I just played this through in about an hour - it was really good! I loved all the attention to detail and uncovering the story bit by bit really was a blast - my only drawback are the puzzles with dates which are formatted in the american way - my european ass could not figure out to just reverse the day-month numbers for quite some time.
I absolutely adored this game. It was short and sweet, yet I think that its time usage was absolutely perfect; even if one or two of the "puzzles" were a bit ambiguous (I might just be a bit impatient, though).
I wanted to add that y'all's art style really stuck with me. I absolutely loved it, not sure what about it stuck with me so much, but it did. I could feel Sam come alive and I could feel everything about it at my core.
Thanks for making a great game :)
En Français:
J'ai adoré ce jeu. C'était court et bon, mais je pense que son utilisation du temps, c'était beaucoup de parfait.
Je voulais ajouter que votre style artistique était très charmant. Je l'ai adoré, et je ne sais pas pourquoi! J'ai pu voir Sam comme une personne réelle.
This is my favorite game from the bundle so far! I love it so much! You found an unlocked phone and you investigate everything inside of it (text messages, emails, songs, photos, dating app, weather app...) to try to understand who the owner of the phone is and why they lost their phone. So, so good!
Hi there! I'm CJ—I'm working on a master list of interface drama and would like to include your game as an interface drama, which is a game that tells stories through the use of interface (UI).
I'm reaching out to devs of games in the list to confirm that I have accurate tags of your game.
Right now, the tags on A Normal Lost Phone are:
- lgbtqia+
- mystery - puzzle
If there's any other tags on the list, or ones you'd like to add, please let me know.
Thank you for your time.
OMG I love interface drama games! Thank you for making the list! I have tried Emily is Away, A Normal Lost Phone, and Her Story. I'd recommend adding "Another Lost Phone: Laura's Story" to the list as well ;) https://dearvillagers.itch.io/another-lost-phone-lauras-story
a solid 9/10! super interesting format and really calming, pretty art. it would've been nice to see some kind of resolution- like once you complete the final task, maybe it shifts to some kind of after-credit scene from sam's pov. i also feel like some of the tasks were a little too well hidden- i actually had to look up a guide for several puzzles.
still, a really amazing game! tackled a lot of topics very near and dear to my heart. i definitely want to get to know sam better, and i really want to know more of their story. Accidental Queens did a fantastic job :)
I really enjoyed this! There's a scene later one where multiple photos are sent at once, and I especially loved that; felt so true to life and made me tear up a bit.
I feel like this game would have been a longer experience if it wasn't so familiar, I understood the ending of the game pretty strongly from the moment I opened the dad's text messages. I share a few key things with the main character that meant all but one of the passwords seemed a little too easy to work out. but playing it I couldn't help but feel immensely seen and understood by this game and that is a truly amazing thing
Do mind the warnings. As a trans person with a not so great fam, it hit me in the feels. Not in a bad way, but in a way which felt very real.
If I had one critique, SPOILERS while the forums you access provide great info, a couple messages felt a bit same-y and like something you might read from self-help articles. It might have worked better with the longer text blocks broken up into shorter messages. But really, it's a nit-picky complaint for a very good game.
I loved the combination of puzzles and story in this game! Also the art is so lovely! The UI is also cool looking and really easy to navigate. I really like how the phone was used as this framework to tell a story through, which makes so much sense as we keep so much info of ourselves on our phones these days! Plus being able to see the progression of Sam's journey through the dates of various messages and things until we get that one final message was so satisfying. It left me feeling so proud of her!
i VERY MUCH enjoyed sleuthing through this phone! It was a fantastic informative look into trans lives and I enjoyed the ending it thematically tied everything together in a beautifully thoughtful way. The puzzles were challenging enough so that we felt proud solving them but not too challenging that I felt like giving up. 10/10!
To echo what others have said; sweet really is the best word for this game-- while some tough topics are tackled, the overall story was very satisfying.
Almost every comment will tell you this game is very sweet, and they're right! I struggled a bit with some puzzles, but overall really enjoyed the story, the playability and the art. Thank you!
Loved this game, it was really sweet. The puzzles were just hard enough to give me the sense of satisfaction when I figured out but weren't overly hard that I felt frustrated. So good, thank you!
This was a sweet little game to play! I love how the puzzles are difficult enough to make you look, but not too much to the point it halts you during the story. Sad that its such a reality of what people go through,
Interesting game, maybe too much text to read (I have played similar type of game before, and it was more "fresh" than this). At the start you let us know about possible hate speech towards LGBT group, I personally didn't like the "blind support" which was in game.. again .. in my opinion both hate speech and "blind support" are two strong opposites which are unacceptable (for obvious reasons). Game gets tricky and even more interesting later on, good job.
