I somehow missed the initial love train for Life Is Strange. It wouldn’t be until years later that I would come across the multi-award-winning game from developer Don’t Nod. From Life Is Strange, I played a few other Don’t Nod games like Vampyr and Twin Mirror and generally had a good time with them. But they didn’t live up to how much I enjoyed Life Is Strange. A few weeks ago, I saw a trailer for the latest Don’t Nod game Lost Records: Bloom & Rage and was enamored by it. It was a creepy, nostalgic-looking, branching narrative game set in a sleepy Stephen King-like small town. I was immediately sold. It’s safe to say I think I found my new favorite game from Don’t Nod.

A Dual-Timeline Narrative Rooted in Trauma and Friendship

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage Part 1 follows friends Swann Holloway (Olivia Lepore), Nora (Amelia Sargisson), and Autumn (Andrea Carter), who reunite in the sleeping town of Velvet Cove, Michigan 27 years after a harrowing event changed the course of their lives. Bloom & Rage tells its story partly through the present day and partly through their friendship in the summer of 1995. In 1995, the four friends, including Kat (Natalie Liconti), become friends when Kat’s sister’s boyfriend harasses them outside a video rental shop. These four young girls quickly form an unbreakable bond. While filming a music video in the woods, the girls get lost and find a mysterious abandoned house deep within the forest. But they don’t realize the house may have been abandoned for good reasons.

Part 1 Bloom does just that. The player, through Swann Holloway, forms and grows a friendship with the other three girls. Like, say, Until Dawn and games of that ilk, the gameplay offers dialogue choices to form or break friendships. I completed one and a half play-throughs, and from what I can tell, there are quite a bit of dialogue choices based on what you decide to say (or not say!). Regarding the dialogue, specifically for the characters in 1995, it’s impressive how it doesn’t feel forced or like that Steve Buscemi, “Hey fellow kids,” meme. Writers Desiree Cifre and Nina Freeman impressed me with their referential but focused script.

Thoughtful Integration of COVID-Era Reality

Side note: this probably isn’t the first game to reference the COVID pandemic but I appreciate how they handled the topic of COVID throughout the present tense of the game. It’s not over-the-top or preachy but it exists within Bloom & Rage’s world as it exists in ours. Nothing more, nothing less.

Strong Voice Acting Elevates the Narrative Experience

When it comes to dialogue-heavy games like this, a lot of the overall enjoyment comes down to the script and the voice acting. I can sit through bugs and subpar gameplay, but if the voice acting doesn’t flow then the game is dead in the water. (I’m looking at you, The Casting of Frank Stone.) I mean no shade when I say this, but for a main cast that is made up of voice actors who have appeared in nearly [at least] 10 Dhar Mann videos apiece, I was highly impressed by their voice-acting abilities. You play as Swann through the entire game, and whether it’s her dialogue or internal monologue, Olivia Lepore delivers. While all four of the main cast do an incredible job, Liconti steals the show with her grounded and unexpectedly heartfelt performance.

The game’s grungy present setting feels gritty and raw but it’s the 1995 portion of the gameplay that makes me feel nostalgic for a simpler time. It made me remember my early childhood. Throughout the entirety of the woods setting, I couldn’t help but think of the countless hours I spent wandering the woods in the Poconos, collecting firewood, looking at woodland animals, hearing sounds I couldn’t put my finger on, finding mysteries, creating mysteries, and just having a youth devoid of brain rotting media. Bloom & Rage made me nostalgic for my childhood while also yearning for one I never had.

The Camcorder Mechanic and Environmental Storytelling

As stated, you play the game as Swann, and with her character, your main item is a camcorder. The trophy hunters of the world will scan each inch of the environment for collectible things to film, while casual players will revel in the create-your-own-film aspect of Swann’s camcorder. Gorgeous ray tracing filmed through the camcorder creates an ever-appealing visual that doesn’t get old for a single minute.

But what about the horror?! I mean, this is Horror Press after all. Tape 1 Bloom is definitely more story and relationship-forward than straight-up horror, but that doesn’t mean it’s devoid of horror. Whether you’re exploring an abandoned park, lost in the woods at night, or looking deep into something in the woods, Bloom sets the stage for what [I think] will be a staggeringly beautiful and horrific ending to their story. The horror atmosphere is wonderfully crafted when it needs to be–but Bloom does something more important: it makes you care. Bloom establishes these characters’ relationships and makes you care for these friends. Their blooming (pun intended) friendship is crafted right before your eyes, forcing you to go along with the journey just as they are.

Who Lost Records: Bloom & Rage Is For

Whether you’re a fan of other Don’t Nod games, Until Dawn-like games (note there aren’t any QTEs here), or story-driven games with heavy atmosphere, then I think Lost Records: Bloom & Rage will work for you. My overall gameplay time (for Tape 1) was about eight and a half hours, and I’m sure I missed a few things here and there.

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is rated M and will release for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S in two parts, with the first releasing on February 18, 2025, and the second on April 15.