Game Review: BROK: Natal Tail, A New Christmas Special (Xbox Series X)

Not content with giving us one brand-new game this month with BROK: The Brawl Bar, COWCAT really dives into the festive period with BROK: Natal Tail, A New Christmas Special. Another game set within the world of BROK the InvestiGator, albeit one without much actual gameplay seeing as it’s a visual novel. Aside from the occasional choice that needs to be made, players can sit back, get cosy, and enjoy an adorable story, but one with plenty of heart and soul.

That shouldn’t be too much of a surprise though, seeing as meaningful stories are inherent within the world of BROK. However, new players may not be too prepared for the range of emotions this story traverses. BROK: Natal Tail, A New Christmas Special deals with some surprisingly heavy subjects, so if you’re expecting jolly holly Christmas content, be prepared for a rollercoaster.

A prequel to BROK the InvestiGator, BROK: Natal Tail, A New Christmas Special focuses on Graff, BROK’s stepson, and Ott, Graff’s best friend. The pair are working to become ‘Drummers’ and part of that process involves them celebrating ‘Natal Untail’, a corrupted version of Atlasia’s ancient tradition. Unfortunately, like so much in this world, it pits person against person and even best friends like Graff and Ott will have to learn some hard lessons.

It’s a story about sharing, a story about sacrifice, and a story about sticking together no matter what, especially when it comes to doing what is right. BROK: Natal Tail, A New Christmas Special lessons are good ones, and the story is told in an interesting way. Especially when you take into account the decisions that you can make. Most of which seem minor but end up have major ramifications.

The story can be completed in about an hour, and most of that is simply reading, admiring the colourful visuals and detail, and letting the music wash over you softly. It’s an immersive hour though, and to complete it fully, seeing how the story might have played out if you made a different decision, extends it to about two hours overall. Which, considering the low price point, is more than enough, even if there’s pretty much no replay value once the story is fully complete.

As always, what makes a game like this special is its story depth and detailed characters, and most will be more than happy to spend more time in the company of Brok, Graff, Ott, and others, even if its depressive tone makes this less of a festive treat.