It's easy to tell what As Dusk Falls is going for at a glance. Between As Dusk Falls' limited animation graphic novel style, and its gritty down-to-earth story, it's clear that it's going for an interactive version of prestige TV.
It's a fitting move for Interior/Night. The studio was founded by former Quantic Dream developers, who cut their teeth on cinematic experiences. It makes sense that its first outing would be a smaller-scale version of that.
Still, Prestige TV shows can have very variable lengths. They can be self-contained miniseries, like Netflix's The Queen's Gambit, or they can be sprawling stories crossing multiple seasons and series, like Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. Where does As Dusk Falls land on that spectrum?
As Dusk Falls' Length and Chapter List
As Dusk Falls is split into six chapters, whose names are listed below:
- Chapter 1: Desert Dream
- Chapter 2: Economics 101
- Chapter 3: Small Seconds
- Chapter 4: Shima
- Chapter 5: Paradise Found
- Chapter 6: Cascade
Each chapter takes about an hour to finish, depending on the choices the player makes and how quickly they make them. A single playthrough will take about 6-7 hours.
This number, of course, does not take into account replay value. As Dusk Falls is a choice-based game, and if a player wants to complete the game's flowchart and see every possible permutation of the story, their playtime will triple, going for about 20 hours.
Players can justify further playthroughs with As Dusk Falls' multiplayer mode. Similar to party games like the Jackbox Party Packs, players can vote for decisions using their phone as a controller. Even if someone knows how the story will go, they can have fun guiding unaware co-op partners through the game.
Still, it's not surprising if someone doesn't bother going the extra mile, just being content with their singular playthrough and ending. For that kind of player, the 6-7 hour length might not justify the game's asking price. Thankfully, Ask Dusk Falls is also available for Xbox Game Pass, so trying it is a lower investment for subscribers.
Ad Dusk Falls is available now for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.