Giving this a generous score, this was very much my kind of thing! While the discussion of the subject matter feels somewhat contrived and pedestrian, I think that this is really good. Being able to hold the switch in portrait mode and navigate the phone using the touch screen makes this game feel just like you've picked up someone elses phone that you don't know how to use, and the frustration comes from not knowing how to use the phone, not the controls being bad. The way that the story is locked off so you don't read/find out things at the wrong time feels great, I was impressed with how many times it surprised me in the short runtime, I had a very good time with this!
It turned out the game was not originally developed in English, which explains why the dialogue feels unnatural at times. I feel like I've seen quite a few games like this over the past decade. It takes a lot more to standout among games with similar theme in these days. The name of the developer gave out the mystery of the game.
I'm not certain about this one. On the one hand I like solving these "Learn about a person to find out their password" kind of games buuuuuut by the same token it feels a little creepy to go through someone's phone.
The artwork is nice though and the soundtrack is pleasing and the puzzles aren't too complicated.
For some reason it reminded me of Her Story where you learn about a day, then as you learn more the old information bis seen in a new light.
The artwork is nice though and the soundtrack is pleasing and the puzzles aren't too complicated.
For some reason it reminded me of Her Story where you learn about a day, then as you learn more the old information bis seen in a new light.
Completed with 100% of achievements unlocked. A Normal Lost Phone, as its name suggests, presents you with an ostensibly normal smartphone that you've found abandoned, tasking you with investigating the story behind the phone's owner through the phone interface and the information stored on it. This comes across as an unusual and well-realised form of story-telling, as you're largely left to uncover the story in a freeform manner, investigating messages and other content in whatever order you choose - albeit some (needed) structure is afforded by gating off certain areas behind access controls/passwords that you'll find from other areas. This open nature results in a satisfying experience and you're drawn into finding out as much as you can about the story... in a way that ultimately feels almost uncomfortably intimate as you discover more. Recommended.
This review contains spoilers
Text messages were written quite clunkily (and sometimes made me laugh out loud) but the forum posts felt more true to life. However I felt that the actual trans talking points were VERY outdated as of 2024, and a lot of it felt like infodumping at the player.
Fun idea but the execution was mid at best. I agree with other reviewers that the phone could've had more set dressing to up the believability (open tabs, accidental screenshots, social media posts)
Fun idea but the execution was mid at best. I agree with other reviewers that the phone could've had more set dressing to up the believability (open tabs, accidental screenshots, social media posts)