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Lost Words Beyond the Page review

June 30, 2021

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Lost Words Beyond the Page

Lost Words Beyond the Page is an atmospheric puzzler from developer Sketchbook Games and indie publisher Modus Games. The game revolves around the touching story of a young girl named Izzy coming to terms with life’s hardships by creating the adventure of a lifetime within the pages of her diary.

In the game, you’ll interact with the words within Izzy’s diary to solve puzzles along with unique platforming segments. As you leap between the words on each page, they become useful stepping-stones and puzzle-solving methods to unlock each new chapter.

Lost Words Beyond the Page Details

Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PS4, PC and Stadia
Reviewed on: Stadia
Developer: Sketchbook Games
Publisher: Modus Games
Genre: Adventure, Platformer, Action
Modes: Single player
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)

An emotional tale of of heartbreak and loss

Lost Words Beyond the Page is a heartfelt story about a young girl, Izzy, and the close relationship she has with her grandmother. As an inspiring young writer, Izzy expresses her thoughts and emotions through her diary on a daily basis. And, when her grandmother suddenly gets ill, the young girl isn’t quite sure how to deal with her emotions.

As a result, Izzy starts writing a story in her diary about a little girl who is in search of a fierce dragon that has destroyed her village and left it in turmoil. During this adventure, the little girl meets a variety of characters that help her on her journey. And, just like Izzy, she experiences a wide range of emotions including self-doubt.

It’s been a long time since a game’s story has drawn me in and hit so close to home as Lost Words Beyond the Page does. Many of us have experienced the loss of a loved one and the wide range of emotions that follow dealing with grief. As a result, I felt a connection to Izzy and could sympathize with what she was going through.

Lost Words Beyond the Page

Solve challenging puzzles with unique gameplay elements

Gameplay in Lost Words Beyond the Page is unique and broken up into two segments. The first segment of gameplay involves Izzy reading her diary aloud as she writes and draws in it. As the heroine of the story, you walk, jump and move around the diary pages using the words as platforms. As Izzy’s mood changes so does the environment of the pages in her diary.

At the end of each diary phase, Izzy provides prompts. These prompts allow you, the player, to help subtly shape the story. The decisions you make affect everything from the name and appearance of the little girl in the story, to the motivations of characters, or the way the little girl reacts to situations.

The second segment of gameplay is where Izzy narrates and you, the player, navigate the world inside the story. You acquire a magic spell book that allows you to store several different words, which you drag around and use to interact with puzzles and obstacles on each of the levels. For example, you might use the word “break” to bring down a tree. In another instance, you could use the word “swap” to trade places with a friend in the level to advance.

An aesthetically wondrous landscape

From start to finish, Lost Words Beyond the Page‘s presentation is superb. The game’s stylized graphics, exquisite soundtrack and voice acting all play equal parts in making this an adventure you won’t soon forget. The game’s story is written by Rhianna Pratchett, who worked on the Tomb Raider reboot and Mirror’s Edge.

Izzy’s narration throughout the game is not only entertaining but compelling. And, her roller coaster ride of emotions from happiness, to fear, to recovering from heartbreak will bring a tear to your eye.

Lost Words Beyond the Page

Lost Words Beyond the Page is a captivating adventure that will bring a tear to your eye

Lost Words Beyond the Page offers a compelling story, unique gameplay, beautiful stylized graphics, brilliant voice acting and an exquisite soundtrack that will have you emotionally invested from start to finish. You can expect to spend between 4-5 hours to see and do virtually everything in the game.

With a budget friendly price, Lost Words Beyond the Page is more than worth the price of admission. If you are looking for a change of pace and enjoy story driven adventures, I highly recommend picking up Lost Words Beyond the Page—you won’t be sorry that you did.

+ Emotionally impactful story
+ Brilliant voice acting
+ Unique gameplay
+ Budget friendly price

– Some may find the story too short
– Next to no replay value