Developer: Fictiorama Studios
Publisher: Joystick Ventures
Platform: Switch, PC
Tested on: PC
Do Not Feed the Monkeys 2099 – Review
Ever played a game that was so good that you wondered why it never received a sequel? Sometimes this just takes time, especially with indie games. The original Do Not Feed the Monkeys came out all the way back in 2018 and in 2020 we reviewed the Switch version. So which changes to the Do Not Feed the Monkeys formula were made since the original? The foundation has remained the same, so returning players will feel instantly at home, even after all this time, but the new additions make for an experience that is at least equal in quality, if not better.
Story
Decades after the events of the first game, the Primate Observation Club has only become more popular and private over the many years. Whereas in the first game, you could voluntarily join the club, now the only way to join is by inheriting a membership from a family member. Fortunately for you, your late uncle has left you his. However, membership to this exclusive club means a lifetime engagement, and you must prove your worth by being a faithful member of the POC and abide by their biddings. You will be in charge of the many stories that take place in the various ‘cages’ and because of this the game also has several alternate endings.
Graphics
Thanks to its pixel-based retro-styled graphics, the game oozes charm. It has the air of an old-school point-and-click game, with a few updated visuals compared to the previous game. Everything looks much more modern as the story is set in the future, yet it isn’t overly complicated and still feels very humane, probably because looking at aliens isn’t that interesting. From an accessibility standpoint, it’s easy to direct your attention to the relevant camera feeds on your monitor as there are plenty of visual indicators that notify you when something is happening.
Sound
Fully immersing yourself in your role of observer can be a difficult task as there are plenty of distractions going on around you. Fortunately, thanks to the game’s excellent sound design, there is a clear distinction between stuff going on in the background, like loud neighbors or things happening on the streets, and the cages you are following on the screen. If there is something interesting happening you always get an audio. The latter is quite important if you don’t want to miss anything, especially on later levels.
Gameplay
Do Not Feed the Monkeys 2099 is a point-and-click time and resource management game, where you are tasked with observing and influencing the lives of the proverbial monkeys, an eclectic group of individuals that do not know they are being watched. You are watching them through hidden cameras, with each camera referred to as a cage. It can be quite hectic and confusing at first, but the game makes it clear that failure or missing something isn’t the worst thing in the world. Each playthrough is unique and the many different cages you can unlock are entirely randomized, so your first time acts more as a trial-and-error-based tutorial. From the second playthrough onwards, you will know what to focus on or how to manage your time efficiently. There are three main aspects to the game: keeping the organization happy, managing your finances, and staying in good health. Failure to meet the requirements for one of these parameters results in a game over.
Your first task is to validate your membership with the Primate Observation Club. You start with four cages and are expected to unlock more cages within a few days. Some cages might hold research value from the Club and you will receive a request to find something out, while other interactions with said cages can lead to a monetary increase or getting a rare item delivered to your doorstep. For those who need quick cash, there are three temp jobs posted on your wall. These refresh daily, so finding out what best suits your current needs is important as some jobs will take longer or cost more energy. Also, some cages will interact at other moments during the day so when you know exactly when a cage is active it might be better to plan your job around it.
Something that is made clear from the get-go is that you cannot feed the monkeys. The people you are watching have no idea that you have an insight in their private life and directly interfering could lead to the instant end of your membership. However, you can always use gathered information to get a hold of someone and try your best to not make it too obvious that you are a spying creep. Ultimately your goal is to make it through the membership and achieve the highest rank possible, thus owning all the cages at the end of your initial trial period. This will be difficult as everything costs a lot of money and you won’t always get access to cages that net you quick profit. Most cages have highlighted items or visible text. Using these nuggets of information, you can consult the internet to find out more about your subject. The end goals for each cage are different: some require you to make the monkeys happy, while for others you need to get a fugitive arrested for example.
After playing for a while, you’ll realize that not all cages are interactive. Some of these cages are duds or distraction cages where nothing really happens. These are just filler to take your attention from more interesting cages. After several playthroughs, you are able to filter these out. By design, a playthrough will only last a few hours. As everything is randomized you can easily play multiple playthroughs, unlocking all the different endings as both your interaction and your communication with the club will have a different outcome on how that character their story arc ends. This may sound great at first, but you’ll gradually run out of content. Repetitiveness kicks in due to the randomness of the cages, and you’ll see the same stories reappear through multiple playthroughs as you aim to figure out the solutions to the final one or two cages.
Controlling the game is really simple thanks to its point-and-click nature. You just click on the items that you need and everything interactable is highlighted for your convenience. In your apartment, you only have two main locations that you switch between, namely the PC and your living space. Here you have all the items within arm’s reach, allowing for a quick micro-management of all gameplay aspects.
Conclusion
Do Not Feed the Monkeys 2099 is a great successor to the first game. The core mechanics remain the same, making it an easy title to get back into if you’ve played the first title. Meanwhile, the simplicity of the mechanics means that newcomers will get the gist after a single playthrough. The pixelated graphics give the game a retro charm and thanks to its immersive sounds and atmosphere you get the feeling you are truly inside the game. The possibilities might seem endless at first, but after a few runs, you know the outcome of most cages already. We strongly advise all those who enjoyed the first game to sink their teeth into this title, but newer players are certainly welcome to join the Primate Observation Club as well.
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