A Memoir Blue Review – Accomplished In Aesthetics

Developer – Cloisters Interactive

Publisher – Annapurna Interactive

Platform(s) – PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, iOS

Release Date – March 24, 2022

Disclaimer: Thanks to PR for Providing a Review Copy

If it’s published by Annapurna Interactive, chances are I’ll play it at some point. My first time hearing of A Memoir Blue was at the Annapurna Interactive Showcase in July of 2021. As with all Annapurna games, I remember being intrigued to some extent but I can’t say I was hyped for this game or counting down the days to release. An opportunity came up to review this game and considering my history with the publisher, I jumped on the chance right away.

As far as I know, this is the first game from the developer, Cloisters Interactive. The first trace I can find of My Memoir Blue before its official reveal was what’s seemingly a small slice of the game from 2018.

My Memoir Blue is an interactive poem telling the story of love between a mother and her daughter. Throughout the game, you experience and interact with a series of vignettes that look through the lens of their relationship, primarily from the daughter, Miriam. The game is set into 6 chapters and each one covers a different part of Miriam’s memories with her and her mother.

A Memoir Blue does a nice job of telling its story through no words. You do a wide amount of varied interactive tasks in each chapter of the game. It’ll range from removing ice cubes from a glass, putting the pieces of a mirror back together, and replacing wood pieces of a pier. Each time you interact with a task you open a new memory. That’s basically the gameplay loop from start to finish, it doesn’t switch it up much.

I think it’s worth stating that A Memoir Blur is not a long game in the slightest. It took me a little over an hour to complete the game and that’s with no breaks in between. You’ll have to be a certain type of player to enjoy a game like this. I thought the game told its story well but I wish the tasks were a bit more in-depth and expansive. They’re not hard to solve in the slightest and most can be figured out in 30 seconds or less. Albeit that’s probably the intention from the devs but I would’ve preferred more diversified puzzles to go along with the enjoyable narrative.

The art direction of this game gets no complaints from me. A Memoir Blue combines 3D art and hand-drawn designs. Some games can’t pull this off, but A Memoir Blue does it successfully. For the story they’re trying to tell, this type of aesthetic works perfectly to convey Miriam’s memories. The image above is just one of the many examples of the art direction working as intended. Cloisters Interactive had a goal with this facet of the game and they delivered.

If you’re looking at A Memoir Blue simply as an experience, I think you’ll be satisfied. As a video game, it won’t stick the landing. The gameplay itself isn’t very in-depth and what is there is not the most appealing. However, the game succeeds in its art direction and narrative. The only minor gripe I can give to the story is that it doesn’t deliver on many memorable or unexpected moments, it’s pretty cut and dry but the execution works well enough. Also, on a quick side note, I should mention the music that is in this game is nice and graceful.

I enjoyed A Memoir Blue for what it was. It’s definitely not a game I’ll go back and play again down the road. However, as with most Annapurna games, it felt different and unique. That’s what sticks with me most about Annapurna as a publisher and most of the developers they fund. A Memoir Blue was good for what it was, as a video game, it falters but as an experience, it succeeds with its storytelling.