Review: Twin Mirror (2021)

★★

"Twin Mirror" is one of the many games developed by DONTNOD outside of the Life is Strange universe, for which they are best known. But does it hold up to those iconic titles? Unfortunately, I have to say it does not. Continue reading to find out why.

I didn't really like the game. I couldn't connect with any of the characters or the story. It felt simple, without the boundary-pushing moments that we saw in Life is Strange and Life is Strange 2. The game takes place in a small town, Basswood, which wasn't interesting at all. It's a shame because, in a town like that, you'd expect intriguing things to happen, but sadly, that wasn't the case here.

You play as Sam, who returns to his hometown after learning that his best friend, Nick, has unexpectedly passed away. Nick's daughter, Joan, believes that her father's death was murder, not a natural occurrence. She asks her godfather, Sam, to investigate. Before you even get started, you wake up hungover and must solve another mystery. Eventually, you recruit Anna, and together you learn that Dennis—a narcissistic man with whom you get into a fight—has also been murdered. This leads you and Anna to suspect that the two deaths are linked.

The only two characters that feel developed are Sam and Anna. Everyone else comes across as underdeveloped and forgettable. It reminded me of Tolkien's writing, where new characters are introduced but then disappear without further development. Even Declan, the antagonist who is revealed to be behind the murders, feels underdeveloped. He hardly does anything in the game other than talk and kill two people. It almost seems like the developers forgot he was supposed to be the villain.

Sam has an imaginary friend who I found quite annoying. He constantly talks and tells the player what to do. Normally, I don't mind this in games, but when it happens repeatedly, it becomes a nuisance. At some point, I felt like I wanted to slap him, even though he wasn't real. It seemed embarrassing for a grown man to still have an imaginary friend. What really stinks is that those cutscenes cannot be skipped. It's like these developers wanted you to suffer from this "twin."

This game has an interesting concept and potential, even taking inspiration from the movie, "Memento"; however, it falls flat in almost every other aspect. The plot is predictable and too obvious. You can tell the story is trying to be suspenseful, but it just doesn't succeed. The controls feel floaty, especially during minigames and when trying to find clues. And those minigames—my goodness—felt forced and rushed.