Coming from the esteemed writer Sam Barlow, creator of Silent Hill: Shattered Memories and Aisle, Her Story is a FMV(Full Motion Video) detective game that tells the

story of an English woman trying to solve the mystery of her husband’s murder. As you play, you go through small video clip recordings of her interviews in the police database and try to figure out what really happened to her husband, Simon. Her Story follows a non-linear storyline, meaning there is no chronological order to the clips, so it is entirely upon the player to figure out what to look for and where to go.

When you start the game, there are no text flows to make you aware of the backdrop story. All you see is a computer desktop that reminds you of the computer lab in your school, with an operating system that might be as old as you are, and some icons on the desktop that you need to double click on before starting the game. It is impossible to miss the on-screen windows programme, which happens to be a police database, and right there in the search bar is the word ‘MURDER’ pre-typed in bold to let you know what you are dealing with. That’s it, no ‘Press X to Jump’ kind of tutorials here to belittle your intelligence as a gamer. From here on, all you have to do is type in a keyword that interests you about the case, and the clips related to that keyword will follow suit as soon as you hit the ‘search’ button. The game is set in the 90s, which is clear from the outdated computer screen and by the date on the video clips date-stamped 1994.

The woman being questioned is played by an actual actress, Viva Seifert, who also happens to be one half of the band Joe Gideon and the Shark. Creator Sam Barlow’s decision to use an actual person for the role is commendable, as the variety of emotions displayed by a person would have been impossible to mimic with a CGI character. The variation of emotions that this character portrays adds life to the game and makes your job tougher (or easier) in understanding the narrative. The character seems certain and sure of herself at times, while sometimes, she is confused and vulnerable. Is she lying or is she telling the truth, or perhaps just dodging the question? It is up to the gamer to determine whether things are actually the way they seem. What is crucial is what keyword players punch in to get answers. Your decisions will play a major role in what you make of the story.

Her Story puts you in the shoes of a detective with limited resources tirelessly trying to put together pieces of the puzzle of a mysterious murder. All you have are scattered video clips in the database, which you can only view so many times (fortunately there is an eye icon that will help you differentiate videos from the ones you have watched and the ones you haven’t) and some keywords. It helps to make use of user tags and write a note on the video you have watched to let yourself know what it is about so that you do not have to watch it again. But I am certain you will end up watching every clip more than once just to make sure that you didn’t miss anything. The game leaves you in this maze of mystery where you frantically run from one direction to another in search of a way out, only to reach a dead end; this kind of game is what the gamers have wanted for a long time. This video game (although it might not seem like one) sets the bar high for detective games. It proves that big publishers, over the top budget, all-out marketing and celebrity cameos are not the most important ingredients in creating a great game.

Her Story is without a doubt one of the most unusual game I have played and so thoroughly enjoyed. It feels less like a game and more like a novella , a television drama, a mystery movie, where you are always at the edge of your seat trying to solve the case before the climax reveals itself. It is a game for non-gamers too. If you enjoy a good read of mystery fiction, love crime dramas or enjoy a well-written story, then this is a must have interactive experience—a game recommended for everyone who has the curiosity and the patience.

You are definitely going to need a lot of coffee and a notepad, and by the end of the game a shower and a shave.

9/10