I was truly surprised when this game was first announced at that one Nintendo Direct last year. Cing has been gone for over a decade now and it didn’t look like we would ever get anything else from their most notable interconnected series, Another Code and Hotel Dusk, aside from some token references in Smash Brothers so it truly feels like a minor miracle that this remake even exists and it was given this much love and care. They even actually managed to bring back the director and head writer from the old Cing crew as well. Cing was always a dev that deserved more love than they got, being a point and click adventure game dev that managed to make such memorable games during the 2000’s, the dark age of the genre in the West. Because I'm an American I never got to play Another Code R and Last Window, though admittedly I could have imported Last Window (Though foolishly passed up on it) and emulated Lost Memories but I never got around to it. Still I’m real glad I finally got to play Lost Memories after all these years and the remake’s version didn’t disappoint.
Recollection is somewhat of a tradeoff though; you see both original games' puzzles were so tied to their respective platforms' unique gimmicks, the puzzles had to be radically changed to work on Switch. I think these puzzles are serviceably fine, nothing as clever as closing your DS to solve a puzzle and nothing that will stump a genre veteran in the slightest, but there's a good variety, especially in Two Memories which has a stronger puzzle focus as you explore the Edward Mansion and exploring the mansion is fun which a nice sense of place. The puzzles do fall off some in the latter half of Journey into Lost Memories though, as you're mainly just doing RAS door puzzles and just doing button inputs in sequence. Both games are both fully 3D though so its nice to actually to be able to walk around and explore the Edward Mansion and Lake Juliet more freely.
In exchange for the somewhat compromised puzzles, is that the narrative, atmosphere, and aesthetics have been improved and it’s well worth the trade. You can clearly tell Rika Suzuki really took advantage of getting a second go at Another Code’s narrative as a whole. Now both games are more treated as two parts of a whole story and are more strongly tied thematically. There are also a bunch of revisions as well, the most dramatic changes being in Journey into Lost Memories, which having read up on it, alters its supporting cast and essentially revises the entire last half of the game for the better. I was familiar with the fact that in the OG game a major supporting character's subplot was not resolved at all, but here it is, tying up all loose ends. The main antagonist in Lost Memories is also completely changed to become a far more interesting character and who is more intrinsically tied with the games' themes of memory and being, feeling a lot more at home with the empathetic and character-driven tone of Cing games at their best. The aesthetic of the games are changed this to watercolor appearance that looks great and character dialogue in both games are conveyed through essentially comic book panel character portraits which also looks nice. The soundtrack is also just as rad as the old Cing games, filled with chill, nostalgic vibes. The remake is also now mainly fully voice-acted and I think overall it’s quite solid.
Overall I’m truly happy I finally got to experience not only Lost Memories but to play such a great remake of two games that I never expected to see. I do genuinely hope that maybe the Cing games’ cult following will get bigger and also that we get a remake for the Hotel Dusk duology too, because I adored Hotel Dusk more than the OG Another Code. Should probably finally get around to emulating Last Window perhaps. Definitely check it out if you’re a fan of the genre or just want a solidly written game with a bunch of heart.
Recollection is somewhat of a tradeoff though; you see both original games' puzzles were so tied to their respective platforms' unique gimmicks, the puzzles had to be radically changed to work on Switch. I think these puzzles are serviceably fine, nothing as clever as closing your DS to solve a puzzle and nothing that will stump a genre veteran in the slightest, but there's a good variety, especially in Two Memories which has a stronger puzzle focus as you explore the Edward Mansion and exploring the mansion is fun which a nice sense of place. The puzzles do fall off some in the latter half of Journey into Lost Memories though, as you're mainly just doing RAS door puzzles and just doing button inputs in sequence. Both games are both fully 3D though so its nice to actually to be able to walk around and explore the Edward Mansion and Lake Juliet more freely.
In exchange for the somewhat compromised puzzles, is that the narrative, atmosphere, and aesthetics have been improved and it’s well worth the trade. You can clearly tell Rika Suzuki really took advantage of getting a second go at Another Code’s narrative as a whole. Now both games are more treated as two parts of a whole story and are more strongly tied thematically. There are also a bunch of revisions as well, the most dramatic changes being in Journey into Lost Memories, which having read up on it, alters its supporting cast and essentially revises the entire last half of the game for the better. I was familiar with the fact that in the OG game a major supporting character's subplot was not resolved at all, but here it is, tying up all loose ends. The main antagonist in Lost Memories is also completely changed to become a far more interesting character and who is more intrinsically tied with the games' themes of memory and being, feeling a lot more at home with the empathetic and character-driven tone of Cing games at their best. The aesthetic of the games are changed this to watercolor appearance that looks great and character dialogue in both games are conveyed through essentially comic book panel character portraits which also looks nice. The soundtrack is also just as rad as the old Cing games, filled with chill, nostalgic vibes. The remake is also now mainly fully voice-acted and I think overall it’s quite solid.
Overall I’m truly happy I finally got to experience not only Lost Memories but to play such a great remake of two games that I never expected to see. I do genuinely hope that maybe the Cing games’ cult following will get bigger and also that we get a remake for the Hotel Dusk duology too, because I adored Hotel Dusk more than the OG Another Code. Should probably finally get around to emulating Last Window perhaps. Definitely check it out if you’re a fan of the genre or just want a solidly written game with a bunch of heart.
It's a great revisit that makes me hungry for a Hotel Dusk remake. Let's do it!
The remakes polishes everything up to a modern B-game’s bar, and it’s boring as hell. Everything moves so slowly with the new comic book-style cutscene framing and the script is just so limp and bland that an increased level of performance for it is flat-out worse. The distinctive feel of the original is now just a bog-standard third person walking around game with no flair. Genuinely sad.
Um dos titulos que mais amei no nintendo DS e Wii, porem o remake nao fez jus e chega a ser uma decepção pelo pouco polimento nos visuais e na gameplay.
I'm happy this saw a release, yet still conflicted about both these remakes. They're budget titles but look good where they need to, mainly with character models. The mysteries were compelling even if the stories themselves weren't excellent overall (the sequel especially has a bit of annoying teen drama).
Seeing as these games target a younger audience, the puzzles are about as easy as the originals, but I wish there weren't so fewer puzzles than before. Another disappointment is that the gameplay doesn't take advantage of the Switch as Cing did wiht the DS and Wii. It's a lovely tribute, nonetheless.
Seeing as these games target a younger audience, the puzzles are about as easy as the originals, but I wish there weren't so fewer puzzles than before. Another disappointment is that the gameplay doesn't take advantage of the Switch as Cing did wiht the DS and Wii. It's a lovely tribute, nonetheless.