The Big Con (video Game)
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''The Big Con'' is an
adventure game An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story, driven by exploration and/or puzzle-solving. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based m ...
developed by Mighty Yell and published by
Skybound Games Skybound Entertainment is an American multiplatform entertainment company founded by Robert Kirkman and David Alpert. It operates in concert with Image Comics. History Skybound Entertainment is the company behind the long-running comic series, ...
. It was released for
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,
Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was first released in North America, parts of Europe, Austra ...
, and
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on August 31, 2021. A
Nintendo Switch The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...
version was released on June 1, 2022. Versions for
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...
and
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were released on August 31, 2023. Set in the 1990s, the game follows Ali, a teenager who works at a
video rental store A video rental shop/store is a physical retail business that rents home videos such as movies, prerecorded TV shows, video game cartridges/discs and other media content. Typically, a rental shop conducts business with customers under conditi ...
owned by Linda, her mother. After learning that her mother owes $97,342.18 to loan sharks, she meets Ted, a
con artist A scam, or a confidence trick, is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. Confidence tricks exploit victims using a combination of the victim's credulity, naivety, compassion, vanity, confidence, irresponsibi ...
. They travel across the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, earning money to save Linda's store. The Windows version of ''The Big Con'' received favorable reviews, while the Xbox Series X/S version received mixed reviews.


Gameplay

''The Big Con'' is an
adventure game An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story, driven by exploration and/or puzzle-solving. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based m ...
where the player controls Ali, a teenager who has to raise money to save her mother's video rental store. In each location, the player has to steal a certain amount of money. Once the threshold is reached, they can continue to explore, or leave the area by talking to Ted. Ali can earn money by pickpocketing
non-player character A non-player character (NPC) is a character in a game that is not controlled by a player. The term originated in traditional tabletop role-playing games where it applies to characters controlled by the gamemaster (or referee) rather than by a ...
s (NPCs). Each NPC has an indicator that shows the amount of the cash that they hold. To successfully pickpocket a character, the player will have to play a
minigame A minigame (also spelled mini game and mini-game, sometimes called a subgame or microgame) is a short game often contained within another video game. A minigame contains different gameplay elements and is often smaller or more simplistic than th ...
where they must stop a needle in a target area. If Ali fails to pickpocket a NPC, she will have to find another disguise before attempting to pickpocket them again. If she fails three separate times, she will have to rewind
VHS VHS (Video Home System) is a discontinued standard for consumer-level analog video recording on tape cassettes, introduced in 1976 by JVC. It was the dominant home video format throughout the tape media period of the 1980s and 1990s. Ma ...
tapes at a video rental store. Ali will earn back lost money after completing this task. Ali can also earn money by collecting items and selling them to a pawnbroker. Ali can additionally accept
sidequests A quest, or mission, is a task within video games that a player-controlled character, party, or group of characters may complete in order to gain a reward. Quests are most commonly seen in role-playing games and massively multiplayer online ...
from NPCs.


