As a longtime fan of the Life is Strange series, I had high expectations for Lost Records: Bloom & Rage, and I’m here to say that my time with this spellbinding new entry from Michel Koch and his fantastic team at DON'T NOD was great… but not perfect.
This marks DON'T NOD’s latest original IP after moving on from their Life is Strange titles. Lost Records: Bloom & Rage shifts away from high school indie drama and instead embraces a supernatural coming-of-age story inspired by David Lynch’s Twin Peaks, Andrew Fleming’s The Craft, and a touch of It by Stephen King.
Those influences are evident from the game’s first moments, as Lost Records establishes a more mature tone than the high school angst of the original Life is Strange.
Swann’s Song
You play Swann, an introvert suddenly thrust into a mystery when her long-lost childhood friend Autumn reaches out, revealing that something they did 27 years ago has had unforeseen consequences. The trailers hint at an ominous supernatural event on that fateful night, but we are left to discover what really happened.
Swann is the sole playable character, and we experience the story from her perspective as she pieces together the past through reminiscing and uncovering forgotten memories.
Dual Timelines
The dual-timeline structure is one of the game's strongest aspects. This is where the game’s story truly shines. We follow Swann, Kat, Nora, and Autumn’s story from 27 years in the past and present (2022) — adding a sense of mystery as to what could’ve caused this drama.
Unlike Life is Strange, which uses time-rewind mechanics, Lost Records operates within a singular timeline. In this scenario, choices made in the present can also affect the past, whereas in reality, it’s always the other way around. This novel approach adds weight to every decision.
While much of Tape 1 takes place in the past, the adult version of Swann has enough personal drama to keep players engaged in the 2022 timeline. The first-person perspective for her present-day sequences, compared to third-person gameplay in 1995, adds intimacy when talking to people and highlights DON'T NOD’s improved facial animations.
27 Years Ago
About 70-80% of Tape 1 immerses players in Swann’s 1995 life, allowing us to explore the fictional Velvet Cove, interact with friends, and even hang out with Swann’s pet cat (which players can name).
Despite Swann being the primary playable character, the game ensures that Kat, Nora, and Autumn receive equal narrative weight. There’s no one hogging all the spotlight, even the main playable character, Swann. This makes their personalities shine, making their friendship feel authentic and engaging.
What also made me appreciate Lost Records is how much better the writing is compared to Life is Strange, which leaned into Gen Z dialogue. Lost Records captures the conversational style of the 1990s without forced slang. That means there are no more Hellas and Shaka-brahs. As a 90s kid, I found the dialogue incredibly nostalgic — it made me smile.
Lights, Camera, Action!
One of the most satisfying mechanics is the camcorder feature. Given the title Lost Records, it's no surprise that this mechanic plays a crucial role in the story.
Throughout the game, before leading up to that ‘one night,’ Swann spends most of her time talking to her friends and capturing moments from their little excursions in the forest and the town.
Swann views the world as an ongoing film project, capturing snippets of her surroundings with her camcorder. These recordings become part of a collectible-style menu, where players can compile 10 to 30-second vignettes from Swann’s clips. Players who enjoyed Max’s photography collectibles in the first Life is Strange game will find this wholly different. It is a much more engaging experience to find that perfect clip to add to the compilation.
The game encourages frequent camcorder use, rewarding players with deeper insight into Swann’s world and relationships. It appeals to creatives and enhances immersion, making Velvet Cove's world feel alive.
Choices
Swann engages in real-time conversations with her friends when she isn't recording or exploring. Fans of Night School Studios’ Oxenfree will find its real-time dialogue style similar. There are no pauses — dialogue flows naturally, often with multiple people talking simultaneously, creating a sense of social urgency. For example, there’s one moment in the game inside Nora’s garage where everyone is talking, and I almost had a tough time figuring out who to talk to first. Swann can choose to engage or remain silent, reinforcing her introverted nature.
While some of these conversations may be lighthearted, choices will carry heavy weight in Lost Record’s case.
Making choices significantly impacts the story. In Lost Records, choices have two distinct consequences: romance and narrative progression. Romantic choices are symbolized by a heart, while a blooming leaf represents major story decisions.
Romantic choices can sometimes be a double-edged sword. Players might want to watch that ‘Heartbreak’ animation when making a tough choice against someone’s opinion. Nora might not like Swann picking ‘Choice A’ because she enjoys ‘Choice B’ the most.
Although this feature is neat, I was confused by the lack of a UI indicating which characters loved or hated my choices. Here’s hoping DON'T NOD adds an extra UI a la Fallout games, such as “Kat loved that” or “Kat hated that.” I wish we could see the return of Life is Strange’s “Your choices will have consequences” notification.
By the end of Tape 1 (which lasts around 7-8 hours), I couldn't review my choices due to offline servers, but I look forward to analyzing them once the game launches.
Soundtrack
DON'T NOD has always excelled at crafting memorable soundtracks. We’ve had our fill on the original Life is Strange games with Syd Matters and Angus & Julia Stone.
Lost Records is no exception. The dreampop and synth-wave score perfectly capture the 90s aesthetic. If you’re a huge fan of artists like Beach House, Mazzy Star, Cocteau Twins, and Slowdive, Lost Record’s soundtrack will cast a spell on you.
To my surprise, many tracks were from the Canadian electro-pop duo Milk & Bone, which previously featured a song in Life is Strange 2.
Issues
Despite its strengths, Lost Records has some technical issues that hinder immersion. Performance on PlayStation 5 isn't great, and I’m unsure if it’s even worse on PC. Throughout Tape 1’s 25 chapters, the frame rate drops occasionally in free-roam sections and transitions. While it didn’t ruin my experience too much, it was noticeable.
DON'T NOD didn’t add a ‘Performance’ or ‘Resolution’ Mode in their graphics settings, which I find odd.
The game is also quite buggy. In one instance, Autumn’s animation was stuck in place, and she slid across the area instead of walking, which was hilarious but immersion-breaking. It completely ruined that moment for me.
Fortunately, DON'T NOD has acknowledged these issues and is actively working on patches before the game’s release.
Tape 1: Bloom is a strong start to this two-episode story, leading to a surprising ending. Like previous Life is Strange episodes, this moment will spark discussion among fans, and I’m glad DON'T NOD is giving us a month and a half to process everything that happened. I can’t wait to join in.
I've had a fantastic time with Lost Records: Bloom & Rage, even though I’ve only played Tape 1. Performance issues need improvement but it did not overshadow the game’s strengths.
It is mature and immersive, and its story captures what it was like to be a 90s kid in a fast-changing world. Swann, Kat, Nora, and Autumn are great personalities that we’ve probably all met at some point in our lives.
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is a phenomenal narrative adventure from DON'T NOD. It expertly blends supernatural elements with a deeply personal coming-of-age story.
Tape 2: Rage will be released on April 15, and I can’t wait to see where the story goes next.
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage was reviewed on PlayStation 5 with code provided by the publisher.