Kaitlin comes home from an international trip only to discover that her parents and sister are all missing. The house is empty, dark, and eerie. Kaitlin must explore the house and piece together exactly what happened to her family.
1. Gameplay
I have mixed feelings about this game, mostly because it isn’t a game, it’s an interactive narrative. I could have a debate with serious nerds about how many great games (including Heavy Rain) are interactive narratives, but Gone Home is unique. The character that the player controls is not the main character, she is the sister of the main character. The main character, Samantha, is a teenage girl discovering her sexuality and her first love. Over the course of the narrative, Samantha discovers that she is a lesbian and falls in love with a girl at her school. The story follows their relationship until, eventually, the player finds out why the house is empty. It’s an excellent, interesting narrative. If you like audiobooks or monologues, this game will definitely fit your tastes. However, as I said before, this isn’t a game. The player has very little to do with the narrative. The interactive part is that the player must go throughout the house discovering bits and pieces of the story, trying to figure out where everyone went and how to continue onward to the next part of the house. The story plays out simply because the player finds a new object or enters a new area, not because the main character caused it to happen. This “game” has a great story and is worth picking up for less than $10. It’s one of the few games I can point to that is more art than game, bridging that gap in the same way that indie films bring art to the silver screen. Those looking for fast-paced action will be disappointed, but those who want to be told a story will be more than satisfied.
This game is extremely short. I completed it in 77 minutes. I explored everything, learned about every side story, and listened to every diary entry in that brief time. There is basically no replay value in this game.
There’s a lot of stuff to interact with in this house. Most of it can be easily separated out as random junk, but sometimes finding the correct information is a bit of a pain. This was mostly because I overanalyzed the situation. I expected a puzzle, so I was making connections that simply weren’t there. Eventually I found everything (and it didn’t take long), but it was a bit annoying to expect something that required brainwork and instead be given something very obvious. 2. Parental Notices
Violence is not a factor in this game.
The narrative of this game involves a teenage girl discovering that she is a lesbian and dealing with all of the issues (good and bad) that brings. Much of the narrative describes the interactions between Samantha (the girl) and her significant other Lonnie. Some of the narrative alludes to the sexual nature of the relationship, but it is not a very prominent factor. The tale is about the romance and the social issues surrounding homosexuality. There are a few other items and notes that allude to possible sexuality, such as the possibility that the mother may be romantically involved with a co-worker, but these are extremely subtle and the game doesn’t highlight them specifically. They can be found by exploring the environment and reading the various notes, but they are not critical to the main story or to completing the game. There's also a magazine that can be found in a locker that features a woman in her underwear. It's meant to be a magazine like Maxim.
The player can find bottles of alcohol and at least one pack of cigarettes in the house. However, the player cannot consume any of these items.
Gambling is not a factor in this game. 3. Other Factors
There are no modding tools available for this game.
Religion is not a factor in this game.
Anti-law is not a factor in this game.
There are no multiplayer modes in this game.
Extreme sports are not a factor in this game.
Samantha and Lonnie spend time together going on ghost hunts. These are just games that the narrative uses to give red herrings to some sinister underlying plot. It culminates in a “summoning” done in a hidden room. There is a table with some occult markings where a ritual clearly took place. However, this is also simply part of the teenage games and no ghost is ever present in the story.
There are no additional factors in this game.
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