Since I had heard so much praise about this game, my expectations were (perhaps a little too) high, which in the end made me feel a little disappointed. Anyhow, Jazzpunk starts off strong with one of the best intros ever, rivaling D4 which also came out in 2014. A lose narrative flings a series of strange scenarios your way as you encounter clever gags in a weird cold war/sci-fi/tripping balls world. The very British humor and pleasing, colourful cartoon aesthetic are what grabbed me and are the main selling point as there isn't any 'gameplay' to speak of, and that's fine as its a first person adventure game.
The ssstylllle is great, but it lacks substance. I almost wish it was a little more grounded and had a plot with characters as this really is just a series of entertaining gags, a gallery of tricks, an interactive panto. So this is where my main complaint comes in. The jokes are all very dispersed inside the level so although they come thick and fast, I found myself searching endlessly for the last few jokes or the main objective so I could move on. The gags mostly raised a chuckle out of me but they weren't enough. The first person view point means you have to travel around in real time, searching to poke and prod the game for the next entertaining moment which can feel tedious, especially at the beach level where the game really drags. It almost made me feel like the game would have been better paced if it was a traditional point and click adventure so that I could just get to the next scene.
With that said I did enjoy the game; mostly in the more contained, linear areas with no worry about were to go. The humor wont be for everyone but the timing is generally good and sometimes impeccable, heightened by the player interaction to an extent. Alas, the problem with these kinds of games is that they can be mostly enjoyed simply by watching a let's play on YouTube instead of playing yourself. However I do think the interaction makes some of the gags feel more immediate and funny.
Whether this interesting curiosity is worth your money is worth considering. It was a steam sale immediate purchase for me but I can't recommend it at full price on account of it's short length, lackluster pacing and lack of substance. In terms of replay-ability, well, your bound to miss a few moments the first time round and there are sometimes multiple choice decisions so bear that in mind! A fun curiosity is what this ended up to be for me, a cautious recommendation at sale price!