It seems you just replied with intention to harass my subjective opinion on the game and/or the game topics.
Let's make it more clear for you... by "blind support" I meant people advising body change and such, which is irreversible decision, without knowing their full background.
I feel offended by comparing my opinion which DID NOT contain hatred towards LGBT community to genocide. Maybe you should re-read my comment or even better play the game by yourself.
Such a sweet game. I didn't think it would be a puzzle (went in blind) but tbh I loved piecing everything together. The writing was also A++. Not to spoil anything, but as a...uh...Friend of Dorothy^tm the little hints are great and definitely make sense.
Absolutely lovely. I had known this game was well received but didn't know anything else coming in and I'm so glad that was the case so I could experience it for myself. Really sweet and heartfelt and moving. Thank you for making this.
I really love this work a lot. It's more about the story and I am horrible at solving mysteries so I had to look up the passwords but I am so glad I did because the story was enjoyable as I went along. A lot of people experience similar struggles and I am happy I saw some of myself as a queer person in this narrative story game. Well done! <3
Note: I played this game on my phone, which I would recommend for the optimal experience.
I can't deny that this game is well-made. The creator makes use of the unique interface to spin a compelling narrative. The puzzles make use of this feature well. I just can't get behind the message this game wants to get across.
Story - 3/5 - As a narrative, the story is well-rounded and immersive. I could see many people liking it. But for me, the ending to this story is not something to be applauded, and lauding that decision soured the entire game.
Mechanics - 4.5/5 - Puzzles can often be frustrating, but because the search for clues kept unfolding new pieces of the narrative, it made the process a joy rather than a chore. There was a bit of information overload at the start, but this was the best part of the game for me.
Visuals - 3/5 - The pictures were a crucial addition to help get the narrative across. I didn't find the artwork to be a key attraction or detraction to the game.
I'm gonna ramble a bit. The tl;dr is: I really, really enjoyed this.
The art is gorgeous, the music is gorgeous. The way it's all integrated is immersive, extremely well though out, and balances storytelling with gameplay really well. I've always thought these 'phones-as-an-extension-of-their-user' games are really interesting, but I'm not a fan of how most of them are done. This is an exception to that! I got this game in a bundle, so I hadn't read the description and didn't know what to expect from it beyond the warnings at the beginning. The story was told well, I like that it's kind of an "open world" story, something you discover in the order you choose to look through things to some degree, and as intensely as you choose to. It wasn't all told at once, it was something where you got the vibe of where things were going, but pieced it together without necessarily knowing the end-game, and I definitely think how quickly you parse it out has a lot to do with your experiences. The ending gave a closure I was worried wouldn't be there, and it's an ending that feels fulfilling. I really enjoyed the "puzzle" elements, they were simple enough to not be frustrating (with the exception of one password that had me stuck for a bit), but interesting enough to make you feel immersed and make it feel like a game properly. No part of this game disappoints, and I would absolutely recommend it!
Now, some potentially spoiler-y parts of my perspective on this game, do not read through if you haven't played yet!:
I think the forums were a really interesting and wonderful way to show that part of the story. It gave some education on trans topics to both questioning or newly-discovered trans people as well as cis people who may be playing the game, but there were no objective standpoints. I didn't agree fully with a chunk of the things characters in the forums said, but neither did other characters, and I appreciated the fact that those perspectives and conversations were realistic, they're conversations you'll have in a room full of trans people of different walks of life, and that was acknowledged in the game. There's no absolute, 100% correct answers or an objective trans experience, or LGBT experience in general. I really appreciated how this was done. It wasn't a shoe-horned PSA, it was an accurate perspective of a trans teenager seeking support, and the realistic perspectives of her support group. I liked it a lot.
The trope of "trans kid chooses variant of their birth name" is a little overdone and tired in media, and isn't all that common (though absolutely is the case for some) IRL, but here it makes sense, as it's a story you're figuring out and you wouldn't want to deadname your character in promotional materials or confusingly spoil the game, so I think it was a solid choice to go that route.
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Comments
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wonderful game, made me feel super emotional as a fellow transfem reading through absolutely everything.
Awesome game, looking forward to playing the second tomorrow night!
I just played this through in about an hour - it was really good! I loved all the attention to detail and uncovering the story bit by bit really was a blast - my only drawback are the puzzles with dates which are formatted in the american way - my european ass could not figure out to just reverse the day-month numbers for quite some time.
I absolutely adored this game. It was short and sweet, yet I think that its time usage was absolutely perfect; even if one or two of the "puzzles" were a bit ambiguous (I might just be a bit impatient, though).
