Dear Esther: Landmark Edition

Dear Esther is not for everyone. There's no getting around it. If you think gameplay is all the matters to a game think you will probably hate it. But if you like watching Ingmar Bergman films at midnight, listening to Vaughn-Williams while looking at the sea or reading surrealist graphic novels then this is something you must have. For those who just want a strong artistic and emotional experience Dear Ester is exactly the type of game you have been waiting for. It's a thoughtful. Calming but deeply sad game. The story is subtly told but very powerful. The Environments are stunning. The Music is perfect. And it is just the right length for what it is. As someone who has spent a lot of time in coastal Cornwall and Scotland I can say they got the lonely Celtic environment down to a T. And nothing in the game is half done. The sights and locations are all highly individual and add to the story and themes. Most movies don't have the same amount of thought put into their locations and props. If you are someone who loved games like Bioshock or Amnesia for using their setting as a character and to tell the story then rejoice. Dear Ester is up there with the best. That's not to say Dear Ester is perfect. Even if you are more interested in having an experience than raw gameplay. The fact that you can't do as much as open doors or pick up objects leaves you feeling disconnected from the world it is set in. And the game does a terrible job of giving you the illusion of free will. This is probably why it's Not as well loved as Gone Home or The Stanley parable. It's alienating. You need to put work into being drawn into the story. Almost like an old book. And It's slow. Not just that you move slow. But the narrative is drip-fed to you with long gaps with no narration. It's not for people who get easily bored. But if you are the right kind of person. The kind that likes gets excited at the thought of going to an art museum. Then you will probably find at least something about this game that sticks with you forever.

This game, at it's core, is a gorgeous and somber story. It's a very quiet and introspective game and as one of the biggest "Walking Simulators" to gain traction, it really sets a high bar for narrative story telling. Each play through draws from a pool of random props and dialogue, which makes each play through unique. It's a poster child for minimalism, which is to say it creates such an impact with very little. This is my go-to game when it's kind of a gloomy day. It only takes about an hour if you go through as fast as possible, however, I recommend exploring as much as you can in the set pieces, since they can reveal much more story. Jessica Curry paints the mood with the music in this game. Not only does it queue up right at the exact moment, the impact it leaves in it's wake leaves you wanting more. Nigel Carrington's voice really hits a home run here too. 10/10 for a eerie, gloomy, and very deeply moving story. Can't recommend it enough if you like quiet and introspective games.

Dear Esther is a game that boils interactivity down to the most simplistic thing possible: movement. As a game about movement, and finding ways to make the player move forward, it's an interesting example of how to drive a player without anything more than presenting new things for them to look at. There's miniature paths that offer glimpses at future areas, glinting lights and figures in the distance to draw the eye, and in one particular section, the level itself becomes motivation enough to continue and to see more of the inspired visual design. Unfortunately, the story is almost irrelevant to the game. It's an interesting choice to present it in a randomized, non-linear fashion, but it ends up providing at its most interesting a bit of context for what's going on. At other points, it says things that just sound very nice and meaningful to hear, but melt off your mind after a few minutes. After playing this game, I came away feeling like The Chinese Room should contract themselves out for level design in games. They got me to walk through all of Dear Esther on the strength of its presentation alone, and there's plenty of games that I get bored with despite having actual gameplay.

In and of itself I like walking simulators. A calm atmosphere, a beautiful story, an atmospheric graphic and sound design. Yes, Dear Esther has all that. But now comes the big one: 1.5 hours playing time for 9.99 Euro? I bought it at a reduced price and still feel like I paid too much. Dear Esther has his moments, I just wish I had a little more interaction. There is only one form of interaction and that is movement. And I can't influence the movement in the speed. After five minutes I was desperately looking for a button to accelerate. If I could have walked faster through the landscape, the game would have gone through in 30 minutes. I had the impression that it was an artificial method of extending the playing time. As I said, a little more interaction, such as lifting up and looking at objects, would have been desirable. The function of the zoom in and the flashlight was also only half-heartedly implented. I am a friend of minimalism but sometimes more is more. At the end there is unfortunately a bland aftertaste with the impression of a shooters on rails without shooting.