VN Game Review: Memories of East Coast by Roomah Gaming
Hola everyone! It’s the beginning of a new month and I’m excited to share this review with y’all. As many of you know, I do my best to look for visual novel games from indie developers that capture the essence of great storytelling, lovely artwork, and an easy UI to navigate.
I discovered Roomah Gaming through itch.io as they participated in the NaNoRenO 2021 game jam. They recently published a game called I’m a Pencil. I’ve checked out their game and mentioned that I adore their art style. I mean c’mon…it’s really cute! I couldn’t help but smile at the artwork in their game.
After speaking briefly on the visual novel game review request via e-mail, Roomah Gaming was kind enough to send me a free copy of their visual novel game. As with all of my reviews, my thoughts are 100% of my opinion and are not influenced by the developers.
With that said, if you want to know more about my thoughts on this game, then keep on reading!
Synopsis (from the developer’s page)
A young man named Sam struggles with his memories and living in guilt. His revisiting to a place he left 15 years ago brings not just a nostalgic feeling, but also a surprise for a new memory.
Trailer
What I love about the game
At the very heart and core of the game therein lies the soundtrack for the visual novel game. Every emotion and event that’s happening in the storyline, I feel that the music choice meshes in so well. Lo-fi music? Definitely a huge win for me! I appreciate the Bonus section in the game where you can listen to the soundtrack for the game. One of them I chuckled at was hearing the “Titanic Flute Fail”.
The background images and the UI are very soothing to look at. The scenes have a painterly effect, which evokes a sense of nostalgia when playing the game. To me, I found the experience quite meditative, even though this game has moments of memory flashbacks. At that point, you know things are getting serious.
What sets apart other visual novel games is the lack of character sprites. While there are visual novel games that rely on the images to convey the character’s expressions when responding to different scenarios, I feel that the storytelling part of Memories of East Coast is able to convey those same emotions through the dialogue as Sam and Lisa get to know each other. To be fair, I was happy not to see the inclusion of character sprites for this game as I’ve spent my time being immersed in the story.
I don’t know if this was intentional, but the size of the dialogue box was not wide enough. In a way, this helps keep the dialogue in the center so as to focus on what’s happening with the storyline, rather than having the eyes wander around too much on the visuals. Speaking of text, I’m a sucker for good fonts. The typewritten text on the UI along with the dialogue really brings out the memories vibe when Sam is recalling certain events about his past.
I do have to admit - after playing the game, I did cry a bit. The storytelling was immaculate and I highly recommend this visual novel game to anyone who is looking for a good blend of intrigue and heartfelt moments with nostalgic visuals.
What I don’t love about the game
My only gripe (and it’s a tiny one, don’t worry) is that I do wish it was available on the Mac! I can see the game’s potential to be on multiple platforms due to its unique storyline and gameplay.
My rating: 5 out of 5 cows
You can download Memories of East Coast via their itch.io page here. I want to thank Roomah Gaming for the opportunity in reviewing their lovely game. Be sure to check them out and follow them!