I wanted to add that y'all's art style really stuck with me. I absolutely loved it, not sure what about it stuck with me so much, but it did. I could feel Sam come alive and I could feel everything about it at my core.
Thanks for making a great game :)
En Français:
J'ai adoré ce jeu. C'était court et bon, mais je pense que son utilisation du temps, c'était beaucoup de parfait.
Je voulais ajouter que votre style artistique était très charmant. Je l'ai adoré, et je ne sais pas pourquoi! J'ai pu voir Sam comme une personne réelle.
J'était un expérience incroyable.
Merci beaucoup pour un jeu fantastique! :)
This is my favorite game from the bundle so far! I love it so much! You found an unlocked phone and you investigate everything inside of it (text messages, emails, songs, photos, dating app, weather app...) to try to understand who the owner of the phone is and why they lost their phone. So, so good!
Hi there! I'm CJ—I'm working on a master list of interface drama and would like to include your game as an interface drama, which is a game that tells stories through the use of interface (UI).
I'm reaching out to devs of games in the list to confirm that I have accurate tags of your game.
Right now, the tags on A Normal Lost Phone are:
- lgbtqia+
- mystery
- puzzle
If there's any other tags on the list, or ones you'd like to add, please let me know. Thank you for your time.
hey, thanks for the list
OMG I love interface drama games! Thank you for making the list! I have tried Emily is Away, A Normal Lost Phone, and Her Story. I'd recommend adding "Another Lost Phone: Laura's Story" to the list as well ;) https://dearvillagers.itch.io/another-lost-phone-lauras-story
Thank you thank you! It’s on the queue—haven’t found the time to update it recently but will soon!!
a solid 9/10! super interesting format and really calming, pretty art. it would've been nice to see some kind of resolution- like once you complete the final task, maybe it shifts to some kind of after-credit scene from sam's pov. i also feel like some of the tasks were a little too well hidden- i actually had to look up a guide for several puzzles.
still, a really amazing game! tackled a lot of topics very near and dear to my heart. i definitely want to get to know sam better, and i really want to know more of their story. Accidental Queens did a fantastic job :)
I really enjoyed this! There's a scene later one where multiple photos are sent at once, and I especially loved that; felt so true to life and made me tear up a bit.
I feel like this game would have been a longer experience if it wasn't so familiar, I understood the ending of the game pretty strongly from the moment I opened the dad's text messages. I share a few key things with the main character that meant all but one of the passwords seemed a little too easy to work out. but playing it I couldn't help but feel immensely seen and understood by this game and that is a truly amazing thing
A great game to play on your phone if you're too lazy to get out of bed. I really love this format ♡
Hecking stellar game.
Do mind the warnings. As a trans person with a not so great fam, it hit me in the feels. Not in a bad way, but in a way which felt very real.
If I had one critique, SPOILERS while the forums you access provide great info, a couple messages felt a bit same-y and like something you might read from self-help articles. It might have worked better with the longer text blocks broken up into shorter messages. But really, it's a nit-picky complaint for a very good game.
I loved the combination of puzzles and story in this game! Also the art is so lovely! The UI is also cool looking and really easy to navigate. I really like how the phone was used as this framework to tell a story through, which makes so much sense as we keep so much info of ourselves on our phones these days! Plus being able to see the progression of Sam's journey through the dates of various messages and things until we get that one final message was so satisfying. It left me feeling so proud of her!
Wonderful little game. I got stuck once (the final app code) but enjoyed the story and it didn't overstay its welcome.
i VERY MUCH enjoyed sleuthing through this phone! It was a fantastic informative look into trans lives and I enjoyed the ending it thematically tied everything together in a beautifully thoughtful way. The puzzles were challenging enough so that we felt proud solving them but not too challenging that I felt like giving up. 10/10!
Intriguing concept for a game like this! Enjoying it so far.
To echo what others have said; sweet really is the best word for this game-- while some tough topics are tackled, the overall story was very satisfying.
Almost every comment will tell you this game is very sweet, and they're right! I struggled a bit with some puzzles, but overall really enjoyed the story, the playability and the art. Thank you!
enjoyed this! was fun playing the detective
Loved this game, it was really sweet. The puzzles were just hard enough to give me the sense of satisfaction when I figured out but weren't overly hard that I felt frustrated. So good, thank you!
This game was lovely! Short and sweet
This was a sweet little game to play! I love how the puzzles are difficult enough to make you look, but not too much to the point it halts you during the story. Sad that its such a reality of what people go through,
Very fun game. Such a sad ending!
