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Review
April 6th, 2004. Nina is 14 years old. She likes anime, video games, chatting with friends online, and building websites. But recently, things have taken a complicated turn. It has to do with her best friend Amy.
Amy is interested in Jared, a mutual friend. Because Nina is closer to Jared, Amy wants Nina’s help in setting her up with him. Problem: Nina also likes Jared, but is at a loss as to how to express this to Amy.
So, she says nothing and hopes that these feelings will pass.
Lost Memories Dot Net is a Unity game where you watch a love triangle unfold via online messaging.
Gameplay/Visuals
Gameplay is broken into Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3 despite the story taking place over nearly a month. Visually, the game is set up like an internet browser with multiple tabs open. Two tabs are always open: the chat room and the editor for Nina’s website. But links to other fan websites can be accessed as well. This diegetic interface really sets the vibe of a teenager sitting at a computer.
Chat
The chat room is where you spend the most time. It’s also the source of my main criticism: delayed text. I understand that the game is trying to simulate someone typing.
Kayla is typing…
Thing is, t takes 3-5 seconds for each message to appear, and when it applies to the entire gameplay, it gets tedious. Especially as a longer game. Occasional dramatic pauses aside, if there were an option to, perhaps, double tap the screen to skip the wait time, it would be a huge help. For me, delayed text is often a turn-off when it comes to replays, but at least the game allows you to jump ahead to Days 2 and 3.
Editor
The website editor is the coolest part of the gameplay. Here, you get to decorate the front page of Nina’s website, “lost-memories.net.”
Welcome to lost-memories.net!!! I'm Nina!
Is it required? No. But’s it’s really fun. Experiment with colour schemes, backdrops, and imagery that can be resized and moved around. In fact, visuals found in other parts of the gameplay can be “downloaded” and added to the website. Probably the most impressive use of Unity I’ve seen so far.
Story/Characters
Time in the chat room is primarily split between Amy, a long-time best friend, and Kayla. Despite not having ever met Kayla in person, Nina is also good friends with her. Amy doesn’t appear to know about Kayla.
ONLINE
roseblush112 (Amy)
TarnishedDreamZ (Kayla)
Now that I think of it, do we ever see Nina’s screen name?
Social dynamics + Being a teenager
Friendship dynamics are a complex thing. Especially in middle/high school. How well do you know someone? Do they feel like you understand them and see them for who they are? What happens if you fail to notice? Lost Memories Dot Net tackles the subtlety of what it means to be there for a friend.
Amy adores Nina. She does care. They are, in fact, best friends. But does Amy provide the friendship that Nina needs? Lately, Nina has begun to relate to her best friend less and less. For one thing, Nina’s parents are often fighting and struggle with finances. Amy has a stable home life and can comfortably confide in her parents. Amy is extroverted (and gets attention from male peers) while Nina is quiet and nerdy.
A notable moment that illustrates this difference is when Nina says, “sorry im so depressed all the time,” Amy’s response boils down to, “NO apologizing… you’re just sad because your parents suck and school sucks… i totally understand. let’s play some games…” etc. She means well but this isn’t helping because she doesn’t understand. She may hear Nina, but she’s not actually listening.
(Spoiler - click to show)The whole operation-set-me-up-with-Jared thing only makes it worse. Consider the disastrous school dance. Nina tells Kayla that Amy flat-out asked a male classmate to dance with Nina since she was confident that he would say yes. Unprompted. He said no. Nina hid in the hallway for the rest of the dance. Amy did go looking for her… only to ask if she would get Jared to dance with her. Amy. Come on.
Amy’s cluelessness is frustrating. Now, I don’t want to over-antagonize her because cultivating a sense of self-awareness of how your actions affect others is an ongoing process during adolescence. She’s not trying to be malicious or purposefully dismissive. However, regardless of intent, Amy still made a poor decision at Nina’s expense and Nina clearly feels hurt over it. Ultimately, Nina doesn’t know how to convey these feelings to Amy, even as her best friend.
Fortunately, anything she can’t share with Amy she can always share with Kayla. Especially since Kayla is a “non-school friend,” which makes her somewhat of a neutral party when discussion Jared/Amy-related issues.
