|
|
|
MY MEMORY OF US (PS4)
|
Publisher: IMGN.PRO.
Developer: Juggler Games. Released: October 2018. Genre: 2D Adventure. Other versions: XONE; SWI; PC. Posted 24th February 2019. By Tom Clare © 2019 |
|
My Memory of Us is a lot of things: sombre, humorous, thought-provoking and beautiful. It’s also poignant and genuinely moving. How often do you see a game described as poignant? If we’re honest, the gaming medium hasn’t, until comparatively recent times, concerned itself too deeply with issues of subtlety or subtext. Not twenty years ago, Grand Theft Auto III was hailed as a new high for the art form, with reviewers particularly enamoured with its epic scale, and the heightened levels of interaction that could be enjoyed from parking up with a prostitute.
Just to be clear, this isn’t a dig at GTA3, which was a lot of fun, and incredibly immersive for its time. But it does serve to highlight how much gaming has matured in the intervening period, to the extent where we’re now comfortable to consider the statements a game is making through its themes and content. To claim that My Memory of Us delivers an important message is a major understatement. Developer Juggler Games boldly confronts (and to some small degree, gives voice to) the Polish nation’s trauma during the Nazi occupation. It’s a message that fits well within the game experience, making for an eminently playable 2D adventure.
The children are forced to grow up quickly when war descends and they must engage in a desperate battle for freedom
Narrated by Patrick Stewart, My Memory of Us sees an elderly gentleman regaling a girl with a story of his childhood, after her appearance conjures memories of a friend. Remembering the japes his youthful self and a girl shared in the run up to the conflict, it’s the players task to keep the intrepid duo together as an invasion looms. The girl is inexplicably captured and turned into a ‘red’, and thereafter a target of the authorities. Rather than revelling in the violence of war as many games have sought to down the years, MMoU does the opposite. The tale is told without blood, gore or violence, replacing the Nazis with robots, and adding elements of sci-fi and steampunk. Appropriately enough, it carries a child-like streak of imagination, and makes for a palatable and unusual fable. The player is acutely aware of what lies beneath the surface, however.
|
|
It’s an extremely pretty game. Whilst the monochrome palette delivers an apt interpretation of this grim period in Poland’s history, MMoU could never be considered drab. There’s some remarkable sights to behold, ranging from the ominous scene of the Evil King’s mass rallies, the flying prisoner ship disguised as a soup kitchen, and a tower built from abandoned suitcases. Every location is like a work of art, there’s so much going on. With music used sparingly and to often-dramatic effect, it’s tremendously well-presented.
Whilst it’s accurate to say the sumptuous visuals and thought-provoking narrative share much of the heavy lifting, MMoU delivers solid platforming based around the cooperative notion. The tasks are nice, if a little simpler than those seen in something like A Rose in the Twilight. One instance sees the boy keeping a wind-up lantern alight whilst the girl uses her slingshot to activate switches. Often, the pair must pool their resources in order to manoeuvre objects and climb structures, or create a distraction in order to help bypass foes.
Whilst it’s accurate to say the sumptuous visuals and thought-provoking narrative share much of the heavy lifting, MMoU delivers solid platforming based around the cooperative notion. The tasks are nice, if a little simpler than those seen in something like A Rose in the Twilight. One instance sees the boy keeping a wind-up lantern alight whilst the girl uses her slingshot to activate switches. Often, the pair must pool their resources in order to manoeuvre objects and climb structures, or create a distraction in order to help bypass foes.
FOCAL POINT: RED OR ALIVE
|
|
My Memory of Us highlights the absurdity of prejudice, through the eyes of children. The theme of ‘redness’ is particularly interesting. It represents an allegory of the plight of the Jewish, but also a broader grouping of those seen as ‘undesirables’. This is borne out by encounters with resistance members and intellectuals, who also bear the colour. The robot soldiers’ behaviour is also fascinating. Dropping a tin of red paint on one will see them derided by colleagues, or in the latter stages, eviscerated by drones. Defiling a portrait of the robot leader results in soldiers laughing to the point of distraction, a reference to the theory that many in the ruling party were not enamoured with its power structure. In a lovely touch, Juggler have included a smattering of collectibles celebrating those who garnered distinction during the occupation, either as resistance fighters, nurses or those who looked after children. Many of the characters you’ll meet are named after real people who inspired them.
With the boy able to sneak and the girl able to run, the two can help each other in certain circumstances, where joining hands allows them to move as one. The linking and unjoining motions can be a little hit and miss, though this is only really evidenced once or twice, when having to rapidly switch between characters and moving quickly, as in the collapsing mine sequence. It takes things in bite-sized chunks, and gets most of it right, offering a nice assortment of tasks. some dramatic stealth sections, printing leaflets for the resistance, and a light-hearted bit towards the end where the pair dress as a robot in order to infiltrate their base.
There's plenty of scope for brainteasers, and My Memory of Us requires cooperation to deduce some of the puzzles
MMoU’s themes evolve subtlety, yet with real impact. You’ll visit the same street a number of times. In the early stages, it’s a relaxed setting, with the girl even able to partake in a dancing mini-game. Bit-by-bit, the decline begins to snowball; laughing locals look troubled, robots and anti-red signs become visibly more apparent, and signs of destruction and abandonment are soon impossible to ignore. You witness lovers being separated, citizens being marched away, and the main characters’ carefree smiles giving way to a look of grim determination. The girl gets to reprise her dancing routine, but in a macabre parallel to the earlier instance, it’s at gunpoint, and for the amusement of the robots.
Ultimately, the key to My Memory of Us’ success is that it never loses sight of why gamers play in the first place: for immersion, escapism and entertainment. For all the darkness of its subject matter, creative adventuring elements hit the right notes. It’s sweet and likeable, adopting an affecting, original approach to the second world war game template. Appropriately enough, given its name, MMoU is something you’ll think on, long after its emotional finale.
Ultimately, the key to My Memory of Us’ success is that it never loses sight of why gamers play in the first place: for immersion, escapism and entertainment. For all the darkness of its subject matter, creative adventuring elements hit the right notes. It’s sweet and likeable, adopting an affecting, original approach to the second world war game template. Appropriately enough, given its name, MMoU is something you’ll think on, long after its emotional finale.
|
|
VERDICT
"My Memory of Us adopts an affecting and original approach to the second world war game template. Appropriately enough, it's something you’ll think on, long after its emotional finale" OVERALL: 8/10 |