The end of the year is the perfect time for MeinMMO editor Lydia to tackle a few titles from her endless backlog on Steam. One game has taken up more of her time than expected.
Between baking cookies, buying the last gifts, and getting the place ready for the family visit, I didn’t have much time – or inner peace – for gaming before Christmas. I didn’t want to start an epic adventure just to have to interrupt it after an hour or two because something else needed to be done.
Instead, I decided to tackle my Pile of Shame, which has grown alarmingly over years of Steam sales and bundles. I looked for titles with a playtime of just a few hours, perfect to finish in an afternoon before Christmas.
On a bit of a whim, I started Overboard!, an adventure game by Inkle from 2021. Honestly, I don’t even know how it ended up in my library. But as a big fan of detective games, the premise of being the murderer myself and needing to cover up my crime attracted me – and before I knew it, I was hooked.
The life insurance only pays out if someone else goes to jail…
In Overboard!, we take on the role of former actress Veronica Villensey, who has seen better days. On the voyage to America, she disposes of her unfaithful husband to collect the life insurance and start anew.
With 8 hours until arrival in New York, it is essential to divert suspicion away from herself, so that her new life doesn’t start off less than glamorous in jail.
This endeavor isn’t difficult in itself: While I got tangled in contradictions during my first run, I managed to convince my fellow travelers of my innocence during my second attempt and even hooked the dashing ship’s captain.
A run takes about 30 minutes, which is quite short, and the experience left me feeling somewhat unsatisfied with a “Is that all?”. But alright, I wanted a little gaming snack, and theoretically, nothing should have stopped me from checking off the game and focusing on something else. If it weren’t for one detail.
Because as Veronica – and I – quickly find out, life insurance doesn’t pay out in cases of suicide. It’s not enough to convince everyone that my spouse threw himself into the waves – I needed a murderer.
The next days were spent coming up with more and more devious plans to optimize my timing and commit the perfect murder. I found that I had fun, even when I wasn’t technically playing.
Because after each run, when I put away my Steam Deck, I immediately started planning my next run: What could I do differently next time? Maybe take the sleeping pills first and then… Would I still have enough time for my rendezvous with the captain?
The game itself provides some additional incentives. For example, you can also con the young Englishman out of his money while playing cards, or chat with God in the chapel… or whatever pretends to be that.
For a game that was only supposed to fill a cold afternoon, Overboard! kept me occupied this way for several days, even though the playtime on Steam ended up being just a few hours.
For the full price, that might seem too little for some, but conveniently, the title is currently 50% off in the winter sale until January 5, 2026, on Steam, costing only €6.24. If you want, you can also get the sequel Expelled!, which was released in March on Steam.
After Christmas, I finally had the muse to engage in a somewhat more intensive gaming project, and I started catching up on the game that probably no one could escape this year: Clair Obscur. Now I can also understand why the role-playing game has captivated so many – and is now already attracting the first imitators.
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