![]() ![]() You’re given clues for puzzles that you won’t solve for several hours yet, which is confusing when you can’t find clues for the puzzles you’re facing at the time. Part of the problem lies in the fact that the puzzles, much like the plot, seem to lose all direction. While not easy by any means, the average gamer can complete them simply by being observant of the surroundings. For the first couple hours the obstacles are fairly straightforward, with none proving overly difficult to solve. Alas, after an hour or two the puzzle design breaks into more pieces than a jigsaw. She doesn’t seem to know what she wants to do with her life, either in the moment or in the long term, she never acquires a real sense of purpose, and players are prevented from listening in on what was surely meant to be the most helpful conversation she has in the entire game.ĭespite the shortcomings of the story, some compelling gameplay could have at least salvaged the experience and made it enjoyable. Unfortunately, we never find out what that purpose is, or why he absconded with an elephant and decided to give it pants nor are we are able to help Henry find out what’s become of his friend. However, Memoranda introduces a plethora of people, from Henry, the boy whose friend was apparently taken out to sea, to the Spaghetti Man who is housing an elephant and does literally nothing besides cook spaghetti all day, though he tells Mizuki it has a deeper purpose. Of course, in any game there will be a certain number of characters are that are largely utilitarian, needed to simply move the plot forward. The characters themselves are weak and one-dimensional, which is a shame because so many of them have interesting premises and backstories that are never capitalized on fully – or in most cases, at all. It almost seems as if whole portions of dialogue were accidentally skipped over. ![]() The game keeps hinting at a dark past, but refuses to go into detail about her parents and relatives while continually trying to poke you in the direction of something clearly ominous. This leaves a number of loose ends upon completion of the story, even about Mizuki herself. There’s no real rhyme or reason behind it. In one scene you meet Mizuki’s friend who apparently committed suicide several years before, and in the next you have to click on dream cats that eat numbers in order to figure out a combination to a safe. The game swings back and forth so much that eventually you give up trying to figure out what the developers were aiming for. #Memoranda game review full#It cannot make up its mind whether it wants to be a whimsical, Japanese version of Alice in Wonderland, with funny, interwoven vignettes chock full of magical realism, or whether it wants to be dark and rather brutally real. While short stories often leave questions intentionally unanswered, the way these are crammed together and translated to the computer screen leaves much to be desired.Īnother big problem is that the story suffers from a severe case of mood whiplash. Why is there a guy in a wheelchair on the beach waiting for his mom? Even now, I really couldn’t tell you. Why does she need to create an ice flower for a friend who’s going to the Arctic to search for that very flower with her husband? Search me. Why wouldn’t the old man let Mizuki sleep? Who knows certainly not Mizuki or the player. The plot strands jump from one to another without much reasoning, and none of them are ever satisfactorily explained. #Memoranda game review series#It becomes obvious that the game is based on a series of short stories rather than any one cohesive tale, as they all start to run together like watercolors. Her immediate concerns take precedence, such as the fact that she hasn’t slept in over a week due to an apparition of a strange and creepy old sailor appearing by her bed every night to keep her awake. It’s an intriguing concept on which to base a game, but although having a colorful cast of characters, a unique art style and a wealth of interesting stories to draw from, its puzzles become frustratingly obtuse and much like Mizuki, it seems to have lost its own plot along the way.Īctually, while it is the starting point of the story, Mizuki’s name search quickly becomes a secondary consideration. It follows the story of Mizuki, a young woman who keeps losing track of her name and sets out to rediscover it. Based upon the short stories of Japanese author Haruki Murakami, Memoranda is Bit Byterz’ first adventure game that was partially funded through Kickstarter. This review is based on the original release.Īmnesia is a common theme in adventure games, but the star of Memoranda has a very particular type of memory problem. #Memoranda game review update#Note: Since time of writing, an update has added new dialogue and memos, as well as other improvements intended to improve gameplay. ![]()
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