Cyberpunk Bartending Game VA-11 HALL-A Slides a Drink Towards Consoles

By Chris Aiken | May 16, 2018 | 5:02pm

Images via Ysbryd Games

Video Games News VA-11 HALL-A

Cyberpunk Bartending Game VA-11 HALL-A Slides a Drink Towards Consoles

You got to love a good spin on the classic point-and-click adventure genre, and VA-11 HALL-A is as wacky and wonderfully weird as they come. Now, the indie game is making its way onto the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 sometime in early 2019, according to publisher Ysbryd Games.

VA-11 HALL-A originally came to life as a prototype for the Cyberpunk Game Jam. In fact, the prototype is still available on developer Sukeban Games’ website. Eventually, Sukeban Games developed the concept into a full game. VA-11 HALL-A’s full version was released for the PC in June 2016, as well as a PS Vita version later in 2017. The game is critically beloved and has more than 200,00 copies sold through Steam.

The premise of VA-11 HALL-A is pretty simple: It’s a mix of a point-and-click adventure and visual novel. You play as a bartender named Jill who lives in a dystopian cyberpunk world. There are over 24 different drinks that players can make for patrons. How the story unfolds depends upon which drinks you serve and which customer you’re serving. Each drink can produce a different conversation with a bar patron, revealing more about the world. It’s interesting to see a game’s story be told in such a nonlinear way.

“We were inspired by old-school adventure games, and really wanted to create a narrative experience without the pressures of obtaining a particular ending,” said Christoper “Kiririn51” Ortiz, co-founder, Sukeban Games. “Every story you hear is important, and drinks served to even the supporting characters can have tangible impacts on progression through the game.”