Dontnod certainly does not skimp on controversial issues and thorny topics little or vaguely treated by other devs, but the French company is often seen as a youth storyteller, whose protagonists are boys and girls who seek their place in the world.
With Twin Mirror, on the other hand, the dark tones deepen, the arguments remain sensitive, however the perception that one has is of a more mature title precisely because it is not aimed at discovering the folds of the soul of the youngest.
Twin Mirror is a psychological thriller which bases the experience on the confrontation with oneself and one's own mind, before all the others, with old and new gameplay mechanics.
A painful return
Basswood, a "city hole" in West Virginia, is where he returns after two years of exile Sam Higgs, a journalist who did not get along very well with the population of the small town. An article by him (of which we will not reveal anything since it is a plot) has ignited his minds, forcing him to leave everything and everyone, however, disappointing the people who loved him most.
Among these there is Nick, his best friend and colleague at Basswood Jungle, the local newspaper. And for him Sam returns to that city that he hoped never to see again, because Nick is dead and that day there will be a funeral and a vigil in his honor. Sam has never been a sociable type, he is what many would call a strange type, not prone to hugs and effusions, always with his head in the clouds.
But he can't miss his best friend's funeral, even if it means meeting people who feel disappointed and others who hate him. Nick died in a car accident with unclear dynamics, considering that the victim was famous for being precise, zealous bordering on manic. Of the same opinion is Joan, Nick's daughter, who confesses to Sam that she is not entirely convinced of the explanation of the official report. In your opinion, Nick was killed.
Sam just has to investigate despite having little in hand and too much to lose and remember. Soon, the reporter will understand that the matter is bigger than he imagined, that Nick's death is not the only mystery to be uncovered.
A palace of memories
As often happens in Dontnod games, gameplay and narrative intertwine making it impossible to talk about one without hinting at the other. The playful part of Twin Mirror is divided into several parts, but all of these are united by their being indissolubly combined with the narrative sector, therefore, to the characters and the game world.
The first dynamic we want to talk about is the most basic one, but still very important for the game system: interaction with other characters. Sam needs to delve deeply into the life of Nick and the other inhabitants of Basswood, therefore he has to ask questions that are sometimes uncomfortable, understand the psychology of his interlocutor.
The small population of the town is made up of people who, some more or less, know each other, they know Sam well too and they will not always have a craving for digging up or lending a hand to those who have abandoned the community. For this it is necessary to carefully choose the options that appear on the screen, weigh the words so as not to annoy who we face. In Twin Mirror we need to understand what is the right moment to say what we think in order to get the answers we want.
A menu card also shows us the character, the experience and some details of each individual character, with a lot of "memento" to unlock, that is, memories that can be traced back to it. To help us understand how to use our speech, there is He, a kind of double, a character who sees only Sam (and the player), let's say his conscience, a kind of Zack, the mental alter-ego of Francis York Morgan in Deadly Premonition. He is different from his "roommate", more rational, pragmatic, but at times he can be pedantic. We can decide whether to listen to his advice or do our own thing.
A fairly thorough structure that unfortunately does not always have value, especially in the long term. Many dialogues, in fact, will not prove so fundamental for the continuation of the story and for the ending, making their importance for the plot lose specific weight.
The general atmosphere is of sure impact, with clear inspirations to an absolute reference model for this type of products: The secrets of Twin Peaks. The atmosphere is less surreal, more down to earth, but it demonstrates the team's intention to offer a darker and more mature experience. In some sequence we must say that we have perceived the same vibes felt in Alan Wake, but without Twin Mirror reaching those heights.
The second dynamic that will arise over and over again is that ofreal-world investigation. Sam is a journalist, he analyzes the facts, he needs proof, so we will be called in more situations to look for clues or to unravel a difficult situation by relying on our spirit of observation. These scenes do not have variations on the theme compared to those seen in other games of the genre and they never put the player in real trouble who, exploring with a minimum of attention, will be able to find all the clues without damaging himself too much.
The puzzles are not many and they do not differ much from having to find a combination of notes and drawings scattered throughout the scenario.
The real fulcrum of the experience created by Dontnod, however, is the palace of memory. Sam is estranged when he remembers, when he reflects, when he doesn't want to listen to the world, but only to himself. In these moments, he enters the palace of memory, a place he knows very well, better than the real world. It is in this place that the real investigations that bring Sam closer to the truth. The player's job is to reconstruct the facts by choosing the right deductions and putting aside the wrong ones. To do this, you need to approach an interactive area that represents an event, to answer the question based on the evidence and knowledge we have of that given event and once the pieces of the puzzle have been put together, start the reconstruction that we think is right.
This mechanic is the strong point of Twin Mirror, an excellent way to represent the differences between the way Sam thinks inside his head and his way of acting in the real world. Here really narrative and gameplay blend flawlessly, but unfortunately we must point out a fact that, we anticipate, has major repercussions on the final grade: in the palace of memory it is not possible to go wrong!
When this gameplay dynamic was presented, many thought about the possibility of being able to make inaccurate deductions in order to advance the story in different ways. This is not the case, in the palace of memory the solution is always and only one and you cannot miss it because by crossing contradictory deductions, the game will signal it. showing the inaccuracy of the reconstruction and will force us to always give the right answer to keep the game going.
It's a shame because a crossroads system closer to that of Heavy Rain o Detroit: Become Human it would have made us think the palace of memory is one of the most interesting investigative mechanics ever.
Ultimately, the feeling is that Dontnod wanted to put the psychological representation of the character Sam Higgs, focusing less on actual investigations, as if the latter were actually a narrative stratagem to persuade the game to pay attention to the "dream" sections with Sam, some of them a little filler, that is fillers inserted to bring the longevity of the title to an acceptable level (the adventure ends in 5 / 6 hours). Impression also amplified by the a bit hasty finish which comes just when the story was reaching its peak of interest.
Technical aspects of Twin Mirror
From the graphic point of view, the improvement compared to Life is Strange and Tell Me Why is clearly noticeable, with a less bright color palette, a level of detail a little higher and a made overall more realistic. Despite this, we cannot deny that the graphics engine still tastes old. To testify there are the facial expressions of the characters, not always in line with the quality that a thriller should have from this point of view.
The English dub (there are the subtitles in español) is of very good workmanship, while we report uploads (on standard PS4) even tens of seconds long when entering / exiting a club.
Final comment
Twin Mirror is a good title, it is a beautiful experience in the protagonist's mind, it is a good level thriller, it brings with it many things done with dedication, among which the memory palace stands out, an interesting and well-developed mechanic, but with a neo that we just can't not look, that is the impossibility of making mistakes, thus denying ourselves the joy of seeing narrative crossroads à la Quantic Dream resulting from our mistakes. Imperfections here and there do not lead Twin Mirror on the path of excellence, but the Dontnod game remains an enjoyable product and recommended for those who want a pleasant psychological thriller to deal with.
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