Video Game Review - Lost Words: Beyond The Page

Rob Lake reviews Lost Words: Beyond The Page on Xbox Series X...

Lost Words: Beyond The Page is an atmospheric narrative adventure written by Rhianna Pratchett and developed by Sketchbook Games. The game is set between the pages of a journal, and is a mix of real-world and  fantasy where you run on words and use them to interact with the world around you. It's an incredible and interesting journey that deals with some tender and touching moments throughout. 

What makes Lost Words: Beyond The Page different is its dual narrative. Both narratives feature the character of Isabelle Cooke, one being in her own world, and the other being in a world of her creation - Estoria. Out of the two interconnected narratives, the real world story is the more impactful, but both deal with Isabelle's overall thoughts and feelings incredibly well. 

The whole story is dictated by Isabelle as she writes them both within her journal (real world) and as she describes her story (Estoria). The characters we meet are all fully voiced which really adds to the impact of what's being said and how both stories play out. 

The overall story tells the tender tale of Isabelle and her family, who deal with the unfortunate situation of her Grandmother suffering a stroke. The whole story is told with due care and attention and is extremely believable. I'm unfortunately dealing with a bereavement within my own family and it's been (for lack of a better word) good to see Isabelle and her family go through the same process as my own. Grief is a subject that most shy away from, yet it's something we all have to deal with at sometime in our lives. It can often be a touchy subject, but both Rhianna Pratchett and Sketchbook Games handle the situation in a very well written and accomplished manner. Its a testament to Rhianna Pratchett's writing abilities and will hit home with anyone who's suffered with loss.

As we follow Isabelle's journey we control a tiny version of her who uses the written words as a platform to traverse the pages. The platforming is quite clever as you use the written words to navigate the page, as well as manipulating certain words to use as platforms. There's also other often optional words on the page which upon touching will add Isabelle's thoughts or feelings to her narrative. 

The second story that Lost Words: Beyond The Page tells is the one that Isabelle is trying to write. It's your typical fantasy tale which sees the young heroine become her villages new Guardian of the Fireflies. With this title comes a magic book that features plenty of words that can be used to manipulate the world of Estoria. You can use the words to raise broken lifts or to break objects that bar your path. It's an interesting mechanic that's not too complicated or particularly challenging and creates a pleasant atmosphere to the game. 

One added bonus is that you can choose the central characters name. I naturally went with Grace (my daughters name) and this piqued my daughters interest as she then assumed the game was about her. It was a nice bonding experience that's a far cry from the likes of Fortnite and Apex Legends (typical 11-year old...). 

If anything, with the simple puzzle structure and narrative Lost Words: Beyond The Page almost becomes a walking simulator. Those looking for an action packed puzzler won't find that here. It's a shame as the fantasy world is portrayed as a place full of mysticism and would be a great place to further explore. But with that being said, even if the gameplay is lacking the characters more than make up for it. 

If you're looking for something 'different' then Lost Words: Beyond The Page is 100% worth your time. The real-world setting is arguably the games strongest asset. The Cooke family deal with some heart wrenching moments which we experience through the thoughts and writings of a twelve year old. The fantasy side narrative is a the weaker of the two. While the Estoria story is generally good, it's simple puzzle structure will put a few people off the journey. And that's ultimately what this game is...a journey.

Rating 8/10

Lost Words: Beyond The Page is available now on Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Google Stadia, and PC.

We reviewed the Xbox One version of this title on an Xbox Series X. 

A code was provided for this review. 

Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow Geek Culture Reviews on Twitter and Facebook @GeekCultureRev