If one were to look hard at the present and consider what the future might be like, chances are the imagery might be catastrophic. The earth is warming over, essentials like healthcare and groceries are becoming increasingly expensive by the day, and people are more tense than ever. Feels like a bit of a nightmare waiting to come true, right? How could things get better at this rate?

Well, Developer Molleindustria swings in the opposite optimistic thought direction with their new game, Future? No Thanks! , where society’s ill’s have been erased and the world is on its healing journey. The only issue left might come down to your character, a grumpy old man who looks down on the softer era and has decided to check-out of life for good, rather than join it. The only thing standing between you and your healthcare provider’s planned euthanasia session is a few items of “unfinished business” needed to be experienced before the final countdown.

In the 30-minute timed demo available on Steam now, I did less of the list and more just trying to experience all I could. Future? No Thanks! is a narrative-driven open world experience where there seems to be a jest around every corner. The vision of Pittsburgh in 2045 that players will get to know through the game’s story is one built in what Molleindustria envisions an ecosocialist society could be like, while also taking comic jabs as to not get too serious with the concept.

Using a motorized wheelchair players can summon out of thin air, I immediately went to speak with some of the figures seen in the trailer. Many of the characters have extensive dialogue trees, like the front desk nurse at the Bernie Sanders Medical Center, or the “Public Safety Officer” in a pig uniform just outside the starting complex. While I might not personally reflect the nuances of our main character, watching him attempt to poorly deliver pick-up lines, question any and all authorities there to help, and feel a bit confused while trying to rationalize futuristic technology had me grinning and laughing along.

While the full map looks smaller initially, moving around it did not feel that way. The subway system is the main hub in how to easily move around in-game outside of the speedy wheelchair, and each I was able to explore within the 30-minute span seemed to hold so many secrets. The one big quest I seemed to be on the trail of was finding and trying a coke on the North side of town. After speaking (and hitting on) a demolition worker clad in an Aliens’ mech suit, the directions given took me to the remains of the city’s last mall, buried in overgrown forest foliage where abandoned suburban homes also decorated the mountain landscape beyond. After learning of would-be treasure seekers also looking for the mall never came back, it was up to us to be the first.

Around that point, the timed demo cut out, blocking me from reentering the Pittsburgh utopia until I’d purchased the main game. I’d easily lost track of the time in-game though, so once it’s possible to make the future trip again, the modernized forest temple awaits.

The parts of the city I got to experience in the full game trial seemed to have so much to check out and experience, from hilariously written banter to sight gags and little pop culture easter eggs. The game itself is a fun vision of what the future could be like, and if the final outcome is what I think, both me and our main character might see a few glimmers of hope yet. ~

Future? No Thanks! Is Available to Play NOW!
Click Here to go to the Official Steam Page

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