Her Story in IOS

App Store Editors’ Notes

Frustrating

I liked the mysterious nature of the game, but there is NO definite ending. You are never told anything or shown that you got to the end of the case or you have watched all the relevant videos. I kept waiting for something to tell me I solved it, but nothing ever did. It was only after I went online to chat groups that I figured out that I had solved the story literally the first day I started to play. I do not like games that have no sense of accomplishment or finality. The idea of the game is clever. But it’s ridiculous to not give it an ending or definite story. It’s like the makers want it to be so mysterious that they forgot to have an ending. It felt like they wasted my time because I kept searching and playing, thinking that there was more to the story because there was nothing telling me I had won or found all the videos. It’s also ridiculous that there are sites dedicated to the discussion of what the real story is. If no one is sure, then the creators have not told a tight, definitive story in the first place. If you are happy to just wonder and never know for sure if you’ve figured it out, this game is interesting. If you like closure, you might want to skip it.

Fun and curious story for adults

Murder, mental illness, fairy tales, and skullduggery. How can you go wrong? The premise is interesting; you are investigating a case via short videos stored on an old desktop PC. All you have to do it piece it together with the limited tools at your disposal. Using keywords, you view the videos, seemingly at random, to pull the together the story of what happened. (There is a *trick* to viewing the videos in order.) I enjoyed the story, and the actress, Viva Siefert, is beautiful and intriguing. At the end, I am still left with questions about what really is happening, but a story that excites your imagination and curiosity after it ends is part of the fun. *** Technical issue: on the iPad, the game runs upside-down, making it impossible to use my keypad. Just saying. ***

Kinda Disappointing

As a big adventure game fan I was quite looking forward to playing this. I think perhaps this game has been too hyped up. The writing and story are very hacky, and I think people must have just been so dazzled by the presentation and nonlinear unfolding that they assumed the writing was good? It’s not, it’s very soap opera-y and has nothing much to say about the themes it tries to evoke. The character at one point says “aren’t these all just stories anyways?” which I think we’re meant to consider some kind of profound thesis statement for the game? All well and good, but the game isn’t terribly interested in exploring why people lie to each other and themselves beyond a sutface level “idk this chick’s crazy lol.” Disappointing! Runs great and the search function was a fun hook. Sadly loses its luster when it becomes clear your interpretation/understanding of the footage do not factor into any mechanical aspect.

Unique story-telling experience

I love Her Story! Much like Device 6 and Year Walk, I lost myself in this game, although 'game' is not quite the right word. Immersive mystery story is a better descriptor. You are dropped into the story with no information and no instructions. Armed only with access to an old-school database of clips from police interviews and your own research skills, you must piece together the story. I must note that there is no way to 'win', although that only adds to the artistry of the game. The real point of the game is the experience of learning the story in bits and pieces and watching how your impressions change through the the experience. It leaves one wondering, both in the game and in life, do we ever truly have the full story?

You will either love it or hate it

If you need your gaming experience to have a specific list of rules, your objective constantly spotlighted with an icon hanging over it, or enemies to destroy, then this game is definitely not for you. However, if you are of the ilk who can take initiative, listen intently, and put two and two together, you will enjoy the process of deciphering Her Story. Simple production values and a very solid performance allow you to concentrate on the unfolding narrative and be immersed in the experience. You rely on your own skills at putting information together to solve the case, just like a real detective has to. The one downside, I would say, is that despite all the preparation and obvious hard work that went into putting the game together, the actual gaming experience is entirely too short.

Dropped into another world where you have to figure everything out.

Her Story is a different kind of game — other reviewers do a good job explaining what it is, but not all of them mention what little instruction exists. You literally have access to a computer terminal of clips and nothing else. Watching all the clips and searching for different ones seems to be the only thing you can do to figure out the story. On iPad, the screen is locked the wrong way (home button on the left) so it cannot be used effectively with most keyboard docks and an iPad Pro. This is a simple fix, just enable rotation. I’m surprised this game has been around so long and that fix has not been implemented yet. I will give Her Story a continued look and update my rating if my opinion changes.

Not Worth It

The title says it all. I don't write reviews (this is my first ever), and I am compelled to share that in spite of the "innovation" or "edge" this "game" may tempt you with, it ultimately does little more than intrigue the user until interest is lost. The acting is subpar, at best. Of course with Leo Dicap winning a GG for his miscast performance in the travesty that is "The Revenant", I am not sure most people will even see how blatantly thespian (and thus bland, since we ain't watching a play) her acting is... It's moot though, cause if this were $.99 then I'd say, buy it, but at the price it's been at, trust me, you may as well find some fulfillment figuring out some answer or getting some concrete sign of progress in an equally interesting game that does not purport to be unique and not feel shafted out of the small fortune which is the cost of Her Story. Honestly, it gets old REAL FAST.