Techno Banter Review (Xbox Series X)

STAFF REVIEW of Techno Banter (Xbox Series X)

Tuesday, March 11, 2025.
by Adam Dileva

Being a modest 5’6, I’ve never aspired to being a bouncer for a club, as you usually need the height, muscles, or combination of both, and I don’t look the part of someone intimidating. Thankfully, I can live out any fantasies of being a club bouncer in Techno Banter, a wildly weird humorous battle of wits where you’ll need a sharp tongue and quick retorts, something I do excel at.

If Guybrush Threepwood was a bouncer at a club instead of being confined to his Monkey Island games, that should give you an idea of Techno Banter’s humor at every turn. Being the bouncer of the Green Door club isn’t easy though, as people don’t usually take rejection well if you don’t let them in to party. You are Nil, a bouncer returning to his old job at the local Green Door club. Your job is simple, keep out problematic patrons, and let in those looking for a good time and those that will spend money. Rainbow Drive is a neon-lit street with a number of businesses and very eccentric number of people that hang out there in the dead of night.

You’ll need to observe people in line and assess if they are a fit for your club, and if not, turn them away. While violence is an option, it’s better to insult troublesome potential guests with a clever one-liner to get them to leave out of sheer embarrassment. The dialogue is quite witty and well written, and on several occasions I found myself laughing out loud, as the insults are something I would probably come up with too.

Rainbow Drive is a unique district, filled with unique personalities and an odd nightlife. Before you start your shift at the Green Door, you’re able to explore the street freely, talking to people, getting side quests and more. Maybe you’ll come across a gang of kids that won’t initially give you the time of day, or someone that looks like a flasher but is just trying to sell things to make a buck. One guy will even tell you he's a time traveller but to make sure you don't let his younger self into the club. Go down a dark alleyway and you might find a naked old man whose lengthy beard covers his nether regions.

Certain characters will offer sidequests that result in some XP if completed, like the guy parked on the sidewalk that happens to have no wheels. He rolls down the window and through the puff of smoke and loud music, he tells you that he wants you to either reject a certain person from entering the club, or to give a weird phase to them. It’s up to you if you trust him and do so, but there’s always some interesting payoff for completing quests aside from the XP gains.

Each time you level up, you’re able to increase one of your conversation skills to a maximum of three. You can choose to increase your Manipulation skills, Intimidation, and others, depending on what you prefer. These will give you an extra advantage when it comes to your insult battles, and you’ll easily max out all the skills by the time the final night occurs.

Every night will be quite unique, nothing like the last. As you meet your boss at the door, she will give you a list of red flags to watch out for, like aggressiveness, smelliness, or people that wear blue jeans. I mean, can you trust people that wear jeans to a club? Exactly. As your shift starts, you’ll assess people in line as they walk up, observing them, taking notes of their attitude or why they want to come to the party. Is the dude that’s clearly having a roid rage fit a good person to let in? Probably not. Same goes for the creepy dude that seems to be a womanizer.

Every person is quite unique from the rest, some being anthropomorphic, and it will come down to your judge of character to decide who gets in and who doesn’t. Every single character was memorable in its own way and quite diverse, the ones you need to reject especially.

People don’t like being told no, and so sometimes you’ll need to defend yourself, either avoiding physical attacks or retaliating with witty quips. Many of the rejections are played out through dialogue choices, but you’ll only be successful if you choose the ‘right’ retort to something they say. Choose incorrectly enough and you won’t be able to stop them from entering the club, so make sure to read the lines carefully. There will be a few guests that would rather use fists or other means of harm instead of words, so you’ll play some minigames where you’ll need to avoid sections of the screen with an icon of your face. Health, for you and them, is essentially hurt feelings, and once it’s depleted that person ‘loses’. These minigames don’t teach you what to do or how to play beforehand, so you got to be quick to learn.

Let the right guests in and your star rating for the club that night will be high, earning you more pay. Earning enough stars will also let you choose a club upgrade at the end of the night. Do you prioritize a better sound system, bigger bar, lighting system, or a VIP section? It’s up to you and it’s interesting to see your guests in the club before you end the night partying.

I did run into one glitch where the screen wouldn’t stop shaking, making me unable to enter the club and causing me to reload the last save. Thankfully it auto saves at the start of each shift, and you’re able to manually save when you’re at the club bathroom or in your small apartment.

For how quirky the gameplay and premise is, the visuals are unique for its experience as well. Played in first person, you explore a 3D environment, but all the characters are in 2D, rotating with your viewpoint. They are animated well when dealing with them in line, and it just adds to how memorable how Techno Banter is. The real treat is the fantastic techno soundtrack. Being developed in Germany, Techno Banter uses real Berlin based DJ’s, and I caught myself a few times just vibing to the music inside the club once I finished dealing with the line outside.

While it’s a short career at just a few hours, it’s certainly a memorable one. Techno Banter is filled with hilarious and clever writing that’s sure to illicit some laughs. It’s an odd premise but it works surprisingly well and is wildly weird in all the best ways.

**Techno Banter was provided by the publisher and reviewed on an Xbox Series X**

Overall: 7.7 / 10
Gameplay: 7.5 / 10
Visuals: 7.5 / 10
Sound: 8.0 / 10

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STAFF REVIEW of Techno Banter (Xbox Series X)

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