I really wanted to like this. I loved The Long Dark, and this feels like its natural successor — on paper at least. But it’s just janky in parts. After an hour or two, the dialogue already starts to grate; it’s predictable, sometimes awkwardly paced. The court-mandated drone companion never comes close to Portal’s Wheatley — it’s neither funny nor truly helpful, just a floating dispenser of exposition and reminders. I also never bought into the dynamic with Donovan. Is he supposed to be a friend, a colleague, or some kind of reluctant partner? The writing never sells it. At one point — without spoiling anything — he starts asking about the protagonist’s family in the middle of a survival crisis. It feels completely out of place, like the script is desperate to inject emotional depth without earning it. I give up 🤷

I got this game because I was looking for another Firewatch type of experience. Other people and their reviews made it seem like it would be just that. It is not. Not even close. The voice acting was really good, parts of the story were actually interesting. Having an emotional support robot was annoying, the gameplay was incredibly boring, some mechanics were useless and the world was way too big. We'll start with the stupid annoying robot that second guesses everything you do and talks way too much. There are these cairns that you can sit at to "breath" to raise your brain meter. No matter how low the meter is, even if there's just a sliver missing, you HAVE to do the breathing mini game 5 times, every time (dumb). Where does the stupid robot fit in? Well, you'll be walking for minutes and minutes with absolutely nothing happening when you realize that you should sit by a cairn, so you see one in the distance but just before you get there, the damn robot starts talking, and when there's dialogue you can't do the breathing by the cairn, so you end up just standing there doing, again, absolutely nothing until the talking is done. Why can't they trigger these dialogues AFTER you walk past the damn cairns? This happens too often. They always trigger the dialogue right BEFORE the cairn. Just an incredibly annoying design decision. Interactable object are absolutely everywhere. You can pick up hats, buckets, hammers, mugs, books, mops, etc.. etc.. The vast majority of these objects have no purpose whatsoever, so why even allow the player to interact with them? I wasted so much time picking up objects just to see if I can "keep" them. This was incredibly annoying. The majority of this game is a walking simulator, and I mean walking. Yes, you can hold the SHIFT key to "jog" but even that feels frustratingly slow. I swear I spent 10 hours just holding the "W" and "SHIFT" key with the occasional mouse clicking. This gameplay was so boring. There's a "hint" system that is supposed to tell you what your next goal is but it never works when you need it. Several times I found myself just standing around, waiting for something to happen or for someone to start talking, and when nothing does happen, I just start wandering in a random direction until something does happen. Some "scenes" were completely empty. Nothing but dialogue, so you sit there running around in circles waiting for the stupid scene to fade to black so you can move on to the next boring scene where you do nothing. While "playing" this game, I did laundry, made some lunch, cleaned dishes, played games on my phone, anything was better than doing nothing. This game is a whole lot of nothing. The game is broken into 5 episodes. Why? No idea. Just another useless feature. The funniest part is they role intro credits, show the title card, and show end credits for each episode. Yup, you'll have to sit through all that nonsense 5 times. The world is too large for no good reason. You will spend 10+ minutes several times just walking from A to B with nothing happening in between. Have I mentioned yet how boring this gameplay was? Yes, there are "choices" you can make (though the only choice that matters is at the end of the game), and there are collectibles that you can hunt for but there is just no way in hell I play through this again just to collect some mugs or experience an alternate ending. I commend the devs for shipping a final product. Making a game is no easy task. I just hope they learned a lot from making this and do better on their future projects.

Its got a good story - but for 8 hrs of gameplay and VERY limited survival mechanics its kinda eh And please dont even get me started on the breathing exercises....

Full Walktrough: https://youtu.be/sORXynr7WpU Story: Excellent, your decisions will be important Gameplay: Very Good Music: Very good Graphics: Epic Game Time: 7-10 Hours Here I will leave the cat, friends who pass by can pet it and give it a thumbs up 　　　 　　／＞　　フ 　　　 　　| 　　 l 　 　　 　／` ミ＿xノ 　　 　 /　　　 　 | 　　　 /　 ヽ　　 ﾉ 　 　 │　　|　|　| 　／￣|　　 |　|　| 　| (￣ヽ＿ヽ)__)

I really wanted to like this game, but it's a huge walking simulator. Also the puzzles in the game are not great and are few and far between.

way too much walking in straight path with nothing to do at all but to keep going forward until the annoying robot decides to psycho-analyse you. I got to chapter 4 or 5, I want to finish the game, but everytime I think back about the gameplay loop and don't want to just walk forward until I get to the next spot were there's bags of chips and water bottles to grab.

