Suppressed uses a strange mix of platforming and point and click adventure-style gameplay to relay a powerful, shocking and very emotional story modelled on the plight of citizens of North Korea. A game in which you play a young mixed-race boy who attempts to escape the dictatorship of his home country to a neighbouring country where he will no longer be in constant fear for his life.
Suppressed is set across fictional country’s that are split into the East and the West – which to all intents and purposes are an allegory for North and South Korea. You play a young boy who has lived in the dictatorship of East all his life, but your father is from the West and says life is better over there, and plans for the whole family to escape to the West during the celebrations for ‘your glorious leader’. Unfortunately, before your family makes their escape (in one of the most powerful and shocking scenes you’ll ever experience in a game) your family is caught by the governments enforcers and only you manage to escape. You have no chance of saving them, but your mother’s wishes were for you to escape to the East, so that’s what you’re going to do.
Once you get past the harrowing intro, Suppressed changes into a slightly odd point and click adventure/platformer hybrid. The platforming can be little clunky and the UI is a little strange, but the artwork and story will pull you through, as you solve puzzles and assist other citizens on your journey to the West.
The depiction of crimes against humanity doesn’t make Suppressed a pleasant experience, but it’s certainly a compelling and emotional experience that helps you appreciate the horrors that those in North Korea have to endure every day. It’s a powerful narrative, and much like the character in the game, there are some things you can’t un-see – no matter how hard you try, you’ll always remember the atrocities committed in the East.
Controls: Arrow Keys Movement, Spacebar – Jump, Z – Inventory, X – Interact, Mouse – Select Dialogue/Inventory Item
Available On: Windows, Mac & Linux
Warning: Suppressed does not shy away from depicting the crimes against humanity found in a North Korea-style dictatorship. The graphic imagery in the opening sequence may genuinely shock some players.