Publisher: Don't Nod
Developer: Don't Nod
Available on: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC
Reviewed on: PC (Steam)
Reminisce upon the days of old, it's the late 1900s when children used to go outside and wander the beyond. Feel old yet? The year is 1995. VHS tapes and camcorders were still a thing, and in Lost Records: Bloom & Rage, we're thrown back on remembering the old neon joy of childhood before cellphones, but with a twist.
We Meet Again
The story of Lost Records: Bloom & Rage revolves around protagonist Swann, a redhead who has always been a bit of a loner reuniting with her childhood best friends to reminisce on the days of old. Sound innocent enough, right? Wrong, Swann and her friends, Autumn, Nora, and Kat swore never to see one another again sometime before Swann had to move away at the end of the summer of '95 to Canada. Why? Well, that's what they're trying to figure out. The mystery is they can't quite remember what that reasoning was.
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage swaps back and forth between the modern day of Swann and her now adult friends meeting at a dingy bar and their childhood summer spent in a forest just off the shore of one of the Great Lakes. The story and setting are compelling: If you grew up in the '90s, the flashbacks are like an excavation of a childhood spent outdoors and filled with artifacts from the mid-90s. The game very much takes on a Stranger Things-esque nostalgia in its presentation of the '90s and I'm terribly for it as a '90s kid.
Swann herself feels like an average A/V club nerd. I can easily relate to her as a redheaded kid who was on the heavier side while also being a bit of a loner. What makes her story truly interesting is that she makes friends with this group of different but cool girls, equipped with her camcorder and documenting every moment of their summer together. Their friendship is presented in a way that makes Lost Records feel like an ode to childhood, especially girlhood friendships. The mystery surrounding the girls and their missing memories, meanwhile, made me think of shows like Paper Girls and Archive 81. If you liked either of those, I think you'll like Lost Records.
Keeping a Record
It's a bit ironic that the girls, ahem, adult women can't quite remember what happened in that summer of '95. After all, Swann recorded all of it with her trusty camcorder, right? At least as much as you record. That's right, much of the gameplay outside of controlling some dialogue choices revolves around you recording what Swann and her friends experience.
As a mechanic, it's pretty cool. It's not unlike Life is Strange and Max's photo-taking, which Don't Nod seems to be pretty fond of in terms of snapshotting those nostalgic moments in the lives of our protagonists. However, the great thing here with the recording is you can decide what you record with some focus on game objectives, and edit, more like cobble-together, moments and scenes for some montage moments of Swann and friends' experiences.
Exploring in the game is much what it has always been in narrative adventures like Lost Records: Walk around in a set area, interact with some items, examine them, and even reminisce on some memories while poking and prodding at objects. It's a great way to get a little extra out of the game as you play along with the story.
That '90s Nostalgia
Aesthetically, Lost Records: Bloom & Rage - Tape 1 "Bloom" had me from the get-go. The moment I played from Swann's pov as a youth in '95, I instantly had to explore the nostalgia of Swann's childhood bedroom. She's got the old-school gigapet, a trapper-keeper, VHS tapes, a boxy CRT Television, and neon colors galore. All those childhood staples that made being a '90s kid so cool. Her adventures in the forest with her friends are a glorious throwback to those days of old, exploring and having sleepovers while lying to our parents about where we really were.
The game's soundtrack draws on sounds from the reminiscent softness of indie and softer alternative and riot grrrl punkiness. It's a perfect blend of the softer femininity of growing up girly and the rage against the patriarchy the odd-girls out experienced growing up, much like the title of Lost Records: Bloom and Rage.
Wrapping Up While the Credits Roll
Now, while I enjoyed the story so far and the heavy '90s nostalgia, Lost Records was not without its flaws. The game gets a little glitchier the closer to the end of the first tape you get. I also ran into some scenes where parts of Nora's body would disappear. I'm sure stuff like this will get addressed as patches are made and it didn't interfere with my enjoyment of the game. I will also note that to fully enjoy this game at its highest settings you will either need a console or a higher-end PC.
Tape 1 ends on a pretty devastating cliffhanger that left me with so many questions for Tape 2 to address. If you're not a fan of waiting around for 'to be continueds,' I'd say wait for the next part to come out, but if you're down for waiting a bit, Lost Records: Bloom & Rage - Tape 1 is well worth playing.