Disco Elysium was originally released at the tail-end of 2019, and I called it an incredibly bleak and gritty experience overall. It’s a tough game to play and it can be overwhelming, but just the sheer depth of the story and its character interactions make it worth checking out at the very least.
With the release of Disco Elysium: The Final Cut, the base game has been enhanced even further. This is a good time for newcomers to check it out, and for those who have already played the original release to return and see what’s new. Here are three reasons why you should be playing Disco Elysium: The Final Cut.
The Voice Acting
Easily the biggest and most impactful addition to Final Cut, the voiced lines in Disco Elysium truly help to bring the characters and world alive. Whereas you only had short sound clips and sound effects to indicate when a new voice was speaking in the game, the voice acting adds so much life and character to the overall experience.
Kim Kitsuragi sounds every bit as cynical and weary as you might’ve imagined his voice in your head, but I’d be remiss not to mention the internal voices that plague the detective every step of the way. The luxuriously written dialogue is perfectly brought to life by the deep and rich voice acting, and the voices sound seriously creepy whenever they taunt the detective with his deep-rooted insecurities.
It certainly takes some getting used to, but the voice acting alone makes Final Cut well worth a second look if you’ve already played the original release.
New Quests and Characters
Aside from just fancy new voice acting, Disco Elysium: The Final Cut also introduces four new quests that will allow you to meet a few new characters as well. As if the world of Martinaise wasn’t nuanced and complex enough already, these quests are meant to flesh out the worldview of the protagonist, and add even more lore to the setting overall.
It’s unclear yet whether these quests will have any bearing on the final act of the game, which is probably the weakest part of the original release, but if nothing else, the new content will at least give players even more to enjoy before the ending. Plus, it’s always exciting to meet new characters and see what they bring to the table.
Improved Performance
Not that the original release performed poorly or anything, but Final Cut features some enhancements to make the game run even smoother. There’s support for higher frame rates, not just on PC, but on consoles as well. It’s also way easier for players to move between previously visited locations, which cuts down a lot of wasted time spent clicking on the screen and waiting for the detective to walk slowly from one point to another.
There’s new music and new animations in the game, and the visuals have been cleaned up a bit. Essentially, this is the definitive edition of Disco Elysium, and it enhances what was already an outstanding CRPG.
Disco Elysium: The Final Cut is now available on PC and PlayStation, and will be coming to Xbox and Switch in the future.