Use the power of words to solve simple puzzles and follow two connected stories, one in the real world and one in a fantasy world, told through the pages of a young girl’s journal.
Lost Words: Beyond the Page
Developer: Sketchbook Games
Price: $20
Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch (reviewed)
MonsterVine was provided with a Switch code for review.
Lost Words: Beyond the Page begins with a young girl named Isabelle receiving a journal that she begins to write in. Both the story and gameplay are split into two distinct styles. The first takes place in the journal itself as Isabelle writes about her daily life. In these parts, you’ll jump across the words she writes in simple platforming stages. Landing on certain words will make new words appear, while certain words must be dragged across the screen to affect what is shown. For example, when Isabelle writes about fireflies, you’ll drag the word “glowing” across each sketched firefly to light it up before you can move on. When she writes about cleaning, you’ll drag the word across the scattered items to watch them appear in their rightful places.
It’s a clever idea, and the combination of words and art, together with their presentation and style in these sections, really helps convey her feelings beyond words alone despite the minimalist presentation. However, this is only half of the story. In addition to keeping a journal, Isabelle also decides to write a fantasy story. By filling in certain words, you influence a few basic details about her story (such as the main character’s name), although the core premise remains the same: she is a young girl who has just become her village’s new Guardian of the Fireflies and received a book that lets her use magical words to influence the world.
Once the basic details are planned out, these sections take place in the fantasy world Isabelle creates, with her narration appearing across the screen as the story progresses. In contrast to the journal, these sections are bright and vivid, with their own style of gameplay. It still involves light platforming, but now the puzzles focus on dragging magic words from your journal to areas in the environment where they can be used. The word “rise” can be used to lift certain objects into the air, the word “repair” can fix broken bridges, and so on. Once the protagonist’s quest begins, each major area also has a number of collectible fireflies. Many of them are on the main path, while some require you to look around a bit more carefully to find them. You can’t backtrack to find fireflies you missed, but a chapter select feature is unlocked after the end of the game to let you replay any part you want.
If I had to pick a genre for Lost Words, I’d call it a puzzle-platformer, but both the platforming and puzzle-solving are fairly simple. Using the right stick to move the words feels a little awkward, but not enough to hinder the overall experience. The ease of gameplay, child’s perspective, and fairytale-like presentation might make you think this is a game aimed at children–and a younger audience might indeed enjoy it–but don’t expect it to be a lighthearted adventure. While it starts out happy enough, things in Isabelle’s life take an unhappy turn after her grandmother suffers a stroke. It deals with some upsetting topics and gets pretty emotional at times.
This comes through the strongest in the journal segments, where she talks about her life, but also influences the events in the story she’s writing as the game alternates between the two. The fantasy story takes its own unhappy turns, since the protagonist’s quest proves to be more difficult than she anticipated and she encounters many obstacles along the way. There is a level of metaphor to the fantasy tale, since the two stories are ultimately connected, although it still provides the sense of going on an adventure across rich, varied landscapes.
When I first saw Lost Words: Beyond the Page, I expected it to be a cute, charming story. It definitely has charm, as well as its share of lighthearted moments, and everything from its art to its voice acting is presented beautifully. However, it’s also a story about pain, grief, and treasuring the people we love.
The Final Word
Lost Words: Beyond the Page is a simple game with creative ideas and an emotional story. It won’t be your choice if you’re looking for a challenge, but rather if you want a narrative experience that will make you reflect–and possibly cry.
-MonsterVine Rating: 4 out of 5 – Good
