What Remains of Edith Finch

First, let me say that this text is spoiler free. You should avoid spoilers at any cost for this game, as discovering the story will be a delightful experience. This is not a challenging game, where your objective is to overcome obstacles, and there is no way to fail or die. There are no puzzles, no enemies. In this title, you'll walk through a house, while you hear the story of the Finch family. What makes this title unique, is that it uses different gaming mechanics in favor of the narrative. It will make you experience it's world in different perspectives, through different views. It will create the perfect atmosphere for each moment. This approach to storytelling works extremely well, and it will make you feel, rather than passively observe as an spectator. Although short, this game is truly amazing. If you love stories - be it books, movies or any other media - you'll enjoy this game. If you're interested in new ways to experience video games, or creative ways to use gaming mechanics, you'll enjoy this title. If you're more into action or puzzles, well... Even you might enjoy this game, just don't expect to find any of this here. This game literally guides you through a scripted path. But it's a very enjoyable experience nonetheless.

This is the type of game I would never have imagined playing, but it was discounted and I ended up playing it in one sitting, then another time, perhaps even another after that I'm not too sure. It's what some would call a walking simulator, the controls are to walk and interact, thats about it most of the time, and it's not what you're here for anyway. It's all about the story, one you experience through several layers of unreliable narrators and surreal visuals. It's a story about a notoriously doomed family and how all but one of the members (your character) supposedly met their fate at the hands of their family's curse. you uncover each story as you explore the very old and weirdly constructed Finch house, a testament of the finch's obsession with their own curse. The warning in the title is because while the game never depicts the deaths in a graphic manner and deals with that in a very poetic way, some of the Finches died very young, and none died peacefully; I'll leave it at that.

I slept on this game for a while, but kept hearing a lot of talk about it. All good talk. Finally, I grabbed it on sale. My word... This was a different experience. Wandering through an abandoned house, slowly unlocking rooms and finding journal entries. Each entry is then played through as it's own mini-game. Each entry comes with it's own unique play-style and graphic design, but the stories are all connected. What doom befell this family? Why was the house abandoned? What remains of Edith Finch? The soundtrack is also superb. Also, in case you didn't know, I want to mention, for those who may be sensitive to this sort of thing, that all the min-games are ultimately tales of how people died. This may seem gruesome, but it isn't too gruesome or visually disturbing. It's just knowing that characters died through different situations. Some are downright Lovecraftian, others just disturbing. But, it all works well together to form a wonderfully unique story and gaming experience. Gameplay is walking simulator style, with very minimal puzzle solving. Try this game if you really enjoy a good story. I highly recommend it!

A breaktaking walk through the imagination and lives of characters. Truly some of the ways that the story is told are so well thought that I cannot think of a game like it. Although there is a fantastical element to the characters stories, there is so much that I could relate to, that took me back to memories of my childhood. It also has a beautifully realised enviroment that tells its own tale and is a joy to walk through. One for those that are happy to have their hand held through the experience. But in my mind its great to experience interactively the tale a character as to tell me.

I left this game in tears. What a beautiful experience. Thank you! I feel a deep connection with the game and developers. It is a rather short but extremely packed, story-driven game rich in atmosphere and character. I caught myself thinking much about my own life and connection with myself and my family. Without saying to much: Edith returns to her family's house some years after she has moved out. All her familiy members died years ago and she discovers the story of each one of them. I got to know and love every family member in this short period of time (three evenings of gameplay for me) and am thankful for this very well written and inspiring game.