Development and release

''The Big Con'' was developed by
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
-based developer Mighty Yell. The developers set the game in the 1990s to make the plot "easier to believe", and allow for a "bright and colorful" palette. Saffron Aurora, the game's artist, used cartoons such as ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'', ''
Hey Arnold! ''Hey Arnold!'' is an American animated sitcom created by Craig Bartlett for Nickelodeon. It originally aired from October 7, 1996, to June 8, 2004. The show centers on fourth grader Arnold Shortman, who lives with his grandparents in an inner ...
'', and ''Doug'' to form the game's art style. Ali is voiced by
Erika Ishii Erika Mari Ishii (born March 7, 1987) is an American voice actor and Television presenter, host. They are best known as the voice of video game characters such as Valkyrie in ''Apex Legends'', and for their appearances in actual play web series ...
, and Rad Ghost is voiced by
Dave Fennoy Dave Fennoy is an American voice actor. His video game roles have included Lee Everett in '' The Walking Dead'', Bluebeard in ''The Wolf Among Us'', Finch in ''Tales from the Borderlands'', Gabriel the Warrior in '' Minecraft: Story Mode'', ...
. The team won $50,000 at the 2018 Gaming Pitch Competition at
EGLX Enthusiast Gaming Holdings Inc. is a Canadian digital media company specializing in video game journalism. Founded in 2014 by entrepreneur Menashe Kestenbaum, the company owned the websites ''Destructoid'' and ''Escapist Magazine'' from 2014 to ...
. ''The Big Con'' was featured at PAX West 2019 and at PAX East 2020. A teaser trailer was also released in 2020. In March 2021, the game was shown off at the
ID@Xbox ID@Xbox (Independent Developers @ Xbox) is a program by Microsoft allowing independent video game developers to self-publish titles for Windows, and the Xbox One and Xbox Series X and Series S home video game consoles. Overview ID@Xbox was ann ...
showcase. In May,
Skybound Games Skybound Entertainment is an American multiplatform entertainment company founded by Robert Kirkman and David Alpert. It operates in concert with Image Comics. History Skybound Entertainment is the company behind the long-running comic series, ...
partnered with Mighty Yell to publish the game. In June,
Melissa Joan Hart Melissa Joan Hart (born April 18, 1976) is an American actress. She had starring roles as the title characters in the sitcoms ''Clarissa Explains It All'' (1991–1994), ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch (1996 TV series), Sabrina the Teenage Witch'' (1 ...
presented the game in at Tribeca Festival. The game's demo was available during the Steam Next Fest. ''The Big Con'''s theme song was performed by
Rockapella Rockapella is an American a cappella musical group formed in 1986 in New York City. The group's name is a portmanteau of "rock" and "a cappella". Rockapella sings original vocal music and a cappella versions of other songs. Over time, their sound ...
, and the soundtrack was composed by Dan Rodrigues. The game was announced for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on May 12. It was scheduled to release that summer. The game's August 31 release date was announced in July. Mighty Yell held a contest to choose a voice actor for a
non-player character A non-player character (NPC) is a character in a game that is not controlled by a player. The term originated in traditional tabletop role-playing games where it applies to characters controlled by the gamemaster (or referee) rather than by a ...
in the game. The winner would receive a copy of the game and a T-shirt. ''The Big Con'''s demo was playable at PAX East 2022. A Nintendo Switch version titled ''The Big Con: Grift of the Year Edition'' was released on June 1, 2022. ''The Big Con: Grift of the Year Edition'' was also released for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.


Reception

''The Big Con'' received generally favorable reviews, according to review aggregator
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
. ''
GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
'''s Andrew King praised the "vibrant" art style and complemented the game's music. King felt that the pickpocketing minigame was "confusing" and thought that the story was "familiar". Kyle LeClair from ''Hardcore Gamer'' felt that the game's con jobs provided "clever" puzzles and "fun" gameplay. Miles Dompier from ''
Windows Central Future plc is a British publishing company. It was started in 1985 by Chris Anderson. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History 1985–2012 The company was founded by Chris Anderson as ...
'' called the game's story "touching" and "relatable", but felt that the gameplay loop became repetitive. Dompier recommended ''The Big Con'' for fans of adventure games. ''
Eurogamer ''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 alongside parent company Gamer Network. In 2008, it started in the formerly eponymous trade fair EGX (Eurogamer Expo until 2013) organised by its parent company. Fr ...
'' recommended ''The Big Con'' as an "endearing adventure". Miri Teixeira from ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...
'' praised the "immersive" levels, but criticized the controls. ''Nintendo World Report'''s Neal Ronaghan wrote that ''The Big Con'' was a "stylish" game with a "good balance". Ozzie Meija from ''
Shacknews ''Shacknews'' is an American video game journalism website founded in 1996. It that publishes news articles, reviews, and cheat codes. History ''Shacknews'' was founded in 1996 by Steve Gibson. The website, originally named 'Quakeholio', was ...
'' called the game "intriguing" and described Ali as a "fun" character. He believed that the dialogue was "hit-and-miss" and felt that the pickpocketing mechanic became repetitive.


Nominations

''The Big Con'' received a honorable mention for the Excellence in Narrative award at the
Independent Games Festival The Independent Games Festival (IGF) is an annual festival at the Game Developers Conference (GDC), the largest annual gathering of the independent video game industry. Originally founded in 1998 to promote independent video game developers, ...
. At the Canadian Game Awards, the game was nominated for Best Indie Game and Best Score/Soundtrack. The game received a nomination for Best Audio for an Indie Game at the 2022
Game Audio Network Guild Awards A game is a structured type of play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or video games) or art (suc ...
, and received a honorable mention at the A MAZE. Awards.


References

; Notes ; References


External links


Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Big Con, The 2021 video games Adventure games Indie games Nintendo Switch games PlayStation 4 games PlayStation 5 games Single-player video games Skybound Games games Video games about crime Video games about ghosts Video games developed in Canada Video games featuring female protagonists Video games set in the 1990s Video games set in the United States Video games with isometric graphics Windows games Xbox Cloud Gaming games Xbox One games Xbox Series X and Series S games