Her Story is a crime solving game that is as refreshing as it’s immersive. The game is seen entirely through a PC screen and video clips. The interface is very reminiscent of Windows 95 and gives you the ability to move things around, save things and build a database of useful information to help you figure out what’s going on.
No explanation, roadmap or clear path to success are given. It’s entirely up to you to figure it out. In a market full of linear games or ones where everything is laid out so that even the most casual player can complete all levels, Her Story is something different.
You begin by watching a recording of a suspect interview regarding a murder committed in the 1990s. The video is grainy and you’re watching though an old PC interface. As you get into the game, you realise that the woman you’re watching in the interviews is Hannah Smith. In 1994, she reported her husband as missing. That report was then changed to murder. You don’t know if the murder was solved or not, but are given access to all the interviews and video archives surrounding the case.
The game has a simple interface containing a search engine that can call up videos, files and everything you need to solve the case. The videos are all full motion video and are well scripted and acted. Your job is to wade through all this information using keywords of your own choosing to get to the bottom of what happened.
This innovative approach means everyone’s experience will be different. It also means progress is non-linear and subject to your own ability to pick up information. That can come from dialogue, body language and a number of other indicators included in the videos. Interviews you have watched are given a green indicator, those you haven’t are red. Hunting for the key ones through keyword searches and investigation takes time, patience and some creative thinking. The process as a whole really does make you feel as though you are a detective.
It’s hard to sum up Her Story in a few words. It’s amazingly immersive, brave, well performed, well designed and very compelling. It’s also something refreshingly different from the norm.
Jesmond Darmanin is a technology enthusiast who has his own blog at www.itnewsblog.com.