The Almost Gone is a point-and-click puzzle game in which you investigate a variety of different locations presented as miniature dioramas. The story plays out as you piece together clues and examine objects, and it’s one that doesn’t shy away from tough subjects, such as alcoholism. It’s an abstract experience with very little in terms of music or dialogue, but we found ourselves compelled to find out more as we progressed through its five chapters.
In The Almost Gone, you’re stuck in a place between life and death, and it’s up to you to piece together what exactly happened that led you to this moment. Starting in a relatively normal household (albeit with tree trunks ripping through the floorboards and plaster), you’ll then move onto various locations both Interior and exterior. Each scene is made up of a handful of miniature dioramas, which you can rotate in order to closely inspect every nook and cranny.
The majority of the puzzles involve using certain objects within the environment and applying them to another location. A great example in the first chapter features a refrigerator locked up with chains, but the lock itself can be opened by shifting tiles around to form a specific image. For a good while, we were a bit stumped as to how we were going to find the answer to this, but it turns out the two halves of the image were displayed in the corner of two letters we’d collected earlier.
For the first couple of chapters, it won’t be quite clear where the story is heading, which might be off-putting for some people. However, there’s an undeniable urge to press on once you start figuring out some of the more tricky puzzles. As you begin to unravel more of the game’s secrets, the overall narrative begins to fall into place, and by the end of it, we were quite pleased with how it all turned out.
In terms of its overall presentation, The Almost Gone understands that ‘less is more’. The dioramas have been carefully crafted to communicate areas of importance, whilst leaving out any unnecessary clutter. It can admittedly be a little difficult to pick out certain objects on the Switch’s screen, so we reckon playing in docked mode is the best way to experience this game. Music is largely non-existent, with the game focusing instead on ambient sounds that, again, highlight the more important aspects of the narrative.
If you’re looking for a puzzle game with a carefully considered supporting narrative, you need look no further. The Almost Gone is a game that demands your attention but never feels overly difficult or complex. Our only major issue is that once you’re done and dusted, there’s very little incentive to go back and start again.
Comments 21
I was waiting for this review. Thankfully, it was good. I will definitely be getting this! Thank you NintendoLife!
@graysoncharles Both. They're quite compatible.
This one's on my watch list and I considered picking it up while it was still on sale at launch but held off for now. Will definitely grab it and give it a go eventually.
@graysoncharles you won't be able to put it down until you beat it. then you won't be able to pick it up. science
@BenAV how much was it on sai?
I've been looking for a good puzzle game.
@rockodoodle Don't remember. I think maybe like 20% off. Was enough to have me tempted but not quite sold.
Played the demo, and it was quite intriguing, but I got "lost" easily due to how movement and map rotation work. Might pick it up on sale.
Ah, looks gorgeous. Though different, it seems like it'd scratch the same itch Gorogoa did.
@Shambo it is already at a great price for what it’s worth IMO. But it’s your money, and I respect your decision.
Looks beautiful, those visuals are simplistic but really clean. I’m definitely intrigued, these are the sorts of games you sometimes get on mobile that put the rest to shame.
Sounds pretty interesting. I'm definitely wanting to try this game out.
@Beaucine sometimes the different games turn about to be awesome.
The other waters, donut county, untitled goose game are perfect examples. Different to say the least, but they turned out to be awesome.
@nessisonett like Mekorama. It got portes to switch recently but it felt like a top-dog mobile game. And it was free!
Got this game on launch. LOVED it! I couldn’t put it down, but then realized I finished on my 3rd sit-down session with it. I actually plan on replaying it with headphones on or docked with my sound system, because the sound is definitely an important part of immersion.
Also for those currently playing it or buying it soon, until they patch it be aware of a bug in a specific part of the game. You’ll know it when you reach it.
I downloaded the demo and was quite hooked from the get-go. ^^
I'll get the full version when I am done with some of the other games I've been harvesting over the last couple sales.
I got to a point in the demo where nothing seemed to happen and I couldn't figure out what to press. Not sure if it crashed but I just lost interest after that. I found the presentation peculiar and not particularly inviting.
@Apportal_SMM2 It definitely seems very interesting and well written / thought out / designed, so I can see it really having value, but I rarely buy games not on sale, and almost never pay over €10 for a digital game (rarely over €5 even) or €25 for a physical one because games have become a much lower financial priority now that I take care of several sheltered animals, and try to live as much as possible with as little money as possible in the first place. Gaming just helps me get through my lesser days, rainy days,.. it's the "guilty pleasure" I chose to not entirely abandon yet, because it's the least harmful. I used to spend hundreds each month on collecting games... Old and rare ones, collector's editions, day one purchases, imports,... So many I didn't even play half of them, let alone finish them. It was more of an addiction than alcohol ever was, and I quit drinking (which I never had any real addiction to) entirely just because I saw how my friends slowly lost their minds and apparently had no say in their own alcohol consumption - or convinced themselves they couldn't quit or didn't even have a problem in the first place despite it being obvious to everyone else.
So I had to put some clear limitations and still try to not even get close to them, it's definitely not because I think this game and its developers don't deserves the price tag among likely priced games.
@Shambo I’m glad you help with sheltered animals! Video gaming is my guilty pleasure as well 😆 It’s okay to not want to buy a game, and I understand your situation (I had a hard time with games too) it’s not easy forcing yourself to not pay it. “It’s just 15$” I would say.
@Apportal_SMM2 Nowadays, with the deal I made with a supermarket €15 means a lot of "fresh" (discarded) fruit and vegetables for all of us here. And caring for the animals here is an unpaid full time (24/7) job, so the budget is a whole lot tighter than when I used to work night shifts in a car factory... (ironically, however, it's only since after working "normal" jobs that I could get rid of my addictions, and saved so much money because of it, that I finally had some savings... That mostly went to buying a forest for the animals and myself to find some peace and quiet, but I can still save which I couldn't before). But it's a lot more fulfilling and less stressful, and I actually still have nightmares about when I did "regular" jobs.
But indeed, before this change, 15 for a game was like nothing (but since I was a collector back then, as a part of my "identity", I "needed" physical games and 40 for a game was often a bargain, with extra's if possible, mint condition boxes and manuals, collectibles, statues, and all the hidden gems and exclusives for whatever platform I decided I wanted to collect for once nearly done with the current one...). I still like playing games, I just created an aversion to buying them, and have no place to store them in my little cabin in the forest here And with nothing of value inside, and a couple of pretty dangerous dogs here, I don't even have to lock my doors.
Will keep an eye on this after reading this review (sales and other reliable reviewers thoughts). I saw some youtube play of this and it didn't grab me. However, I imagine this is the kind of game you have to actually play yourself to appreciate it (like many puzzle games tbf). It was already on my wish list for monitoring purposes as I like puzzlers.
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