Love triangle
Regardless of what you envision when you hear the phrase “love triangle,” Lost Memories Dot Net may surprise you with the direction it takes. In this case, (Spoiler - click to show)one of the two sides pining for the love interest never realizes there’s ever a triangle to begin with. Certainly not the friendship meltdown that I predicted, thankfully.
The story is linear. The player doesn’t have a lot of room to influence what’s going on. But in a way, this goes hand-in-hand with feeling Nina’s indecisiveness. Should she risk rejection and hurting her relationship with her best friend? Or should she stay quiet and continue to help Amy date Jared?
Granted, sometimes you want to yell, “JUST DO IT, NINA! ASK HIM!” If only it were that simple. Her situation may not seem like a big deal in the grand scheme of things. However, the story is unfolding from Nina’s frame of reference which barely extends beyond high school, home life, and their respective dramas. It is a big deal. And by no means is it easy.
(Spoiler - click to show)But, yes. Eventually, with Kayla’s encouragement, Nina calls Jared to confess her feelings. We do not hear this conversation. Nina then returns to the chat room to inform Kayla (and the player) that the answer was no. Why? Because he is dating Amy.
This is confirmed when Amy (obliviously) messages Nina soon afterwards.
Nina: lol so when did you two start dating
Amy: today obviously!!!
Nina: did he ask you out?
Amy: i asked him... on the phone just now lmao
I’m not sure whether to classify this as a surprising turn of events or a contrived coincidence. Are you saying that Amy called Jared and became a couple mere moments before Nina decided to call? This feels poorly executed.
And we never get any specifics on Nina’s phone call. What exactly did he say? Was it, I'd be interested but I'm with Amy? Or I only see you as a friend? Or something harsher? Though I doubt it was the last one. The chat messages between them show that he does genuinely care about Nina. He even went looking for her when she hid during the school dance. So, who knows.
Poor Nina, it only gets worse as Amy shares the good news. Brimming with gratitude for Nina’s “help,” Amy insists that they find a boyfriend for Nina so they can go on double dates, dumping salt on an open wound. Nina says some kind words, but Amy, failing to sense anything amiss…
Amy: awww come on sourpuss
…zips off to be with Jared.
Leaving Nina with Kayla.
Themes
Lost Memories Dot Net largely centers around the use of creative outlets as a way to escape the dramas of everyday life. Part blog, part fanfiction, part semi-private diary, lost-memories.net is Nina’s go-to spot for expressing her hopes and vulnerabilities.
Kayla, too, is an outlet. She may “only” be an internet friend, but she’s also Nina’s biggest support system. Nina has a tendency to apologize after sharing personal worries out of fear that she takes up too much space or is a burden. Kayla picks up on this. Rather than tossing around solutions she listens and reassures Nina that she's not alone in how she feels.
Amy: you gotta get off your computer and get a boyfriend!
(Amy, I know you mean well, but this isn’t helping.)
This interception of escapism, creativity, and human connection are alluded to at the end when (Spoiler - click to show)Kayla sends Nina a piece of artwork from Kayla’s own website, a piece that Nina had complimented earlier. It depicts someone lonely sitting in front of a computer screen while someone from inside the screen reaches out to them. A touching symbolic moment.
Final thoughts
If I were basing my rating solely on my enjoyment and level of engagement, I’d give this game three stars (partly because of the timed text, but don’t let that deter you). But I realize that its story carries a lot of meaning. It picks apart the complex dynamics of friendship by contrasting a well-meaning friend who is out of touch vs. a friend who reads between the lines when it matters most. Three stars isn’t enough.
Plus, it’s a high-quality work. I’m surprised it hasn’t received more attention on IFDB.
As a longer game, it’s possible that you’ll try it out of curiosity but not necessarily finish it. Let’s put it this way, if you love Lore Distance Relationship, this will be your cup of tea. And if the premise of a love triangle between two teenage girls interests you, go for it. It’s also worth trying just to see the innovative use of Unity. Otherwise, it may not be a good fit for you.
It will certainly resonate with the right audience.
