It’s a human approach to the topic that understands that you can still love someone and acknowledge their imperfections. The main character reflects on some uglier parts of her childhood, engaging with her parent’s flaws and her own unflattering behaviors. In talking about loss, I appreciate that it doesn’t sugarcoat some of the complicated feelings that can arise during the grieving process.
Hindsight’s main focus is on (ironically) unpacking all the baggage that comes with grief. All of this plays out in a fluid, tear-jerking two-hour story that unfolds throughout the house. When I find a kitchen knife, it transports me to a memory in which I was holding it. At one point, I tap on a tire swing on the front porch and peer through it like a window to see a memory. Players click (or tap, as I did on the Switch’s touch screen) on highlighted objects to travel into them. That’s all communicated through a simple interactive system. Each object connects the dots of her life, piecing together how seemingly small moments from her childhood shaped her. A mortar and pestle set connects the dots between her love of cooking with her parents to her ultimate career as a restaurant owner. A metronome becomes a reminder of an overbearing mother who pushed her too hard. Each object she packs away suddenly becomes a window into her past, unlocking difficult memories about her past.
Hindsight tells a focused story about a woman returning home to clean out her childhood home after her mother passes away. Hindsight is a quick game that can be completed in one sitting, but I already know its difficult musings on grief are going to stick with me longer than most 40-hour games I’ve played this year. It’s the latest in a line of video game personal essays (think A Memoir Blue or Before Your Eyes) that dare to deliver emotional truth over pure fun. Hindsight, a new narrative indie game published by Annapurna Interactive, captures that experience through a simple, but effective interactive experience. HINDSIGHT - Release Date Trailer - Nintendo Switch