I have stated on several occasions that I am looking for the video game equivalent of a Pixar movie; something that can touch on many different emotions, without being overbearing or pretentious at all. Most video games have had sad moments, but unfortunately they mostly feel forced or fail at telling a heart wrenching story at all. Freebird Games must have been reading my letters, because To The Moon accomplishes everything that I’ve asked for and by focusing on what is important in any great tale, To The Moon has quite the story to tell.
The story begins with Dr. Rosalene and Dr. Watts traveling to meet with their latest client, an elderly gentleman named Johnny, who is on his deathbed. However unlike most doctors, the duo has been hired to fix his memories, not his physical ailments. The doctors utilize groundbreaking technology that will allow them to traverse through the patient’s mind, so that they can implant an idea that will allow the patient to change their life in the manner that they wish. The staff soon finds out that their current patient has an unusual request; he would like to go to the moon. The peculiar thing is that Johnny does not know why he wants to go to the moon; he just knows that he has to. Throughout the game, players will take control of both Dr. Watts and Dr. Rosalene as they try to find out exactly why Johnny wants to go to the moon in his memories before he awakes to take his last breath.
The game plays out like an adventure game, where each memory required to progress back through the host’s life can only be accessed by finding mementos that are important to Johnny. Once the mementos are accessed, there is a tile-based puzzle that needs to be cleared before the doctors can jump to a new memory. Sound complicated? Actually the gameplay aspects themselves are very simple to accomplish. I really feel that the gameplay is secondary and is only utilized so that the experience is more interactive and keeps the player involved in the game. The game can be somewhat misleading, with the 16-bit art style making it seem like an RPG in the same vein as Chrono Trigger or Final Fantasy. The humorous writing of the game does at times lend to breaking down the forth wall, and poking fun at the title’s lack of game mechanics. One particular moment with a squirrel early on was laugh-out-loud funny, and very much unexpected. Although there are some moments where controlling the character can be troublesome, as items that are meant to be interacted with will sometimes not respond properly to the player’s input or may require several attempts to register. These moments do not hinder the gameplay, and controlling with the keyboard and mouse is limited to using the arrow keys and the left mouse click for an easy to pick up and play experience.
The story is what initially interested me into playing through To The Moon; however I soon found myself completely overwhelmed by the game’s soundtrack. The song “For River” still lingers in my mind even after playing through the almost five hour experience, a piano theme that echoes through the house that is simply crafted yet conveys so many different emotions. Other great songs accompany the various stages of Johnny’s life, including a track in the later part of the game featuring Laura Shigihara of Plants vs. Zombies fame. The sound and writing simply make this game, since there is a lack of voiced dialogue and very limited gameplay moments. In a sense it’s more of an interactive novel, that tells the tale of a man that does many things for love, and how even when things do not work out the way you would like, happiness can still be obtained where you least expect it.
There were so many different twists and absolutely touching moments throughout the game, I felt very connected to the characters and could not leave the desk until I knew how Johnny’s final moments would play out. It is truly a shame that I cannot share these moments with you, but that would rob you of the experience and I truly believe that anyone who has wished for a heartfelt story and emotional experience should play To The Moon. Kan Gao and everyone else at Freebird Games are doing great work and I encourage all of you to go and support them and play this great title, you will not be disappointed.