Lost Words:
Beyond the Page
Review

Lost Words: Beyond the Page (2019) is an adventure game where you run, jump and explore inside a young girl’s diary. You control Izzy as she writes her diary by walking on words, moving them around and solving different puzzles. This develops two parallel stories, one about Izzy in the real world and one about the character in a fantasy world of Estoria that offers more traditional video game running and jumping.

It starts as this simple platforming game but adds narrative weight when Izzy's grandmother is taken ill and then passes away. Experiencing this story by interacting with the words and pages that are telling it is a unique and tender way to deal with the themes here. The parallel story in Estoria offers a chance to relieve the tension while also offering a helpful parallel.

While not everyone will connect with the characters or the narration here, for those that do this is a lovely and unusual experience. Particularly for younger players, it's a gentle way to engage in a difficult subject.

Our examiner, Andy Robertson, first checked Lost Words: Beyond the Page 3 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 5 months ago.