It's been a long time since I've been so moved by a video game. Armaan Sandhu's writing is poised and contains just the perfect amount of pathos. Even though it's a subject that's been approached many times, the story doesn't resort to tropes or make caricatures out of its characters. They are very human and it's difficult to say that one person is bad while another is good. Even the way a lot of the difficult subjects are handled is very mature and sensitive. There's a lot of trauma here, and none of it feels like it's only been included as a plot device. There's also some humour, too, and it can be a welcome addition to the otherwise very heavy yet realistic depictions of people living with trauma. I can definitely see the disappointment shared by people who expected an adventure game because it is mostly not. It's an interactive fiction game at best. There are some minor complaints: the game mechanics can be very buggy at times, and grammatical/punctuation errors and localisation problems exist. I believe this story is supposed to be set in America, but the characters speak in UK vernacular. However, these problems weren't distracting enough for me to stop playing, or be thrown off. Coupled with the great writing is Micamic's gorgeous score—I think it best shines in the flashback scenes with Chris and Diane. And it's graphically beautiful, too. The camera often zooms out to show the grandeur of Pineview and all the douglas-fir surrounding the town. There's often rain, and traversing the town is never a chore because it feels like you're actually visiting a small town somewhere in the Pacific Northwest. Overall, I understand that it's not for everyone. But if you are even remotely interested in experiencing a story about trauma, loss, grief, and—ultimately—hope, please give this a try.
