Summary: 4.5/5.0
Good lord. This game. Where do I start? This game is adorable. And hilarious. And will haunt you. #pornlogbros4ever
In this game, you will play as Mae, a young cat who has recently dropped out of school and returned home to the small town in which she grew up. You'll get to explore town, talk to old friends (and foes), dodge conversations with your mom about your life choices, play the bass in your band, and poke severed arms with a stick. Really, what more do you want in a game?
Gameplay
The gameplay of Night in the Woods is... meandering. As an exploration-based game, you have a significant amount of control over the pacing of the game. However, the whimsical movement and soundtrack don't convey urgency or provoke anxiety about getting to the next plot point. While some people found this frustrating, I found it lovely and very enjoyable to live in Mae's world of responsibilities (or lack thereof) for a few days.
There's not much in the way of mechanics for this game. You'll need to walk, jump, choose dialogue, and occasionally grab a slice of pizza or a donut. There are a couple of mini-games, all of which my incredibly uncoordinated self failed miserably. There are also some platforming dream sequences, which are fun at first but a bit cumbersome when the plot picks up.
Characters
The characters really pull this game together. Mae is clearly struggling with her transition to adulthood and the expectations of her family and friends. Gregg encourages her antics as he faces a move to another city with his more-grounded boyfriend Angus. Meanwhile, Bea struggles with being forced into running her father's store instead of pursuing her own dreams, and altogether living a much different reality than Mae's. Even the neighbors and background characters have depth and contribute to the overall story... if you talk to them.
Mae was an extremely relatable character to me. When I finished this game I had something like 60 screenshots to sort through of all the hilarious dialogue like "Geez this is yet another road to hermit-dom" and "Is there some bug going around that makes people talk like fortune cookies?"
Story
This isn't a choice-driven game. Yes, along the way you will choose to talk to or hang out with different people and you'll experience different sequences based on those choices, but the overall narrative is not affected.
This is a game where you get out of it what you put into it. If you go directly from plot point to plot point, you'll have a different experience than if you explore ever nook and talk to everyone you find. There is a main story in this game, and it is well-worth experiencing (I wasn't joking about that severed arm earlier), but the stories of all the characters in the world are what really enriches this game. Combined, they tell the story of the town, and give the player a much greater understanding of Mae's community and everyone's motivations.
Conclusion
Go play Night in the Woods. Okay, I'll admit this game isn't for everyone. (Any game that let's me jump on a neighbor's mailbox wins me over pretty quickly.) If you're looking for something puzzle heavy, this won't satisfy that craving. Night in the Woods is a great game if you're looking for something with exploration-and-dialogue-based gameplay and a mystery storyline. The momentum takes a while to build up, but ultimately enforces Mae's aimlessness as she avoids confronting her choice to leave school.
This game is about more than superficial post-teen social dynamics. It also addresses some serious mental health concerns, but it doesn't make them scary, foreign monsters to be fought. These are real (animal) people that live with anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, etc. The developers clearly put a lot of attention into the real depth of these characters and approaching mental health as a part of life, instead of demonizing it. Go play Night in the Woods.
