"Can you do it? Can you really take me to the moon?"
One of the many questions asked in this game. Course it also serves as the main objective/end game goal to the game. I've watched Let's Plays on YouTube of this game and was just absolutely captivated by the story, characters and music of this game. I was lucky enough to finally be able to play this last week in its entirety thanks to an awesome friend of mine (thanks Tristen!). To The Moon is an adventure game made by the talented people at Freebird Games. You're put in the shoes of Drs. Eva Rosalene and Neil Watts (or Lorenzo Von Matterhorn?) who are part of an agency that grants people's wishes. Thought I bet you didn't imagine that being done through going through your past memories right?
Their patient is Johnny Wyles who slowly is dying and has a wish of going to the moon. You're then placed in a time-traveling adventure reliving his life which is anything but normal. The game's art style is heavily inspired by the old 16 bit RPG's like Final Fantasy. I was constantly thinking of this as I wandered outside near the lighthouse or even within a school building. What captured me most was the story and I'll get to that down below. The sheer desire of wanting to play this game was so strong within me that I made sure to enjoy it. Pretty much all of my feels were struck as I played this.
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| Main base of operations. |
You mainly control both Dr. Rosalene and Dr. Watts as they navigate through certain parts of Johnny's life. We get a glimpse into the life he shared with his deceased wife River. She herself has a very strange condition that gets revealed as the game progresses. The game is broken up into 2 parts. The first involves you traversing through each memory looking for certain links that allow you to progress even farther back.
These links can be found by interacting with certain objects or just by walking. After 5 links have been established, there's a special object which is known as a memento. The links are inserted into the memento and you then have to prepare it. This brings you to the second part which involves you solving a section of an image of the memento. The puzzle aspect can be seen here and you're given to the side an "ideal" amount of moves it should take you to complete it. Once done, the memento is activated and you progress to the next available memory.
That's about it in terms of gameplay. It's mainly the story and music that are the main draw to this game. It's usually an RPG that can get me so wrapped up in a story but here, the characters are so fleshed out and entertaining. Real life issues and illnesses are brought up, happy moments and tragic memories. I finished the game yet as I wander towards looking up more info about the game, I get hit with realizations of new things story-wise. Course that just makes me all sad because it's so touching and sweet.
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| An example of the puzzle section |
The music was composed by 2 people and HOLY CRAP TEARS IN MY EYES. It's mainly piano and some of the best music I've heard. I'm willing to put it on like Final Fantasy level amazing. Further down I have a playlist of the OST for you guys to take a listen to (which you should!). The one song that has lyrics hits at such a crucial point in the game that I was borderline covered in goosebumps and chills.
The game also finds humor in its characters, particularly in the protagonists. References to Doctor Who, Animorphs and pop culture are spotted here and there. To The Moon leaves you hanging as you go further back into Johnny's memories. Leaving you wanting to know the full story of what happened in his life and why things seemed odd with him and River. I promise you all is revealed at the end.
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| Memory Link progress at the bottom, point in time at the top! |
To The Moon is an amazing indie game and definitely has me hoping that the developers continue with working on more entries. If not, I'll definitely have to load up a second playthrough one day.
Should you Play this Game?
Absolutely! To The Moon is an entertaining heartfelt story that will definitely tug at your emotions. The score is beautiful and will have you reaching for a box of tissues most likely. A mystery unfolds up until the end and you'll definitely want to find out the truth!
