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#3 - Her Story


Platform I played on: Steam
Available platforms: Steam, Google Play, App Store
Developer/Publisher: Sam Barlow
Length: 3 hours

Story:
Her Story is a story... about HER! Seriously though, it's a bit of a unique game in that you play someone, although you don't know who for a little while, watching old police tapes. These police tapes are about a woman named Hannah and the disappearance of her husband, Simon. It's up to you to figure out exactly what's going on.

Gameplay:
Again, Her Story is a rather unique game. The gameplay consists of... watching video clips. And then you type in a search word in to the search bar and... watch more video clips. Until you "finish" the game, a search term will limit to the first 5 results, but after finding the twist and finishing, you can expand the amount of results shown so that you can more easily find and watch any of the clips you missed. There are 271 total clips to find, but not all are needed to complete the game.



Environment:
Literally you sitting in front of a computer screen searching for videos which take place in interrogation rooms.

Ambiance:
Really good. The use of a real actress and having you kind of... sitting in front of a computer screen while your character is unseen but also sitting in front of a computer screen does wonders for immersion. This really is an "interactive movie" like none I've ever seen. The ambiance, aside from what I mentioned and a few sounds and visuals here and there, is very bare bones. But not in a bad way. It's been stripped down to its basics because that actually helps the immersion and the feel of what the game is going for.



Choices:
The only choices are what you choose to type in the search bar. Which is both a very limiting amount of choice and a surprising amount of freedom. Especially since some surprising searches will actually turn up results sometimes.

Puzzles:
Basically the whole game is one giant puzzle. You watch a video and write down or keep in mind anything you think might be important. Then you enter that in the search bar and watch more clips. Then you try and find important terms or themes or observations from those videos and search more things. And so on and so forth. Her Story rewards you for taking educated guesses and making observations even when a key word or name isn't explicitly stated. Especially when your search results are limited to five in the beginning, you'll need to get creative sometimes to get more clips.



Cons:
-It's literally just typing search terms and watching movies. If you want something more gameplay heavy... well, look elsewhere. It's really BARELY a game
-Also doesn't have a sequel

Pros:
-Very interesting story
-Bare bones in a way that works amazingly well
-Strangely addictive
-Unique, which is a good thing if you like it as I do. It's different from any other gaming experience I've ever had
-A surprising amount of freedom

Overall:
I was pretty skeptical about Her Story at first. I mean, you watch clips and it's real people, not even video game characters, making it even more like a movie and less like a game. I decided to give it a try when I saw a glowing review for it and I am very glad I did. As I said, it's different from any gaming experience I've had before and in a good way. It made me want to keep playing, keep watching, try and figure out what happened. It's also got a weird contrast between being very limited and very free. The order in which you watch the clips, discover the story, and find key terms is entirely left in your hands. And yet, that's all you can do. But really if it sounds at all interesting and you want to try something new, it's like $6. Definitely worth the price in my opinion.

Verdict:
Perfect for someone who doesn't like to look at their own reflection