We had the opportunity to check out the recently released side-scrolling game Last Time I Saw You and we’re here to let you know if it’s worth playing.
I’ve increasingly found side-scrolling games to be something of a comfort genre for me. There’s something relaxing about a game world where you only have to focus on going left, right, up or down, no vast open world to overwhelm the sense. Last Time I Saw You is a side-scrolling game set in late ’80s Japan where the player takes control of Ayumi, a teenage boy whose dreams have been plagued as of late by a mysterious girl.
For this review, I played Last Time I Saw You on the Playstation 5.
Last Time I Saw You
Developer: Maboroshi Artworks
Platform: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series X and Series S
Release Date: October 10, 2024
One reason I was so eager to dive into Last Time I Saw You is the game is fully hand-drawn. This is relatively rare these days and it gives the game a unique look that helps to draw you deeper into the story.
And what a story!
The best thing about this game is that it doesn’t make it obvious what’s going on at first. When Last Time I Saw You begins, it plays very much like a slice of life game, with the protagonist having some interesting dreams each night, but that’s all. Then a massive storm hits Ayumi’s town, eventually prompting Ayumi to visit the forest outside of town that everyone avoids because of its notorious spookiness. And that’s when things get interesting! Trust me when I say the game is worth sticking with until you reach the forest, this is everything the first part of the game is setting you up for.
Last Time I Saw You is a game that rewards its players for exploring. Once you have the chance to freely move around the environment, take advantage and explore every nook and cranny, you’ll be surprised at what you find. This includes talking and interacting with everyone you come across, not only will you learn helpful information, you occasionally get a trophy for the effort. Also, a quick tip: if you’re having trouble finding the next area to go to, try swinging at an obstacle to see if it breaks, that comes in handy more often than you might think.
The game’s UI is very well organized and is one of the best I’ve seen this year. At any time you can flip through and see what stage of the main quest you’re at, what side quests are available, your inventory, etc. The one thing you can’t do in the main UI is save the game. That can only be done at various designated spots around the game world. At first you can only save the game at Ayumi’s house, but as the story goes on more save points will open up, usually at small shrines. Take note, before these shrines open as save points, you have to interact with them first.
While Last Time I Saw You is primarily about exploration, passing obstacles and fetching items, there is a basic combat element as well. This is where the game might get a little frustrating as there is a timing element to landing your hits on the enemy. If you don’t strike at just the right moment, you will miss and the enemy lands a hit on you. It’s not that hard to land a hit, but be sure to practice attacks at the beginning of the game when it’s offered to you, it’ll save you some frustration later.
One other thing I want to mention is the wide variety of creatures one meets in the forest once the story reaches that point. Ayumi’s friends in town are interesting in and of themselves, but the forest creatures are on another level entirely. I won’t spoil things by naming specifics but some of my favorite characters come during Ayumi’s first trip into the forest.
In conclusion, Last Time I Saw You is a beautiful game and one of my favorites in the second half of 2024. It takes a few story beats for things to really get going, but once they do, you will find yourself sucked into a story that is both spooky and fun to play through. If you have the chance to play this game, I highly recommend checking it out.
Last Time I Saw You is now available to play.
