Before starting this review, I attempted to research the time management genre, inadvertently discovering an unexplored world filled with countless colourful farming and cooking games for PC and mobiles – most of which have either the word ‘frenzy’ or ‘mania’ in their titles. The Kindeman Remedy falls into the same genre but is the polar opposite, commencing with a warning screen for its graphic content, while also featuring a morally dubious – although intriguing – premise. Those hooked on Farm Frenzy are probably going to go through life blissfully unaware of The Kindeman Remedy’s existence; it’s for a very discerning audience.
We’re introduced to Dr. Kindeman, a live-in doctor at a dilapidated prison who’s always on hand to perform operations, prepare the inmate’s medications, and oversee executions. He isn’t alone in this seemingly thankless profession, joined by Sister Anna – a nun with a questionable outlook to the prisoner’s wellbeing, believing sinners should be judged by our lord almighty. Kindeman is on the brink of a medical breakthrough that can allegedly change the world, but progress has reached the point where human test subjects are required. Forever resourceful, Kindeman has found a way to fake executions, meaning his experiments can continue – but can he keep this act up without the prison officials and executioners becoming suspicious?
This is a follow-up to the Sweeny Todd inspired Ravenous Devils, another time management game. It shares similarities, only it’s larger in scale. Like before, commands are issued to the protagonists, and the focus is on running an organization smoothly. The duo isn’t controlled directly but rather with a cursor, and can be swapped between using LR/RB. Up to three commands can be issued at once, which is enough for most menial tasks. The time management aspect mostly ties into creating batches of pills in advance so there’s enough for when the doors open in the morning, and then creating enough for an afternoon refill.
The tutorial is of the step-by-step variety, and time is also spent expanding the storyline within the first hour or so. Things start out simple, with part of the prison off limits until a firm grasp on the core mechanics has been established. Kindeman and Sister Anna tirelessly work through day and night, gaining access to different areas. During the day, Kindeman prepares pills and drips, performs check-ups on death row inmates, and later operates on the sick. Pills and drips are then sent upstairs to Sister Anna, who can fill dispensaries and carry out other nurse duties.
At night things take a twisted turn. Kindeman heads to the lower levels to perform experiments in the morgue and a secret torture room, lobbing lifeless bodies off a cliff when they’re no longer of use. During torture scenes, it’s possible to select which tools to use and on which body parts. The camera is panned out too far for it to be considered graphic, but there’s still plenty of claret. The idea is to perform every torture type possible, with a check list available. Alternatively, prisoners can be freed if you have a change of heart. Over in the morgue, bodies must be drained of fluids to create the serum used for faking executions. It’s also vital to phone a third-party individual, of questionable trustiness, to secure the next victim. Overlook this step and Kindeman’s breakthrough progress will falter, potentially impacting the ending.
Executions take place every two days, which plays into the sense of progression; with every staged death, progress is made. It’s up to you how quickly the morgue fills though, dependant on placing poison – created by Sister Anna – into pills and drips. Bump off every inmate, and your reputation will drop and suspicions will rise. Choose discretely and nobody will suspect anything, and your glowing reputation will unlock more upgrades faster, speeding up everyday actions, adding more morgue tables, and so forth.
The incentives to keep playing boil down to being able to perform tasks more efficiently, while frequently edging one step closer to formulating the remedy – providing the steps for faking executions are taken. There’s the occasional cut scene that either introduces a new character or deepens the relationship between the protagonists, along with attempts at dry humour. The day-to-day operations aren’t all that exciting though; preparing pills, restocking the dispensary, and hooking up drips are mundane pursuits. A dispensary running low may cause a sense of panic, and it’s vital to look out for the pre-execution check up, but that’s about for distractions. The torture scenes don’t hold that much shock value either, essentially just being another task to tick off the box for that day with yet another short animation to watch.
The Kindeman Remedy, then, is an acquired taste – repetition, management, violence, and the occasional bout of panic all play a key part, making for a unique experience. Seeing if Dr. Kindeman’s plan comes to fruition is worth it for the toil endured – more or less. If you play it safe with bumping off inmates, you may have to schedule a second playthrough, and considering the amount of busywork involved I doubt many will want to dive straight back in.
Between this and Ravenous Devils, the developers have given us a decent snifter of what a mature time management game can offer. They haven’t perfected the formula just yet, but with each attempt, they get a little closer. Perhaps next time will be the breakthrough.
Troglobytes Games’ The Kindeman Remedy is out now on all formats. Published by 3D Realms.