Lost Records: Bloom & Rage

Part One is the perfect beginning to a story that will stay with you for a long time to come, all set against an evocative soundtrack.

With phenomenal character work, gorgeous visuals, and a compelling story, Lost Records is shaping up to be Don't Nod's greatest game to date.

There's been better narrative games, but none so achingly familiar as Lost Record's quartet of young punks.

When you grow up in a small town, punk rock isn’t just music: It’s a lifeline. Fuzzed out guitars blaring out of garages become the soundtrack of rebellion. It’s the music that the cops tell you to turn down, that your parents can’t stand, that your politicians try to demonize. It is loud. It is antagonistic. And in Lost Records: Bloom and Rage, it is freedom.

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage Tape 1 is the first in this intriguing two-parter, and an ambitious undertaking from the original creators of Life Is Strange. Establishing two timelines, both in the mid-90s and present day, Bloom & Rage is a return to Don’t Nod’s roots with a killer setting, lovable characters, and plenty of nerve-wracking decisions to make amidst a mystery narrative. However, Tape 1 is a slow burner, and while we’re onboard for the scene that it sets, it’ll be down to Tape 2 to dictate whether it’s all worth the ride.

Lost Records: Bloom and Rage is an engaging story-driven experience that has a couple of pitfalls stopping it from being amazing, and it is playable on the Steam Deck!

Don't Nod Montreal has been in the business of coming-of-age tales for more than a decade. With Life is Strange in the rear view mirror, the team has moved on to a new story focused around four friends who came together one magical summer and the trauma that tore them apart. It looked like the picture was becoming clearer with the end of Tape 1 (Bloom), which released back in February. Unfortunately, the story's conclusion in Tape 2 (Rage) doesn't capitalize on the potential set up by the February cliffhanger, instead getting bogged down by unwanted tropes and some nonsensical plot twists.

When Lost Records: Bloom and Rage is strong, it’s strong. But without the Tape 2 Rage, I’m unfortunately left with too much gap to close, not enough life lived, and not enough of a tactile experience to immerse me in Swann’s life and Velvet Cove.

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage - Tape 1 tells a beautiful coming-of-age story, but takes far too long building up something that never pays off.

In 2023, Don’t Nod revealed Lost Records: Bloom & Rage, a game that everyone thought for sure was a Life is Strange title. From the opening trailer, those are the vibes that we picked up, and now that the game is out in the open (or at least, half of it is), I’m happy to say that, yes, this could be Life is Strange 3.

In returning to its narrative adventure roots, Lost Records: Bloom & Rage feels like a retreat for Don’t Nod. Draped in nostalgia for both the 90s and Life is Strange, Bloom & Rage struggles to find itself among uneven pacing, tonal inconsistencies, and an uninteresting cast of characters. Despite some neat visual tricks with its VHS overlays, there’s little on this first tape worth a rental.

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is a visually gorgeous slog of a game that lacks a plot until over halfway through and characters that no amount of cute hangouts could make me like.