Hope you are having a lovely beginning of a new week with fresh powers after some gaming nights, aren't you?! š
Today, I'd like to present a game that I received as a gift from my sister who knows how much I love wolves and she was convinced that it would be impossible not to get crazy playing a game where the main character is nothing else but a... wolf.
I don't know how many of you heard of this game before or how many of you are into indie games, but personally, many years from my gaming career I was focusing on adventure and action games with a proper storyline and action to follow. But as there is never too late to learn something new, last year I figured out how much I love the indie games which are mostly based on exploring new paths while being accompanied by all kind of (god damn good) songs, without having too much dialogue or get bothered by the little inbox icon which was notifying you that you have new missions to take care of.
As simple and (maybe) boring these games look at first, as heart touching and impressive they turn out. At least, this is the impression I always ended up with when I was closing an indie game after I completed it until the outro with the names of the people who worked on the game, was popping up on the screen.
Anyway, Lost Ember comes with a rather banal description which I think it doesn't convince too many people to try it out because there is not too much said other than being able to explore the remains of a fallen world from different perspectives while changing roles between various animals. If I would read this, I don't know how much I'd be interested into playing it unless I'll see the in-game screenshots which are completing the whole summary as it should.
Basically, there is omitted the main part of the game, thus that the broken world ended up like that after more stories from the ancient times which didn't have a happy ending, so not only that you will face all these remains of the world, but you will also get to walk through those memories and get them all together like a puzzle to understand better what everything happened back then.
The game starts with you in the body of a wolf who is pretty confused at first, not realizing what is going on with it or what it's being surrounded of, but while you will get to switch animals in order to pass some obstacles, a single thing will remain the same: the light which is never getting too far and it always makes sure you see and follow it without look back.
There are not too many indications given or any missions popping up on the screen because everything is pretty intuitive once you realize that the light is your best friend and you should never hesitate to follow it closely. Of course, don't expect the whole game to be with you in the role of many animals which are only running after a light because the game is a lot more than that.
You will notice that once in a while the animal you are playing with will start having a strange behaviour or act like it feels something being close, and that's the moment when you are very close to discover a new memory that can be more or less shown. But as every puzzle is composed from more pieces, do expect to have to get through quite a few memories until you figure out what actually happened and how everything started.
Another thing you should follow but perhaps you will notice it by yourself once playing Lost Ember is, that, when you look in the distance you can see regions with red smoke flying away which are the warning sign that there is another memory you should discover before moving on.
Since there is a lack of tasks and some might rush the game a bit, the developers created a collector's guide which comes with simple challenges of discovering a specific number of fruits or objects in each chapter for a full completion of the game and to make sure you are enjoying this properly and take your time to enjoy the landscapes which are leaving you speechless.
As you move further, you will notice that not only you will get to play the roles of many animals, but also step through all the seasons of a year.
Lost Ember is only 5 hours long and it comes with a total of 6 chapters that as soon as you finish up discovering all the memories from a chapter, you will run towards an imaginary portal made of glass that gets broken and makes you step into a new world. A world which is either focusing on ancient times, waterfalls and caves, sea, canyons, jungles, lakes, desert or mountains, but where every single phase has its own mystery and contribution on making the story a little bit more clear for you, discovering the secret that is so well kept.
Personally, I managed to figure out the main action only at the middle of the game, but I don't know if this is because of my lack of attention having my heart completely conquered by the graphics and visuals or due to the dialogue almost missing. Perhaps it's been a mix between the two, but you really can't get upset about that because this masterpiece comes with a fantastic soundtrack and emotional story which makes you forget about minor details such as some rough edges that sometimes feel unpolished or like encountering bugs.
Though this is a rare thing and you will meet it only if you run for the collectables, so don't take it too hard. š
Anyway, just like most of the other games, since it's not an open-world game, Lost Ember also has to come to an end, and that couldn't be happening other than adding the last piece to the puzzle for a full story that while in some games it's being told from the beginning and you have a line to follow, this time it's your job to collect parts of it and form it coherently.
If you enjoy reading books, we can compare that to any of the other games you will play, while when you are playing Lost Ember you can compare the feeling with the moment when you are writing a book where even though you do have many things you want to talk about, you need to find the right way putting everything in order so it makes sense at the end.
There are also 33 achievements to get if you are a completionist. As much as I loved this game, I was so fascinated by the whole mystery from it that I completely forgot about the list of achievements and I only realized it when it was too late to return to some of the previous chapters played and explore them to the fullest, but some of these that most likely everyone will get are to collect all 36 memories or to play with all the 19 animals that you will meet along your way following the light, so don't forget to pay attention to details and enjoy every single part of a fantasy world so far away from everything we are living in 2022. š
Conclusions š¤
Even though I think this is already obvious, playing Lost Ember it was a great experience that comes as a whole package from the storyline, to graphics and soundtrack that for me, couldn't come in a better moment in life.
This game is also a good reminder that we should appreciate more every moment of life because all the stages we are getting through are nothing else but pieces of a puzzle that once they are merged together it's also the last step from your life when the book is being closed, and while we often rush things forgetting to enjoy little details of life, at the opposite pole is the impossibility of turning back the time when we realize that we haven't fully enjoyed a moment from life.
Some are saying that it's worth being played while (very few of the) others that it's not; Some are saying that they would happily pay the full price for the game and even pre-purchase it, while (some of the) others that it's only worth being purchased when it gets on sale. Personally, what I can say about Lost Ember is that it comes with a different energy than any other indie game played before that will get you emotional and touch your heart in a unique way, but you have to play it first to convince yourself that I'm telling the truth. š
Oh, and let's not forget about the final soundtrack which gets me emotional even if I listen to it now, after quite a while since I finished this game and which I'm sure it will help you make a better idea of the whole game's action. I already played this song for a few tens of times but I'm sure I could do it a lot more and still not get bored listening to it. ā¤ļø
Did you play it? š
I know this comes after the review from the previews week that was no less emotional and perhaps you already expect to hear from me that I also cried on this game š but did you play Lost Ember? And if so, what are your thoughts about it?
If you played the game I'm sure you won't laugh at me as I cried again playing it and perhaps you also got into the same mood, but there is no other way to find out about it other than sharing your thoughts down below. š¤
NOTE:
- all the pictures attached are in-game screenshots taken by me. šø
- this article is trying to stay away from revealing spoilers. ā ļø
- this is a personal review and should not be taken as a real advice of either playing the game or not because the opinion might be subjective. šÆ
A list with some other games that I wrote a review about and you might like:
- Strange Brigade š - 3/5
- TREE š³ - 5/5
- Lost Ember šŗ - 5/5
- Professional Fishing š” - 4/5
- Food Truck Simulator š - 2/5
- Don't Starve (Together) š„ - 4/5
- Late Shift ā³ - 4/5
- A Way Out š - 5/5
- Motorcycle Mechanic Simulator 2021 šµ - 1/5
- Car Mechanic Simulator 2018 š - 2/5
- Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice š - 5/5
- Life is Strange šŖ - 5/5
- Metin 2 ā - 4/5
- Euro Truck Simulator 2 š - 2/5
- Tell Me Why š³ļøāš - 5/5
| Game | Lost Ember |
|---|---|
| Release Date | 22 November 2019 |
| Played On | Steam |
| Price | 29,99ā¬ |
| Genre | Adventure, Indie, Atmospheric |
| Completed | Main + Extras |
| My Rating | ā ā ā ā ā |
| Hours Played | 6.5 hrs |
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