| Game | Marie’s Room |
|---|---|
| Release Year | 2018 |
| Developer | Kenny Guillaume |
| Publisher | Kenny Guillaume |
| Genre | Exploration, Narrative |
| Platforms | PC |
At first glance, Marie’s Room feels like a walking simulator heavily inspired by Life is Strange. It tells the story of two teenage girls and the events they went through 20 years before the present time. It has a nostalgic, bittersweet vibe with beautiful ambient music that feels like stepping into a friend’s room where you instantly feel at home.
You play as an adult Kelsey, who enters Marie’s empty old room. Upon finding Marie’s abandoned journal, she mentally travels back in time to when they used to spend a lot of time together. As the player, you’ll be transported back to that moment of their past and explore their memories as Kelsey gradually remembers them. When you interact with objects, it’ll trigger pieces of the story through Kelsey’s voice, so you’ll be learning different bits of information but in no particular order.
As you find certain items, you’ll also be unlocking Marie’s journal entries. These are necessary not only to get Marie’s perspective of the events that take place, but also to find the combination of a small locked chest. While I won’t say what’s inside, keep in mind that opening it triggers the final portion of the game, eventually leading to the ending scene and credits. So, if you want to get all the achievements, I’d suggest you try to find every single item before opening the chest.
The game doesn’t autosave, so you can’t close it halfway through the story to continue it later, but it shouldn’t take over an hour to finish it. It took me nearly 50 minutes to complete the game, plus a second, quicker playthrough just for the single object I’d missed because I wanted to get the one achievement I had left.
The heart of the game is the story itself. While I initially thought I’d get a lighthearted plot with a bit of mystery, I was surprised to realize the heaviness of the drama that unfolded.
It focuses on Marie and Kelsey’s relationship, and how it was affected by Kelsey’s boyfriend at the time. That guy was… not a good egg, and he didn’t exactly support the girls’ friendship. At its core, it’s a story about how toxic influences can snake their way into your life through manipulation and intimidation. I gotta admit, it affected me rather deeply when I realized I could personally relate to Marie’s side of things. I cried a good cry and I was stunned to notice how quickly I’d gone from simply curious about the plot to an emotional wreck. Maybe that’s just me and it won’t necessarily affect you the same way, but kudos to the devs, I guess, for a story well told.
There’s just one little thing that bothered me. At some point there’s a sound effect that is much louder than the rest of the game. It’s meant to startle you, but I thought it was quite a bit louder than it should have. You can expect to hear it after unlocking the chest and near the end of the game, so no need to worry about it until then.
Speaking of sound, though, I must mention the soundtrack is actually really good, and it’s available for download at no cost. It really gives off Sunday morning, road trip nostalgia vibes.
For a free-to-play game, this is a little gem you shouldn’t skip on, especially if you’re into the coming-of-age type of stories. It will leave you feeling like you met new friends and learned their secrets, through what feels like a life-long journey that, in reality, only takes but a coffee break.
