Lost Words: Beyond the Page

 Switch
Lost Words: Beyond the Page Image
Metascore
78

Generally favorable reviews - based on 16 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 11 Ratings

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  • Summary: An atmospheric narrative adventure written by Rhianna Pratchett. Set between the pages of a diary and a fantasy story where you run on words and use them to interact with the world around you.
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Lost Words Gameplay - 13 Minutes Of The Whimsical Storybook Platformer

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 16
  3. Negative: 1 out of 16
  1. App Trigger
    Apr 9, 2021
    95
    There are very few times that a trailer for a game with a high-level concept lives up to its promises and Lost Words absolutely nailed exactly what I hoped it would be. The game puts you into the heart and soul of a writer struggling to flesh out their own story while also struggling to cope with their own hardships. While the gameplay itself can sometimes be slow and the game has a few minor bugs, none of this takes away from the fact that this is one of the best narrative journeys I’ve encountered in years.
  2. Checkpoint Gaming
    May 29, 2021
    90
    An example of storytelling that can only exist through the medium of games, and a testament to the artistry of play. Its powerful writing, eye-watering design, and incredibly truthful narrative are held up by simple intuitive gameplay that immerses you in its story. While it’s not a challenging experience, Lost Words pulls you into an emotional journey that will linger long after the ending credits. This is the kind of game that makes me excited to play games, even if they leave me in tears.
  3. Cultured Vultures
    Apr 1, 2021
    85
    Lost Words is an emotional journey that is told beautifully, and only slightly let down by the lack of gameplay and puzzles in between the fantastic storytelling.
  4. NintendoWorldReport
    Mar 30, 2021
    80
    Lost Words: Beyond the Page is an emotional story with an enjoyable wrapper of art, music, and gameplay that lasts about three or four hours. Turn back if you want an immense challenge or brain-wrinkling puzzles, but if you’re looking to shed a tear or two and take in a well-written story where you move a character around and occasionally solve some clever but basic word puzzles, this is a great game to experience.
  5. Switch Player
    Apr 12, 2021
    80
    Lost Words: Beyond the Page is a phenomenal experience, one that I’m not likely to forget anytime soon. The gameplay is simple but the narrative more than makes up for that. An incredibly relatable story that really had me lost for words.
  6. COGconnected
    Mar 30, 2021
    74
    Sketchbook Games have created a truly fascinating experience that sensitively deals with trauma. Even though Lost Words suffers from a few gameplay issues, its narrative carries the game to incredible heights. For those looking for an emotional, grief-ridden title, look no further.
  7. Player 2
    Apr 7, 2022
    42
    An interesting premise and solid execution are let down by a narrative that treads a predictable path, reaching for a poignant epiphany it isn’t able to realise.

See all 16 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 4
  3. Negative: 1 out of 4
  1. berkerzararsiz
    Sep 25, 2021
    10
    Good storytelling, feeling weird emotions, layered gameplay... Perfect game for me
  2. tonyozhelev
    Feb 1, 2023
    6
    The story is very predictable. It will probably move people who lost dear ones, as it did for me, but even though I was emotional I didn'tThe story is very predictable. It will probably move people who lost dear ones, as it did for me, but even though I was emotional I didn't really like some of the writing. While the journal parts of the game are fine, the story writing parts made me feel cringy and confused at times. Puzzles are kinda easy, but I enjoyed them. What I didn't like was that in the story there are some moments that can leave you confused and if I didn't know the game is like 2 hours long I probably wouldn't have kept on playing. It all makes sense in the end, but I guess I kinda didn't like the way it was writen an presented. It's a decent 2 hour story, with a little bit of bad writing here and there. It's free on PS Plus Extra right now, so I'd say go for it if you want something really casual.… Expand
  4. Pastel1360
    Dec 22, 2022
    5
    Lost Words: Beyond the Page has received plenty of praise: awards in 2021 and 2022, favorable reviews here and in other game stores... oneLost Words: Beyond the Page has received plenty of praise: awards in 2021 and 2022, favorable reviews here and in other game stores... one would imagine this is a gold nugget, and for many people I am sure it is. For me, it wasn't.

    The game is two-layered: there's a girl writing in her journal and creating a story, so you participate in both activities. The story she creates is heavily influenced by what she's going through in real life (she faces loss and has to learn to process grief), and I found the narrative nice, but fully predictable after the first half hour of playing.

    Gameplay-wise, there isn't much. The game is based on moving words around and seeing how they impact the world, in a way not too dissimilar to Max and the quest of Brotherhood and its magic markers. However, where Max adds a bit of a challenge in terms of puzzle and sometimes a bit of skill and timing, I felt that Lost Words: Beyond the Page didn't require any skill to play, and found puzzles obvious and repetitive.

    There are large sections of the game where the pace is imposed: there is text appearing as you move, so you are forced to move at a certain pace to read it, sometimes you need to press a button to advance a dialogue. There are sections where you advance fast, which should be exhilarating, but there's absolutely no control as the game does it for you and reuses the same animations that feel repetitive quickly.

    I am not sure what audience this game targets. It could be teenage / pree-tenage gamers going through a similar story as the protagonist (in that case, I would argue that there might be better media to help them process their feelings), but even for them the gameplay side of things would be too basic. The gameplay could work for a younger audience, but in that case they might be lost on the wider message.

    For me, a "mature" (euphemism for older) gamer, this was not a satisfying experience. I believe some of the reviews I read before buying were saying "we don't want to spoil things by going into much detail", and so I have tried to remain spoiler-free but still provide as much detail as possible.    … Expand
  5. b00lpr0p
    Dec 11, 2022
    3
    The game is boring, the story is boring, the puzzles cannot even be named "puzzles" because they are so obvious, there is no challenge at all.

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Awards & Rankings

96
#96 Best Switch Game of 2021

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