If there are two things I’ll take away from Schrodinger’s Call, it’s that unusual art direction and Acrobatic Chirimenjako’s emotional tug. This is a game that begs you to connect with the unknown and pulls on the human desire for contact and connection. Only by giving in can you begin to work out what actually happened. The apocalypse arrived, and there’s one last confidant in the world. She’s a lone young woman named Mary. Though she doesn’t even really remember even that as the game begins. This amnesiac wakes up in darkness, alone with a strange talking cat, between life and death. Her role is to take calls from people as the world ends to save them, hearing their stories and regrets, in the hopes she’ll remember them, save them, and allow them to move on in these last moments. While Schrodinger’s Call is a visual novel, there are elements of it that can give it something of an “adventure” feel. Mary will be able to make choices to respond to questions and events on-screen. Some of these may be there for ambiance and visual impact, as you might need to wait to click the “correct” one to advance. Other choices can help us think about who Mary is and the callers are as characters. When we get these details, these are stowed away in her notebook to help us better visualize and piece together what’s going on. That’s helpful, as Schrodinger’s Call is a very thought-provoking game that doesn’t always spell everything out. It’s the sort of title that lets people come to their own conclusions about things sometimes. We might not always get answers. Just like we aren’t going to be able to do anything but listen and support.Go Ad-Free With Siliconera+View the site with no ads, be able to provide direct feedback about what we cover, and be automatically entered into our monthly PC game giveaway.Join Siliconera+ This is usually handled very well. Some of the people Mary talks to and their stories are fascinating. They can be quite heartfelt. I do think that not everyone might be as touched by the tales as others. Especially since it starts off so strong, with the story of Lucy and her son. However, that is also the part touched on in the demo, which I think does a fantastic job of presenting the game and perhaps helping someone understand if the game is for them. Which is another important element to consider. The story in Schrodinger’s Call is told quite well, with evocative images and a wonderful soundtrack. However, this is Acrobatic Chirimenjako telling us a linear story. It’s a kinetic visual novel. The choices that are there feel designed to get us thinking about characters, situations, society, and the world. It isn’t us getting an opportunity to actually shape things. This isn’t a bad thing, and I believe it’s the perfect means for the developer to get the points they’re trying to make across. But people who don’t care for that kind of story and prefer more opportunities to shape things may want to consider a different title. Images via Acrobatic Chirimenjako Schrodinger’s Call is an atmospheric and emotionally engulfing visual novel that lets us work out mysteries while offering closure. This is all accompanied by striking, surreal visuals. By chronicling people’s lives and last thoughts at the very end, we get opportunities to learn about who they really were and how their choices shaped the world. By listening, maybe we’ll even see how Mary being there as the last confidant influences them too. Schrodinger’s Call is available for the Switch and PC, and a demo is on Steam. The post Review: Schrodinger’s Call Plays on Emotions appeared first on Siliconera.