To The Moon - The Best Game No One Will Play

[coldmeat]

Yeah cause we need more save the world games

cause it can only be one or the other...

 

[mirandu04]

played it and loved it; a must play for all of you with a little free time!

 

[digiram]

Thanks OP, I will check this out.

 

[irishScott]

Wow, a depressing plot about people who lie to themselves undergoing a medical procedure to further lie to themselves, little gameplay, and a lot of depressing piano music by the looks of it.

I'm sorry, apparently more than a few of you are into that sort of thing, but the basic premise turns me off. Think I'll pass.

 

[Dankk]

Necro-ing, because I finally got around to playing this game over the weekend.

To sum it up: To The Moon is as good as everyone says it is. If you can appreciate a strong, emotional storyline, then you will certainly appreciate this game.

Rather than buying it from the dev's website, you now have the option of owning the game on Steam and GOG. I purchased it on both platforms, and to top things off, bought the soundtrack as well.

Definitely one of those rare gems. Might even make you tear up a little. ^_^

Edit: Going back and reading some of the previous posts here, wow, there's a lot of stupid in this thread. If the graphics aren't up to your standards, then by all means: Go back to playing Battleshit 4 Modern Rehash for your fill of awesome grafix. No one's making you play this.

 

[gothamhunter]

Yes LessThanDan; it is an amazing experience that no one should go without, but so many will because of honestly stupid reasons.

 

[Gothgar]

Aeiou aeiou aeiou aeiou aeiou aeiou aeiou aeiou aeiou aeiou aeiou aeiou

john madden john madden john madden john madden john madden john madden

 

[sigurros81]

Awesome, we need more games about exploring the moon.

 

[darkewaffle]

It was ok. I think calling it emotional or poignant is going a bit too far. I'd actually say it was funny before anything else, the Neil / Eva dialogue had some good moments.

IMO the high point of the game was the memory of Johnny/River at the carnival when a lot of things clicked into place. But after that it was really disappointing;

Spoiler

Eva going 'rogue', River showing up at NASA, Neil's pills all seemed really illogical/contrived to me. Also Johnny trying to 'adopt' Joey's tendencies would have benefitted from an explanation. And I'm not sure why River appears at NASA instead of Johnny going back to the carnival, Eva makes passing reference to "Johnny's mind willed her to be here" or something but it just came off as a cop out to me.

Not bad, but not that good either, pretty overrated to me after all I'd heard about it.

 

[gothamhunter]

It was ok. I think calling it emotional or poignant is going a bit too far. I'd actually say it was funny before anything else, the Neil / Eva dialogue had some good moments.

IMO the high point of the game was the memory of Johnny/River at the carnival when a lot of things clicked into place. But after that it was really disappointing;

Spoiler

Eva going 'rogue', River showing up at NASA, Neil's pills all seemed really illogical/contrived to me. Also Johnny trying to 'adopt' Joey's tendencies would have benefitted from an explanation. And I'm not sure why River appears at NASA instead of Johnny going back to the carnival, Eva makes passing reference to "Johnny's mind willed her to be here" or something but it just came off as a cop out to me.

Not bad, but not that good either, pretty overrated to me after all I'd heard about it.

Spoiler

Nothing to argue on the Eva thing, other than she felt really connected to this particular patient. River showed up at NASA because they basically crafted the memory that way and that was how they would meet "at the moon". The two boys were twins...I don't think it's far off for a twin to try and be whole again by also "becoming" the other twin, especially at that age. The pills thing is supposed to be explained in a sequel.

 

[festa_freak]

It had a very engaging story. I couldn't stop playing until 2 in the morning. It wasn't perfect in the gameplay aspect and it was relatively short taking me only 4 hours to finish but it sure was worth every single penny I threw at it. It made some people tear up, not me but I could totally see how it could happen. If you are even considering it, do yourself a favour and get it. It's supposed to be the first of many as well so let's hope the next ones are as good.

 

[lkailburn]

Adding this to my list! Seems like a nice change of pace. something different.

 

[slpnshot]

The ending was actually a bit of let down for me.

Spoiler

It was such a strong moment when the story made it seem as if River was going to disappear from the old man's life in order to make him happy. The combination of the music and the flashback was very poignant. It felt like such a strong statement on how happiness was subjective, and that different people have different ideas on what would make a person happy.

Only to have River come out of nowhere at the ending and become an astronaut. It felt forced and unnecessary. Especially if you consider that River could have just been another girl at the end and John wouldn't have noticed. What made River special to John was the memories he built with her, hardship and all, only to have all those memories disappear. So even if they brought in a random girl to take River's place at the Nasa meeting, it would have worked just fine. And it would have actually lent meaning to the 'another River' statement by Eva.

Let's not forget John's dream to go to the moon wasn't literal. The carnival cliff and the significance of the lighthouse seemed completely thrown out by the ending.

 

[PowerYoga]

Spoiler

Eva going 'rogue', River showing up at NASA, Neil's pills all seemed really illogical/contrived to me. Also Johnny trying to 'adopt' Joey's tendencies would have benefitted from an explanation. And I'm not sure why River appears at NASA instead of Johnny going back to the carnival, Eva makes passing reference to "Johnny's mind willed her to be here" or something but it just came off as a cop out to me.