I LOVED THIS GAME, also helped me a bit
Interesting game, maybe too much text to read (I have played similar type of game before, and it was more "fresh" than this). At the start you let us know about possible hate speech towards LGBT group, I personally didn't like the "blind support" which was in game.. again .. in my opinion both hate speech and "blind support" are two strong opposites which are unacceptable (for obvious reasons). Game gets tricky and even more interesting later on, good job.
It seems you just replied with intention to harass my subjective opinion on the game and/or the game topics.
Let's make it more clear for you... by "blind support" I meant people advising body change and such, which is irreversible decision, without knowing their full background.
I feel offended by comparing my opinion which DID NOT contain hatred towards LGBT community to genocide. Maybe you should re-read my comment or even better play the game by yourself.
This game was lovely thank you so much.
Loved it!
Such a sweet game. I didn't think it would be a puzzle (went in blind) but tbh I loved piecing everything together. The writing was also A++. Not to spoil anything, but as a...uh...Friend of Dorothy^tm the little hints are great and definitely make sense.
Absolutely lovely. I had known this game was well received but didn't know anything else coming in and I'm so glad that was the case so I could experience it for myself. Really sweet and heartfelt and moving. Thank you for making this.
I really love this work a lot. It's more about the story and I am horrible at solving mysteries so I had to look up the passwords but I am so glad I did because the story was enjoyable as I went along. A lot of people experience similar struggles and I am happy I saw some of myself as a queer person in this narrative story game. Well done! <3
We are excited to discuss A Normal Lost Phone on Indie Game Club!
Twitch: https://twitch.tv/potionsandpixels
We are excited to discuss A Normal Lost Phone on Indie Game Club!
Twitch: https://twitch.tv/potionsandpixels
Note: I played this game on my phone, which I would recommend for the optimal experience.
I can't deny that this game is well-made. The creator makes use of the unique interface to spin a compelling narrative. The puzzles make use of this feature well. I just can't get behind the message this game wants to get across.
Story - 3/5 - As a narrative, the story is well-rounded and immersive. I could see many people liking it. But for me, the ending to this story is not something to be applauded, and lauding that decision soured the entire game.
Mechanics - 4.5/5 - Puzzles can often be frustrating, but because the search for clues kept unfolding new pieces of the narrative, it made the process a joy rather than a chore. There was a bit of information overload at the start, but this was the best part of the game for me.
Visuals - 3/5 - The pictures were a crucial addition to help get the narrative across. I didn't find the artwork to be a key attraction or detraction to the game.
Sound - 2.5/5 - Average.
Overall - 3.5/5 Difficulty - Normal
Progress - Completed (1.5 hrs)
I'm gonna ramble a bit. The tl;dr is: I really, really enjoyed this.
The art is gorgeous, the music is gorgeous. The way it's all integrated is immersive, extremely well though out, and balances storytelling with gameplay really well. I've always thought these 'phones-as-an-extension-of-their-user' games are really interesting, but I'm not a fan of how most of them are done. This is an exception to that! I got this game in a bundle, so I hadn't read the description and didn't know what to expect from it beyond the warnings at the beginning. The story was told well, I like that it's kind of an "open world" story, something you discover in the order you choose to look through things to some degree, and as intensely as you choose to. It wasn't all told at once, it was something where you got the vibe of where things were going, but pieced it together without necessarily knowing the end-game, and I definitely think how quickly you parse it out has a lot to do with your experiences. The ending gave a closure I was worried wouldn't be there, and it's an ending that feels fulfilling. I really enjoyed the "puzzle" elements, they were simple enough to not be frustrating (with the exception of one password that had me stuck for a bit), but interesting enough to make you feel immersed and make it feel like a game properly. No part of this game disappoints, and I would absolutely recommend it!
Now, some potentially spoiler-y parts of my perspective on this game, do not read through if you haven't played yet!:
I think the forums were a really interesting and wonderful way to show that part of the story. It gave some education on trans topics to both questioning or newly-discovered trans people as well as cis people who may be playing the game, but there were no objective standpoints. I didn't agree fully with a chunk of the things characters in the forums said, but neither did other characters, and I appreciated the fact that those perspectives and conversations were realistic, they're conversations you'll have in a room full of trans people of different walks of life, and that was acknowledged in the game. There's no absolute, 100% correct answers or an objective trans experience, or LGBT experience in general. I really appreciated how this was done. It wasn't a shoe-horned PSA, it was an accurate perspective of a trans teenager seeking support, and the realistic perspectives of her support group. I liked it a lot.
The trope of "trans kid chooses variant of their birth name" is a little overdone and tired in media, and isn't all that common (though absolutely is the case for some) IRL, but here it makes sense, as it's a story you're figuring out and you wouldn't want to deadname your character in promotional materials or confusingly spoil the game, so I think it was a solid choice to go that route.