Lost Records: Bloom & Rage

Is the audience for this game only teen girls? It was boring me into a coma being forced to listen to nonstop teen girl conversations. It sounded somewhat similar to the show Yellowjackets, so i was interested. But I played, drudgingly, for about 6 hours, which included me skipping every single cinematic they let me, before anything sort of interesting happened. It didn't last long though and went right back into long, dragged out, boring teen girl conversations. If i didn't invest so much time i would have turned it off. But i wanted so badly to see what the "bad" thing that happened to them so long ago was that they've been forbidden to discuss all these years! But if after 6 hours of gameplay there's still NO sign of WHAT this is, i don't think i can't take any more! I do not understand the high rating for this game at all. And they really need to let you skip alot more cutscenes than they do, because it has just been painful!

Not much of a reviewer but felt compelled to on this one.

As a millennial who was born in the late 80's this hit such a perfect sense of nostalgia to things. They nailed the overall vibe while also including that awesome sense of mystery and wonder that has been around since the first LiS. Loved the all female cast with their own personalities while trying to also show the introverted MC what it means to have a friend group. As an introvert, it's highly relatable and recommended to others. Anticipating Tape 3!

To those at Don't Nod, keep up the awesome work! Been a fan of this overall formula since LiS1!

During a perfect summer in the 90's, four girls feel drawn together to form a deep lifelong friendship. However, something horrible happened. Something they need to forget. They run, from what they did, from each other, from even their own memories. A package shows up, forcing them to reckon with their past.

It's an incredible plot, and the execution pays off. Thrown back into the summer of '95, full of the unrestricted, free feeling of a group of teen girls' last summer before college and "the real world." It's nostalgic and bittersweet. I found myself remembering aspects of my own past I had long forgotten. Sights and sounds pull you into an immersive world. And the music! Oh, the music! It's a fun blend of dreamy pop sequences and riot grrrl punk.

Each character is fleshed out here, even those that could have been 1-dimensional. Turn every stone, try out every dialog option, because there's a deep mystery here, and it deepens the more you look into it.

This is a rich game focused on characters. On growth. On dangerous mysteries and forgotten pasts. It's somehow both cozy and thrilling. I can't step away from it. In just over a month, the second half will land, and you won't want to miss that.

This game encapsulates everything I've sought in a gaming experience for many years. It brilliantly reawakens the nostalgic essence of the original "Life is Strange," or more specifically life is strange one and two while also establishing itself as a distinctly unique adventure. I am so excited to witness the success of both this game and the series as a whole. The characters are intricately crafted, with their development showcasing remarkable depth. Even though they may initially seem to conform to familiar stereotypes in terms of their appearances, their true personalities tell a different story throughout the game.

Lost Records is the newest title from the beloved (especially by me) Dontnod studio, developed by the original team behind the first two Life is Strange games. The story follows Swan, Nora, Autumn, and Kat, a group of girls who quickly form a bond - but one with a deadline, as Swan is moving away at the end of summer, while they have to deal with some problems this new friendship will bring.

To be honest, I even feel a bit guilty for not liking this game as much as I expected. I've seen people call it "the Life is Strange 3 we never got," but I couldn't fully connect with it.

The biggest issue for me is the structure. The game focuses a lot more on relationship driven choices than true consequence based decisions. And because it jumps between past and present, a lot of the outcomes are already revealed, which makes many choices feel less meaningful. The tension comes more from seeing how things affect the characters than what happens to them.

That means the characters need to be deeply compelling , and they sort of are. Dontnod does a great job building a believable, emotional friendship between them. But there's a clear focus on Kat's which overshadows the other 2 girl. It feels like the game is pushing you in one direction instead of feeling organic.

Another issue is the pacing. Long stretches go by where very little happens, and even as someone who enjoys narrative games, it felt a bit too slow. The dialogue is solid, the chemistry is there, but the lack of momentum hurts. That said, Tape 2 improves a lot, and the final emotional scenes remind us of the brilliance this team is capable of.

I don't want to sound harsh. Lost Records isn't a bad game. Far from it. But I did feel disconnected for a surprising amount of time. Still, when the story finally picks up, it shows that Dontnod hasn't lost their touch with emotional storytelling. Not their best work, but definitely a solid, heartfelt experience.