Originally, after completing the game I was planning to give it a thumbs down. But then I changed my mind and here is my case why you should not thumbs down it either. I wishlisted the game after watching an entertaining let's play of the demo. I was expecting the game to be Firewatch in its depth of story and visual fidelity, and The longest dark in its setting and survival gameplay. The let's play made me fall in love with the banter between the two human characters, so the expectations were high. Let me tell you this. This game is not Firewatch, and this game is not The longest dark either. And it shouldn't be. We are leaving in a world where if someone creates a masterpiece, we are automatically assuming that now it is easy for everyone else to reach the same level and that we should expect even greater thins in the future. This game is not Firewatch or The longest dark because it is still extremely difficult to make such a game. This game does its own thing and we should judge it on its own merits. I see all the hard work and passion that has been put behind this game, and all the potential this game had to become a masterpiece, therefore, I thumbs up it to encourage the developers of this game to keep creating and become even better at it. This game is not the final destination, but a stepping stone. And if you want to see the journey, the "what it takes to be ready to make a Firewatch or a The longest dark" you should play this game. I strongly believe that it is worth seeing what these people managed to create from a blank canvas. Only then one can truly appreciate how many coatings of paint have to be put in place to make it a masterpiece. Thanks for the journey!

Absolutely loved this game. I saw it described as a cross between Firewatch and The Long Dark, and that’s definitely true, but it’s better than both IMO. The plot line is better, it’s science fiction, and that’s better for me, and the visuals are like a refreshed long dark, the devs have created a beautiful world. The voice acting and scripting is very well done, the actors deliver really well and create some genuinely emotional moments. The pace is gentle but the plot being so strong, it always makes you want find out what’s going on. There are some elements of resource finding, but I never struggled to find the resources needed. Overall, I enjoyed this more than pretty much any other game I played this year, and I’d put it in as one of my most favourite games of all time.

Not much "game play" here. Walk from a to b to have some dialog. Repeat. There is no exploration what so ever beside the *very* linear "story". FireWatch did this a lot better. This game have an interesting story of sorts, but it really need to be less linear and give some reasons and ability to walk around more beside the "set" path. Right now im in "bug heaven" after sliding off a cliff and ended up in "Limbo".

what a amazing game this has to be one of my most epic games i played in 2025!! Bigshout out to the dev for giving me a key so i can showcase the game for you guys https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8M_S_jq4r1k&t=1591s

I don't write reviews. I don't know how to write reviews. But recommend this game.

Loved this game throughout; if your an emotional person like me the ending will definantly hit you

Men really will do anything instead of going to therapy.

It's a great mystery-adventure game with light survival elements. The real highlight is the therapeutic robot companion Alfie, who is sometimes annoying, often funny, but always memorable. The snow covered setting feels immersive, and while you make many choices throughout the story, the toughest one comes at the end leaving the final meaning open to your interpretation. If you enjoy story-driven adventures with atmosphere and meaningful choices, this one is worth playing.

