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Lost Records: Bloom and Rage is a brand new narrative adventure from Don't Nod Entertainment, the studio behind the critically acclaimed episodic adventure title Life is Strange, so based on that information, you pretty much know what to expect from this one - strong writing, memorable characters and mysterious but emotional story that will make you shed a tear or two by the time the end credits start rolling.
I've got to play Lost Records: Bloom and Rage for around an hour but I can already tell that the intrigue and charm are certainly there.
The game follows Swann, a forty-three-year-old woman who returns to her hometown in Michigan's Upper Peninsula to meet with three of her best friends, 27 years after a strange event made them promise to never see each other again.
In the demo that I got to play, the game switched between two time periods - 2022, which is when Swann returns to the town and 1995, when she was a teenager and first met Autumn, Nora and Kat and when the mysterious event that changed their lives forever took place.
The demo was curated in a way to show different parts of the game, different environments and the evolution of the girls' friendship and I must say it did a pretty good job of intriguing me to learn more.
Unfortunately, the mysterious event that was described at the start of the game was only teased at the end of the demo and from what I could understand, it seems to be some kind of a supernatural occurrence.
And while the mystery and intrigue are set to take a central part in this story, the relationship between Swann and her friends is what's also in the spotlight.
The game emphasises dialogue and player choice, which will affect the relationship between Swann and the other girls, who, by the way, have their own band and are rocking it in the garage, like true rebellious teens.
During conversations, you'll be able to provide answers to what music and films Swann likes for example, to which other girls will react in different ways. Many times in the demo, I had the chance to comment on specific things or stay silent. Both will be crucial in building trust between your character and the rest of the girls.
In terms of gameplay, the Lost Records: Bloom and Rage demo that I got to play is more or less a walking simulator where you explore around to discover things that may provide more details on the characters or the story.
Swann also owns a camcorder and it's one of her hobbies to record pretty much everything so you'll spend a lot of time capturing your friends and things you do together like going on a hike into the woods or playing music in the garage and so on.
The game has an interesting mechanic that mixes all your recordings into a full video so you can watch it later and Autumn, Nora and Kat will even comment on specific shots and how much of a good job you did. A really nice touch!
Visually, Lost Records: Bloom and Rage utilises stylised graphics, akin to Life is Strange, albeit with much more detail.
Environments are packed with objects and character models look impressive, especially the hair rendering on Autumn. All of this creates a believable presentation which makes you feel like you're actually there with Swann, as she's packing in her room, recording birds in the forest or sitting at a diner in the middle of the night talking to her friend. In a nutshell, Lost Records: Bloom and Rage looks gorgeous.
In my playthrough, I did encounter some bugs and the performance wasn't optimal but that's expected for a game that is still several months from release.
Overall, in one hour of gameplay that I got to experience, Lost Records: Bloom and Rage managed to capture my attention and certainly make me want to see more of this world.
