Forgotton Anne

Forgotton Anne

  • Genres : Platformer, Adventure
  • Publishers : Square Enix
  • Developers : TroughLine Games
  • Players : 1
  • Consoles : Nintendo Switch
  • Languages : French, German, Italian, Spanish, American English
  • release date : November 09, 2018

Forgotton Anne is a game developed by ThroughLine Games and edited by Square Enix in 2018 on diverse platforms, including the Switch.

I discovered this game back in February 2019 thanks to an advertisement on the eShop for the game. I downloaded the demo that was available and fell in love with the game’s universe.

I invite you through this article to discover the “Forgotten Lands”: world in which all forgotten things come alive.

Forgotton Anne - usine

A bewitching world

The introduction of the game is done through a little video animation that, through different scenes of life present the “Forgotten Lands”. It presents us the way in which forgotten objects come to life in this other world and become Forgotlings. We discover a well organised society in which each Forgotlings has a job, a house…

This introduction brings us to the room of a human young woman, Anne, who is the main character of this adventure. Anne is one of the two only humans that live in the Forgotten Lands: Anne is the Enforcer in charge of keeping order in the world of the Forgotlings and Master Bonku is the “soverain”, it is he who rules the Forgotten Lands. Master Bonku is the man who raised Anne. He takes the role of a father like figure for the young woman, his goal is to build a bridge to rejoin the human world.

Forgotton Anne - ville des oublions

The story begins with a sabotage by a rebellious group of Forgotlings that doesn’t agree with the ideas of Master Bonku. It is then that many explosions take place in the town cutting it from the main energy source in the Forgotten Lands: the anima. Anne wakes up and sees from her balcony a heavy cloud of smoke coming from the factory and the main train station. Your first mission will be to activate the emergency generator thanks to the reserves of anima in order to get into contact with Master Bonku. Indeed, Anne, as an Executer possesses a glove capable of manipulating the anima: The Arca. This glove allows her to do different things during the game to interact with this energy source: activate mechanisms, change the direction of the flux, user wings to jump higher… It also allows Anne to distil a Forgotling, that is to say, take the anima from it and make it go back to its original lifeless object state.

Your second mission that constitutes the main plot of the game is to conduct the investigation in order to find the identity of the rebels that are trying to come in the way of Master Bonku’s projects and stop them.

Forgotton Anne - Arca

It’s a universe that deeply affected me, a sort of fantastical and romanticized critique of our current society that might be consuming a little too much. I really love this world and its inhabitants really struck a sensitive cord in me.

The game and its gameplay

You play Anne who goes after the rebels to stop them and allow the finalisation of the Ether bridge from Master Bonku. The Forgotten Lands is a 2D platform game with graphics close to the ones of a movie from the Ghibli studios. The characters’ movements are also well done in the manner of an animated movie. The music is also well written and goes perfectly with the graphics driving the player in the Forgotten Lands.

The game mixes with ability exploration phases in a platform style, puzzles and dialogues of the story. Each of the choices that you make in your actions or during the dialogues will have a consequence on the game. The game is really beautiful, but you will need to keep an eye out to discover all the hidden hints on your way. Those hints will give you the solution to some of the enigmas and other will help you make the right choice.

The gameplay is intuitive and quite diversified, same goes for the story which is quite compelling. You will have at heart the objective of making the correct choices in order to come to the best ending possible. The game is a real treat!

Forgotton Anne - anne et l'oublions

A particularly well thought out ambiance

The ambiance of the game is particularly well thought out be it on a graphics level, or in the sound ambiance or the “soul” of the characters. Honestly I had the impression of living the story of a Ghibli animation movie from my first steps in the game. The characters are magnificently drawn, the decors are sumptuous with a multitude of details. Each place has its own musical ambiance with sound effects, voice over or the characters that we meet. I was literally swept away by this beautiful story.

Yunicia adore !

Conclusion

I really spent excellent moments in the kingdom of the Forgotlings. I discovered a beautiful story full of twists and turns with endearing and touching characters! I had the chance of buying the game for about 10 euros, and spent 5 or 6 hours on it to complete one of the possible endings.

The game, once completed, allows you to redo each chapter individually to modify your choices and test out the different endings. It’s a good idea that improves a little the lifespan of the game.

I really like Forgotton Anne. It’s a game that transported me in a charming fantastical universe and a game I played with a lot of pleasure. Furthermore, it made me think about my way of consummating things.

I can only recommend it to you.

See you soon for another test.