Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is DON’T NOD at its best | Hands-on preview
Life is Strange inspired dozens of narrative-driven games where the player’s choice mattered to the overarching story, where decisions changed a character’s fate. They are masters of storytelling, and DON’T NOD has gone back to its roots and given us Lost Records: Bloom & Rage. I got to play around 90 minutes of its latest title, and while it has all the hallmarks of what the studio is known for, it still manages to do something new with the video recording mechanic, and as for the story so far, I’m already hooked as to where it is going to go.
While much of the story is still shrouded in mystery, I got a good idea about the characters that feature in Lost Records: Bloom & Rage. It takes place back in the mid-90s where you learn about a deep and sudden friendship between four outcasts. Something happens which sees them go their separate ways, but over 20 years later, they all meet up in a diner after receiving a mysterious package that ties them to the unexpected event that saw them walk away from each other.
While I’m still none the wiser in relation to the big event that saw them turn away from each other, the way the story goes from sweet and innocent to terrifying right in the final seconds of the preview gave me hope for the full release. For now though, I got to learn more about the girl’s friendship in 1995, enjoy plenty of references to the era, and immerse myself in DON’T NOD’s gift of telling a wonderful tale through strong characters and great dialogue.
Swann, an introvert who loves films, is packing up her home before leaving Velvet Cove. After trying to find a Dark Crystal VHS to return to the store, you play around with your video camera, filming your cat and your room, using the left shoulder button to turn it on, and the right shoulder button to hit record. You can zoom in and out, move around with the camera, and once you find the right area to record, you can rewatch your footage and see just how it all looks together. It’s a cool feature that plays more of a role later on, specifically in the preview where I recorded a music video for my newfound friends.
After they save you from bullies, you quickly make friends with three other characters, each with their own personalities. Autumn is the strong and confident leader of the group; Nora is the rock chick with a penchant for punk and anarchy; and Kat is quiet at times, yet she exudes calm and is somewhat of an enigma. You meet them in their garage while at band practice, quickly getting to know them while they play their instruments. Nora and Amber want you to record a music video, and you know a great nature trail where you think it would look great.
After watching Nora and Amber perform after you put a drum beat to their music, and making some dialogue choices that help you to both get to know them and work out who you warm to more, you’re on the nature trail ready to record. Lost Records: Bloom & Rage cuts to 2022 where Swann and Autumn are reminiscing about the past, specifically the events on the trail, and as it cuts back to you wandering around the beautiful trail, they hint at how their memories are both good and bad. While recording your friends, you start to see deeper connections between some of the friends.
After asking Kat and Nora to kiss while standing in front of an old motorbike, Kat gets a little subdued and it seems like she might have feelings for Nora. It’s not explored in these moments, but it feels like it will be when the full game comes out. Your trip on the trail ends as you sit overlooking a lake under the spotlight of a blazing sun, talking about how lucky you all are and how this friendship is wonderful before heading back to the garage to watch Swann’s music video masterpiece, only to witness a fleeting moment where this blossoming sisterhood starts to fall apart.
As Swann rewinds the tape to play the music video again from the start, it takes control of itself, and the lights go out. Something strange is happening and the group holds their breath collectively as they start to panic, only for the preview to suddenly end. Whatever happened to them will have to wait to be discovered, but I loved everything about Lost Records: Bloom & Rage so far. The characters are all wonderfully written, and their relationships are all handed beautifully.
I loved all the mid-90s references and the visuals along with the video camera feature, and that familiar Life is Strange gameplay where you can look at points of interest and listen to Swann’s thoughts no matter how goofy or sentimental they are. Bloom & Rage is a great reminder of why DON’T NOD are so good at what they do. The story is full of mystery, and while I’m interested to know what happens, it is the characters and their relationships that made me enjoy it the most.