I am leaving an updated review based only on the completion of Chapter 1. Having finished said chapter last night, I encountered a game breaking bug which resulted in losing over an hour of progress, and I left a negative review which was influenced solely by the frustration of the time wasted and did not actually reflect the true overall quality of the game. It can be difficult for indie games to receive widespread attention, and so it is important for people who have experienced it to leave fair and impartial reviews which highlight the positive aspects while also explaining any problems in a meaningful manner to help others decide whether this is something they would like. This game is a narrative adventure that takes place in the frozen Arctic wilderness of the near future. The story opens as our protagonist is flying a plane filled with supplies to an Alaskan town, when suddenly some kind of interference fries the engines and electronics leaving us to ditch the plane in the snow. Our co-pilot Donovan bails out moments before the crash, and so the opening hours of the game revolve around scouting the area and then trying to find Donovan. We are not alone in our struggle, as a court mandated therapy bot called Alfie stays with us at all times. He is useful for providing clues on what to do next, for assisting with navigation and providing a light source at night. Unlike most helper robots in games, he is actually quite an affable little chap, and I have found him to be a rather endearing companion so far. The most obvious appeal of the game is the striking art style. It uses a similar minimal colour palette to games like Firewatch, Mirror's Edge and the works of thatgamecompany such as Flower and Journey, and it really is quite beautiful. While not exactly an open-world, the area is so large as to make one feel genuinely lost in the wilderness. The trees stretch on for miles in every direction, the snow covers everything and the stillness of the world leaves you feeling rather small and insignificant. The stillness of the world is also quite striking and definitely adds to the sense of isolation, and of being in some kind of otherworldly place. Thankfully there is plenty of conversation from the main character with both Donovan and Alfie to stop the silence becoming deafening. The three voice actors do fantastic work, and they really elevate the quality of the narrative into feeling AAA at times. The dialogue provides hints of mysteries from their past and provide little bits of context for what has happened in the world in recent history. There is mention of a second Cold War, and of past military service, but these are only little snippets of conversation and so the bigger picture remains largely mysterious. The music in the game is really wonderful. It is mostly orchestral in nature and only plays during specific story beats or upon the discovery of certain locations in the world. Each time it comes to the fore, you can be sure that something significant is happening. I do wish there was a little incidental / ambient music while out wandering, but understand the decision to use it to increase the cinematic feel of the game. I reiterate, the music is really wonderful. As for the gameplay, this is a narrative adventure with some survival elements. Essentially a walking sim, you will go from point A to B seeking a specific thing, or trying to do a specific task all while needing to be aware of your physical and mental stresses. You will find supplies at various locations which can be consumed, although this mechanic is not ever really explained. Only when my screen started to go greyscale and my character could barely move did I think to check my inventory and try clicking on some food items. You can combat mental stress by resting at specific points marked with a cairn (a stack of stones for all you non mountain folk) and engaging in a small rhythm game to focus on your breathing. The controls for this are a little fiddly at first but if you have any sense of rhythm you will be fine. As stated, I have only completed Chapter 1, so there may be more action later in the game, but I would imagine the game is mostly a contemplative experience where the main appeal is the story and the interpersonal dynamics. It looks beautiful and it sounds great and it plays as you would expect such a title, but this is an indie game and so it lacks polish in certain aspects. The world is large but not open and so you may wander of the beaten track assuming you will find some kind of secret or interesting thing only to get stuck and have to backtrack. It is not always easy to understand where you have to go or what you have to do next. I will say this, when you are prompted to set fire to the large dead tree, don't just start approaching all the large dead trees in the world like I did. Go back to your camp fire where you need to lift a flaming branch first. "Set fire to the large dead tree" is somehow both specific and vague at the same time. I also experienced a game breaking bug, and i know there will likely need to be a few patches released to address things as people discover them. This is after all an indie title, and so there are not hundreds of QA testers finding every little issue. There will be bugs, they will annoy you, and you can either throw a hissy fit like I did originally, or spend some time reflecting upon the bigger picture and learning to overcome like I did after a good night's sleep! I look forward to getting back into the game, and will likely update my review again once I complete the game but for now I just wanted to leave a positive review to properly reflect the quality of the game rather than let one negative experience colour my judgement. If you enjoy slow paced, thoughtful and meditative experiences, love the great outdoors and enjoy a little speculative fiction, you will likely enjoy this game. Also if you just like wandering around looking at the beauty of nature then you will probably want to spend time in this wilderness.

Hello! Theese are my first thoughts of the game from a 40 minute playtime. Pros: Awesome voice acting. The dialogs feel alive, its just awesome. Lovely soundtrack. I would even say it's one of the best soundtracks for a game out there. Price. Now, after release it's 10% off, so I would say it's the perfect time to buy this. Graphics. It's no Unreal engine 5, but I would say, that the graphics are as good as they can be, for a game like this. Cons: Not much here to say, there is only one thing I don't like about this game at all. And that's the auto-jump. You can't jump over "obstacles" manually. The game jumps for you, which I don't like at all. Overall: Awesome game, as far as I can say. 9/10

This game was truly stunning, with a gorgeous soundscape that really stands out. You can feel the inspiration and dedication of the development team in every detail. Highly recommend.