A Normal Lost Phone

 PC
Metascore
71

Mixed or average reviews - based on 8 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 8
  3. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. 4P.de
    Jan 27, 2017
    82
    In a surprisingly emotional way A Normal Lost Phone not only is a coming-of-age tale. It manages to be informative without being obnoxious, to be authentic while being playful. A wonderfully different storytelling experience.
  2. Eurogamer Italy
    Feb 27, 2017
    80
    Finding something truly original in these years is almost impossible. A Normal Lost Phone is unique and a great little experience which deals with some topical issues in a light and inspired way.
  3. GameSpew
    Feb 13, 2017
    80
    A Normal Lost Phone is a game with a really brilliant concept. It covers complicated, sensitive topics which, in many ways, is a bold and brave thing to do in today’s world.
  5. The Overpowered Noobs
    Feb 1, 2017
    80
    An insightful story with fleshed out characters and captivating dilemmas, not to mention a great soundtrack, A Normal Lost Phone is the kind of experience that inspires you to get back into the world with a renewed sense of compassion toward all those who live in it. At $2.99 on Steam, some would argue that makes it worth it.
  6. PC Gamer
    Apr 15, 2017
    68
    There's a good story here, but it's marred by carelessness. [May 2017, p.89]
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  7. SpazioGames
    Feb 15, 2017
    65
    A game that tries to tell a delicate story through a well-written narrative and a decent gameplay. If you don't mind reading a lot of text, and you are not bothered by a short and not replayable story, this game might be a correct choice.
  8. Let's Play Video Games
    Feb 15, 2017
    55
    For many of you reading, A Normal Lost Phone will be well worth playing. If you discover the intricacies of the mystery in the path the game intends, you’ll get to explore a phone that feels like it contains a real slice of someone’s personal and private lives. If you, like me, solve the core of the mystery within a few minutes, you may well end up feeling frustrated at the lack of motivation provided for tearing through someone’s intimate information.
  9. CD-Action
    Apr 5, 2017
    50
    A Normal Lost Phone is neither terrible nor thrilling. It doesn’t offer a truly interesting story, an engaging gameplay or a fresh outlook on the matters it touches. I feel I wouldn’t have missed anything, if I had never played it. [04/2017, p.55]
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In Progress & Unscored

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  1. Rock, Paper, Shotgun
    Jan 27, 2017
    I love this whole genre, this found phone genre that if I call a genre enough will magically become a real genre.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 22 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 22
  3. Negative: 2 out of 22
  1. Jovuto
    Mar 3, 2017
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click full review link to view. I bought this game because it had positive reviews, it was cheap and I have no issue with reading a bunch of text/experiencing a story rather than playing a game. I also found the concept of unravelling a story through the use of looking through someone's phone to be an interesting one. If this also sounds like you, then go ahead and buy it. Now, onto the real part of the review.

    SPOILERS AHEAD

    I was really not expecting the story to take the turn it did. If you're observant, which I wasn't, you'll see the warning at the bottom about homophobic themes. When reading through everything, I expected the worst. I thought maybe Sam had been kidnapped or had genuinely gone missing. It's not until you start digging that you realise that Sam is actually a trans-woman. Maybe I'm exaggerating but I think the way the game reveals this is perfect and once you figure out what's going on, everything fits together really well. The game does a brilliant job of making you feel like a detective.

    I know a lot of people will be turned away from the themes of this game, but **** 'em. Yeah sure, "SJW" themes are somewhat overdone in games these days, but I couldn't care less. This game does a brilliant job of highlighting the problems that trans people, or even just the LGBT community, go through and also the issue of coming out to a family that might not accept you for who you are.

    That said, I have a few issues with the game that stop it from being perfect. The first issue is that the music player doesn't really serve a purpose and is honestly more distracting than anything. Trying to read large walls of text with music getting progressively louder in the background is really difficult for me. It also served no purpose when it comes to puzzle solving. The second issue is that, while I appreciate it, a lot of the posts on the "Be You" forum seemed repetitive and not worth reading. Most of the posts there had nothing to do with the story, and while I do find it interesting to read about the LGBT community, a lot of the stuff there could've easily been compressed down. My third issue was the puzzles, some of them are a tad too cryptic. I feel like most people will need a walkthrough. And finally the ending. I'm not a fan of it. Maybe I'm bad for sympathising for Sam's parents... but I do. For all they know, their son/now daughter is completely missing. Possibly dead. But no. Sam just ran away from home without telling anyone. I know they are bigoted scumbags, but I feel like everyone should be treated with respect. Even bigoted scumbags. They have a right to know what happened to their child. In my eyes, Sam should've come out to them. The worst that could've happened would be them disowning her. Which, at the end of the day, is what she supposedly wanted anyway, because she ran away. I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. I'm usually a fan of bad endings, but this ending just makes the main character (Sam) unlikeable.

    But honestly overall, I enjoyed this experience. While it has its shortcomings in polish and storytelling, I feel as though it does a great job of telling a story in an interesting way. Well worth the £2, heck I almost spent 3 solid hours playing this.

    8/10    … Full Review »
  2. renyw
    Dec 19, 2022
    7
    ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok ok
  3. Matteorealo
    Jul 19, 2021
    8
    Un gioco davvero bello che in meno di un'ora di gioco racconta una storia bella e commuovente accompagnato da una splendida colonna sonora
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