You wake up and look around. Was this picture there before? It all feels so… unfamiliar. 3-Fold Games is a new British studio composed of two women, and Before I Forget is their first game. It’s a first person narrative exploration game. Yet it’s much more than just a game. It’s a social commentary on love, loss and exploring how to deal with getting old. Before I Forget will take you through an emotional journey of your own.

You play as Sunita, a woman suffering from early onset dementia. Through your exploration you start to rediscover fragments of your past. You wake up and start exploring your apartment which feels unfamiliar to you. You’re trying to remember, but the memories are elusive. You can’t even remember why you can’t remember. The truth is there just at the edge of your mind, but you just can’t quite get to it. You’re getting anxious. What if you forgot everything that shaped you. Are you still yourself? You’re scared of losing your identity. If only your husband Dylan were here. You have no idea where he is or when he’s coming back, without him you are frightened. If you could only find him, everything would get back to normal.

Before I forget is an experience in and of itself. The gameplay is all about what you discover while rummaging through your apartment. It leaves it up to the player to untangle Sunita’s life through investigation, and that’s what makes the game so charming. This game truly makes you feel like you are an old woman trying to reclaim her life. In the very first scene, everything is initially out of focus until you finally find your glasses. As soon as you put these on, the whole room reveals itself. The creators have succeeded at setting an anxiety ridden atmosphere, and making you feel the exact emotions our protagonist would go through. After the opening scene, you walk around your home scrutinizing everything in a new light. You find pictures and notes scattered around. Everything seem new to you, but as you pick up the different pictures your memories come flooding back. These memories appear in the form of cutscenes that bring you back in time. The notes though… you don’t remember seeing these ever before. Where do they come from, and why are they laying all around your apartment? That is only one of the mystery you will have to solve.

Before I forget is visually beautiful. What I loved about the artwork is that the developers have used colors to represent Sunita’s emotional state. It starts with a nice pastel color scheme, and changes as you play. As an example, in a scene where Sunita is very upset, the artwork switches to angry reds, and dark grays. It helps to make it an all-around immersive experience. The soundtrack is also used in concert with the artwork to make the player feel what Sunita is going through: the confusion, anxiety, fear, and then finally understanding.

Before I Forget is an extremely short game. If you really take your time to examine every piece of information and listen to every cut scene in its entirety, then it should take you about an hour to complete. Yet despite its short duration, it’s a deep and captivating experience. The developers have managed to create a game that actually drops you into the reality of an aging woman seeing all her memories slip away. It’s a touching and at time stressful experience. You’ll go through a whole array of emotions. Before I Forget is a compelling first entry from the young team at 3-Fold Games. I recommend it to anyone who likes thought provoking games that leave you emotionally changed.

Positives

• Immersive and touching experience
• Beautiful artwork
• Meaningful narrative

Negatives

• Very short
• Gameplay is limited