Closer the Distance

 PC
Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 9 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 9
  3. Negative: 0 out of 9
  1. VG247
    Aug 1, 2024
    100
    You’re bound to make mistakes with such an emotionally-driven narrative at play, but with some hope from beyond the grave in Closer the Distance, you can help Yesterby move on. And if you had as wonderful a time as I did and are wondering how you can do things differently, there’s nothing stopping you from going back in time and trying to pick up the pieces all over again.
  2. Noisy Pixel
    Aug 14, 2024
    90
    Closer The Distance is a unique life simulation game that challenges players with time management mechanics and an emotionally charged narrative. Set in the quaint village of Yesterby, you guide a family through the aftermath of a tragic loss, balancing their emotional and physical needs. With stunning visuals, exceptional voice acting, and a melancholic tone, this game offers a deeply immersive experience. While the time constraints and challenging objectives may be stressful for some, the game's replay value and narrative depth make it a must-play for fans of the genre.
  3. God is a Geek
    Aug 5, 2024
    90
    Closer the Distance takes the theme of grief and uses it to construct a wonderful narrative and an intelligent gameplay approach.
  5. TheGamer
    Aug 1, 2024
    90
    Despite its flaws, I’ve never played a game quite like Closer the Distance. It somehow successfully manages to turn the difficult process of managing a community’s grief into a playable game, prompting you to ask yourself difficult questions without being hamfisted with its themes. It tells a deeply moving and compelling story about what it means to take care of others, love those we’ve lost, and honour their memories in ways that respect them while making sure we keep in mind the people left behind. And it does all that while maintaining gameplay that never feels tiresome, balancing the repercussions of your actions in a realistic way, and making you really care about its characters. I’ll be thinking about this game for years to come.
  6. Try Hard Guides
    Aug 1, 2024
    90
    Closer The Distance is a game that will make you feel. It reminds you of some of life’s saddest moments and grief, as well as about healing and the depth that a community can have. It may be rough going down like bitter medicine, but you’ll feel better in the end.
  7. COGconnected
    Aug 26, 2024
    84
    Thanks to its art direction and genuinely creative use of Sims-like mechanics, Closer the Distance gets your attention. What keeps you enthralled, emotionally engaged, and frequently discomforted is its pitch-perfect exploration of some very difficult subject matter. It’s a heavy game but absolutely worth your time.
  8. Movies Games and Tech
    Sep 5, 2024
    80
    Closer The Distance is a beautiful story full of interesting characters. Its core themes are very touching and are explored excellently, even if the gameplay method it uses to do so is a little strange.
  9. GLHF on Sports Illustrated
    Aug 6, 2024
    70
    Despite tackling so many sensitive topics, Closer the Distance never feels out of its depth and shows a surprisingly well-rounded understanding of human nature. Angie might push Conny to be the one who helps others, but her friends in the village have her needs in mind as well. And sometimes they don’t, because sometimes, people just suck. How you deal with that is up to you, and the way you do or don’t resolve the village’s issues will have lasting effects on the people who live there. There’s plenty of replay value, but like with Spiritfarer, I don’t think this is a game I can ever play again.
  10. GAMINGbible
    Aug 1, 2024
    60
    The close-knit community and setting made the grief feel all the more suffocating and as the player, you try your hardest to inject hope back into the world. Whether that means bringing fading relationships back to life, giving someone a purpose again or just being the quiet presence that somebody needs. Despite my issues, I believe Closer the Distance is a title that should be experienced for yourself as your story may turn out different to mine.
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  1. Polygon
    Sep 9, 2024
    Closer the Distance is so good at replicating grief that I couldn’t keep playing it. It’s taken me several weeks to praise its virtues, let alone continue the game itself, because its subject matter is so true to the life experience of grieving. And that’s not a bad thing — in fact, I think it’s one of the most impressive parts of the game, and one of the most profound. Because it’s a reminder that grief doesn’t happen in a line. I’ll likely return to the game to keep up with Yesterby in a few weeks, once I’ve further processed the deaths in my real life and in the game. It’ll likely keep teaching me things about how to support others in times of strife. I expect it to bring me to reflective, melancholy tears again, both as I play it and as it creeps up in my memory when grieving becomes a part of my day-to-day once again.