Not bad, but not that good either, pretty overrated to me after all I'd heard about it.

Spoiler

Johnny's mom gave him a lot of beta blockers after running over Joey herself, which caused the loss of memory in the first place. The only thing Johnny remembers from the whole incident was that he wants to go to the moon. If you look at the regular history (the unaltered one), Johnny actually thought the first time he met River was at the school because he wanted to be "different". When Johnny told River that, River then spent the rest of her life trying to jog Johnny's memory about their encounter at the carnival.

And as far as the technology goes, it's stated that it constructs the "idea" of going to the moon based on Johnny's own experiences. Being that all of his important memories are about River, it's pretty safe to say that it'd get worked in there. The whole "eva" bit is a bit over the top but it makes sense given that they didn't have much time to work with Johnny's memories.

The ending was actually a bit of let down for me.

Spoiler

Let's not forget John's dream to go to the moon wasn't literal. The carnival cliff and the significance of the lighthouse seemed completely thrown out by the ending.

Spoiler

I'd argue that because the promise was so unrealistic, the only "realistic" way to approach it was to go to NASA and be chosen for a moon landing mission. It'd seem out of place if River was replaced by a different person since Johnny's memories were essentially built around her. At that point River is essentially a completely different person as she hasn't spent her most of her life trying to remind Johnny of their first meeting, leading to an arguably happier life for her as well.

 

[Stringjam]

I enjoy a game like this every now and then.

I like all kinds of games though. I spent $10 on DearEsther last year, which is more of a walk-through than an actual game, and I thought it was worth every penny. It isn't often I play a game that actually makes me feel something.

 

[slpnshot]

Spoiler

I'd argue that because the promise was so unrealistic, the only "realistic" way to approach it was to go to NASA and be chosen for a moon landing mission. It'd seem out of place if River was replaced by a different person since Johnny's memories were essentially built around her. At that point River is essentially a completely different person as she hasn't spent her most of her life trying to remind Johnny of their first meeting, leading to an arguably happier life for her as well.

[/QUOTE]

Understandable. I'm just griping because I felt the writers took a shortcut with the ending in using the obvious possibility rather than the symbolic ones.

Spoiler

And it's not necessarily that River was or wasn't replaced by a different person that affected me. It's that the whole River disappearing scene was completely pointless with that reunion. They had that whole scene with the moody music and if affected me because it seemed to mean something. That there were consequences. That in order for the scientists to give something, they had to take something else away.

But no. River shows up at end because the machine can do anything. But that also mean that the dream machine could have just as easily had John meet River at the school scene while living with Joey and becoming an astronaut with River. But they couldn't do that because it'll take away the emotional moment and won't create a lasting impact to the players. And that's what really annoyed me.

 

[crisium]

This game is a masterful example of how to make interactive media tug at your heartstrings and make you actually feel emotion. It's my game of the decade thus far. Sure the actual gameplay is really limited, but the video game formula allows it to a special experience that wouldn't quite be the same, or as good, in another medium such as film or novel. It's a game that sticks with your soul for days after completing it. Not many forms of media can do this at all.

 

[KlokWyze]

Looks incredibly meh.

 

[PowerYoga]

Spoiler

And it's not necessarily that River was or wasn't replaced by a different person that affected me. It's that the whole River disappearing scene was completely pointless with that reunion. They had that whole scene with the moody music and if affected me because it seemed to mean something. That there were consequences. That in order for the scientists to give something, they had to take something else away.

But no. River shows up at end because the machine can do anything. But that also mean that the dream machine could have just as easily had John meet River at the school scene while living with Joey and becoming an astronaut with River. But they couldn't do that because it'll take away the emotional moment and won't create a lasting impact to the players. And that's what really annoyed me.

Spoiler

I don't think it's because "the machine can do anything", but you have to keep in mind of River's personality. It's entirely possible that River was there through the Johnny's entire modified 'life', but couldn't express herself clearly as shown in Johnny's normal life (which is why she folded rabbits to try to remind Johnny.) The defining trait you see with River is that because of her condition, she's incredibly persistent, and she might've just noticed Johnny trying to become an Astronaut. So she did the same to hang on to the promise of "meeting on the moon".

Eve also mentioned as much, saying that she had to depend on Johnny's view of River. If Johnny didn't think River was able to make it to NASA with him, then the simulation would've failed anyway.

And don't forget the whole premise was to fulfill Johnny's desire to "go to the moon". If he met River outside after with Joey and the gang, he would never have bothered to go to the moon which would fail this basic requirement. Arguably could be happier, but I think that's a different discussion.

 

[Pheran]

I just finished this - picked it up during the Steam holiday sale. Every once in a while, you encounter a game that is clearly Art. To the Moon is one of those games. Now, I'm not saying that games like Mass Effect (just for example) aren't art - they most certainly are. But To the Moon is a work of art stripped down to the bare bones, with the story shining through its minimalist gameplay. The last game I felt this way about was Braid, though it has more gameplay. The closest analogue I can come up with for this game is the movie "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind". It's a lot different, but there are some parallels. I'm so glad I bought the version that includes the soundtrack - it's wonderful.

If you appreciate a good story and can deal with the retro graphics, To the Moon is an absolutely must-play experience.