In spite of a fascinating setting and some seriously screwed-up design choices, Baroque is a promising experimental heap gone all wrong. You control a silent protagonist in a blasted hellish wasteland, surrounded by deformed survivors and painfully aware of the fact that you're slowly dying of starvation. Your only hope of discovering what's going on is to explore the nearby tower in which a mad goddess resides. Repeatedly. Dozens of times. Hundreds. The gameplay itself is mediocre, and while progress will gradually unlock the full story (it's still pretty confusing), getting there requires you to farm for particular item drops during game runs that take much too long for their own good, and the lack of new areas to explore or things to do makes the experience agonizing. Baroque gets a second star in recognition of the awesome art, dialogue, and concept, but is otherwise a complete flop.