game. Once you have customized your new robot body, your 𓂃journey to social functioning can begin.
On the Switch, the right control stick moves your mouth and jaw, with the left controlling your tongue. There's a handy "mouth cam" to help you see where your tongue is, as it will need to press buttons inside your mouth. Sounds simple, right? Well, it isn't. It turns out that your physics-defying tongue has a mind of its own, making this game invoke Dark Souls levels of difficulty (and cursing) at times.
That isn't to say it's not fun, just expect some frustration along the way. Your tongue is entirely unpredictable and the cost-cutting measures the game warns you about in your new "meat suit" are evident as teeth begin to fall out, oil starts dripping from places, and your eyes can't decide where to look or even if they should stay in your head.
If you pause, mess up, or stumble too much, then parts will start to fall off your face and the suspicion meter rises until, eventually, you explode, blowing your cover and failing the level. As 🧜the game progresses, the stakes are higher and the pressure to be "human&qu൩ot; is truly on.
For all these reasons, the game so much fun to play. It's stupid, unpredictable, frustrating, and absolutely hilarious as you navigate ten different common social situations, including dates and job interviews. Interestingly, it's a long time since I've wanted to continue to play anything which has annoyed me as much as this game.
The Story (Yes, There Is One)
You may be surprised to learn that Speaking Simulator has a story. It's not a long or particularly complex story, yet the humorous writing is a huge part of what makes you want to carry on playing the game.
Your character still speaks and acts like a robot, despite trying its very best. Don't worry though, as most of the characters you meet aren't the greatest at spotting the dodgy dialogue, wonky eyes, and frequent oil leaks that follow you around. The result is a slightly inappropriate journey to infiltrate human society.
More Than Just Speech
Don't be fooled by the game's title, you'll need to do more than just master speech. As you play more of the game, you are given the chance to make upgrades to your body, with certain levels requiring upgraded skills.
Upgrades include being able to smile or frown, moving your eyes to make and break eye contact, and m🎀oving your eyebrows for emphasis. Later, you can even learn the human art of dancing and drop your mask a little in "self-expression mode."
These upgrades bring new elements to the gameplay as you start to have to think about more than just that terrifying tongue. It even throws in random surprises, like peas or a banana, for 🎀you to navigate. The complexity is what will make the experience both more entertaining and more annoying in almost equal measure.
A Relatable Journey
I think one of the reasons I loved this game so much is because, for me, it's hugely relatable. I should clarify that I am not a shoddily constructed robot on a journey to take over the world. However, I am autistic. It doesn't give me a desire to drink brake fluid, but it does mean that navigating any social situation is a complex task for my brain. This game makes it about as complex to navigate social situations as I find them in real life.
As I started to upgrade my meat suit (which I became quite fond of), the game's short instructions began to feel like my inner monologue. The game flashes up indicators to help you. These include arrows for your jaw, lights in your mouth, and brief directions such as "more eye contact." If you've ever wanted to know what it feels like to be autistic then, play this game with a few upgrades.
"Remember to smile, make eye contact, ok less smiling, look nonchalant, now move your eyebrows a little, are you saying the right words? Ok a little more eye contact, nope too much! That's better, now smile again..."
This is both the game and what goes on in my actual brain. Making the right facial expressions and maintaining a level of eye contact that is balanced between my natural defaults of zero and far too much, as well as ensuring I'm actually saying the correct words in an appropriate tone is harder for me than you'd expect. I have to think about all these things at once and the game makes you do just that.
It doesn't in any way feel like a dig though, despite the fact they could just rename it "Socially Anxious Simulator." It is both relatable and incredibly amusing to me. I also had a huge desire to complete it just to prove that I can actually function in this (slightly odd) digital society.
We Have Spoken!
I'd highly recommend this game to anyone who wants to play an enjoyable and incredibly funny simulator game. It's also very relatable for those of us who struggle in social situations.
While the levels aren't puzzle-based, it does have appeal to those who enjoy physics puzzlers like I Am Bread, due to the mechanics and humor injected into the title. So, get ready to put on your meat suit, mop up that oil, and learn to function in society. It's very rewarding.
A Switch copy of Speaking Simulator was provided to TheGamer for this review. Speaking Simulator is available now for PC and Nintendo Switch.
Speaking Simulator
- Top Critic Avg: 63/100 Critics Rec: 15%
Speaking Simulator is a physics-based game in which you must move𒐪 the individual parts of the mouth in order to spea🌱k to others. There are several different scenarios to play through, such as romance and job interviews.