Wanderlust: Travel Stories

My hobbies are reading and travelling. This might not be a game but it is worth every bucks for me. I got to know places and cultures that I have never known. I wish there would have been a variety of choices but that's okay because this is a rare gem!

I agree with the other reviewer in saying this isn't really a game. It is a set of stories with some choices, though I question how much affect your choices really have (I'll get to that later), set to some stock photos. It wasn't really an interesting experience to me. I would have expected more than just a bunch of still stock photos to some badly written stories while I was playing. I was expecting something like 80 Days where I felt like my choices mattered. Here it seems like you are more railroaded in to a specific decision or that it doesn't seem like your decision matters because the story plays out the same no matter what. For example it is annoying to choose to do an option and basically being told "Nope, can't do that." All in all, I wish I could get my money back. It certainly isn't worth the full price.

This is not your average visual novel! This is a gentle text-based examiation of the experiences of a group of people who meet on Easter Island. Each individual story offers the player choices that cover how the traveller feels, the choices he/she makes and their reactions to their trips, and the options you choose affect the experience of the story-teller. It is possible to take "side-teerips" and get a more intimate feel for the charaters and the people they meet, by clicking on active links within the stories. There are no brownie points for speeding through this game: the music and the lovely illustrations are worth spending time over and the stories themselves bring the places alive. Its great armchair travel and you can control how smpathetic you make your fellow travellers by controlling thir moods and taking them out of their comfort zones.. This well-written visual nvel stands out from the others i have played through sheer quality, and its a delightful change from the frantic pace of most modern games. If you wat to enjoy a bit of time out and enjoy a trip at the same time, this is for you. The individual chapters ar not too long, but long enough that when it ends, it leaves you wanting more.

The game showcases many ways of traveling in the world -- it's not just about being a rich tourist going to picturesque spots. Some of the characters are interested in people. Some are into landscapes. Some are really only interested in themselves. With the ambient sounds, gentle music, and nice photos, I found it relaxing and absorbing, as others have already said. And what's more, it made me think back on long-distance travel I've done: how wearying it can be even when it's thrilling, how it can feel like sharing and also like intruding, how it can make you feel whole or hollow day by day. This is not a fast-paced fantasy like "80 Days", and I like it for the slower, more contemplative experience it offers.

In this particular period, in which we are forced to remain at home, this game let you travel in beautiful places with your mind. It's like reading a very fascinating book, but with the addition of ambient sounds and images that immerse you in the history. There is no action, just a good story to hear...