Her Story is a unique indie murder mystery game by Sam Barlow that offers an intriguing glimpse into a different kind of puzzle gameplay, blending abstract storytelling with self-paced discovery. The core of the game involves reviewing a series of recovered interrogation videos from a cold case file, where it's up to you to piece together the truth. There are no objectives to meet or systems guiding you—it's entirely driven by your curiosity as you search the video library using tags based on the dialogue. For example, if a word like "murder" is mentioned, you can search for it to pull up all the clips where that term appears. This search mechanic is a clever design choice that Barlow later expanded upon in his subsequent game, Immortality.

An intriguing aspect of Her Story is its narrative structure. As you sift through scattered video clips, you slowly piece together fragments of the story, paying attention to the details—timestamps, background clues, and specific phrases. Initially, it feels abstract and disjointed, but as you uncover more, the narrative begins to take shape.

However, the story itself is arguably the game's weakest point. There are no big revelatory moments or a final, satisfying conclusion. That’s my biggest complaint—there’s no real "a-ha" moment. The game presents information in small snippets, and once you feel like you’ve gathered enough, you more or less decide for yourself when the experience is over. While the abstract approach to storytelling can be engaging, it can also lead to bigger story moments being revealed too early, leaving the rest of the game to feel like a bit of a slog as you sort through less meaningful interviews.

The acting is serviceable but limited. The actress, who appears in short clips sometimes lasting only five seconds, faces a challenging task. While she performs admirably, the overall presentation feels low-budget and often monotone. There’s a noticeable lack of emotional range, and I think the inclusion of a narrator or an interviewer actively engaging with her could have elevated both the acting and the storytelling.

Her Story is a low-stakes game—you’re not being chased by a murderer, and you’re free to investigate at your own pace. Its clever design shines at times, but ultimately, I can’t recommend it. The weak story, lack of traditional gameplay elements, and absence of a satisfying conclusion make it feel incomplete. While the game’s design is interesting, most of its shortcomings were addressed in Sam Barlow's follow-up, Immortality, which I think offers a more refined and rewarding experience.

Достаточно оригинальный геймплей и неплохая история. При недостаточном знании английского языка могут быть проблемы, ибо чтобы играть придется слушать немало записанных для игры сцен.

It’s hard to call this a "game," as you don’t really play—you're mostly watching videos. That said, the story is engaging, and I found myself staying up until 4 a.m. to watch all the clips. While the ending felt a bit anticlimactic, it’s still one of the most unique "games" I’ve come across (hence the recommend). I wasn't a fan of the story's obscurity, but overall, it was an intriguing experience.