The French Dontnod Entertainment releases one or more games every year. Due to a variety of studios and multiple publishers, sometimes very close together, as in the case of Twin Mirror, which is published by the studio itself. And where many of Dondnod’s titles denounce important social problems, Twin Mirror is primarily a straightforward detective thriller with a Twin Peaks-like approach.
Dontnod’s inspiration for the game is obvious. The remote village of Basswood is rocked by a series of crimes just as investigative journalist Sam returns to attend the funeral of his late friend Nick. Not only does that make him suspicious, but because almost everyone knows each other, the case also becomes personal. What starts as a painful confrontation with old friends and colleagues turns into a murder mystery in which anyone can be the culprit.
The fact that the murderer is never far away gives an extra dimension to the many conversations you have with the inhabitants. Nowhere is the game really thrilling, but it has a more mature tone with a number of unexpected twists that keep up the pace. The project is also not divided into episodes, which benefits the structure of the story.
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Gloomy times
During Sam’s return to Basswood, you mainly get a glimpse of what has happened since his research closed the local mine, with all the consequences for employment. A bartender who serves the same people day in, day out, a policeman engaged in mischief and a teenager who wonders if she ever escapes from the village: the conversations paint a bleak picture of life there. Partly thanks to the clear graphic forward jump, Twin Mirror has a pleasantly nasty atmosphere.
It also becomes clear that Sam is in trouble with himself. Much of the village holds him responsible for the misery and the complicated relationship with his ex Anna does not make things any better. That is why he has created a perfect version of himself in his head from an early age: a Sam who is not depressed, but finds his place in society. It is striking that Dontnod only subtly links the concept to mental health, but mainly uses it as ‘conscience’ during gameplay.
Sam’s titular alter ego regularly shares his unvarnished opinion when an important choice approaches. He then physically appears in the world to offer an alternative perspective, which often amounts to the safe way. Sometimes spelling out options in this way negates the fun of making choices. After all, such choice systems stand or fall with the ability to interpret the situation and make its own assessment. Yet the role of the conscience becomes a little more valuable as the tension rises. Certainly when lives are at stake and ‘the other Sam’ would rather choose the safe way than find answers, some choices become more difficult.
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Nowhere is the game really thrilling, but it has a more mature tone with a number of unexpected twists that keep up the pace.
Answers
That urge for answers has a physical place in Twin Mirror: the mind palace. Similar to the BBC’s modern version of Sherlock, players delude it to reminisce or reconstruct events. That first element is a pleasant way to get some context into the story, such as Sam’s relationship with the deceased Nick or a defining childhood memory. With this the developer proves once again that it is good to write very human scenes, which let go of the tension for a moment.
The other part, the reconstructions, come out differently. By finding clues in the environment, a kind of holograms appear, which influence each other by changing certain options. For example, if an animal runs on the road, a car deviates to the left. However, if the driver is under the influence of alcohol, he reacts too late. By playing with these chain reactions, players automatically arrive at the correct answer. That is also the problem: by simply messing around with one of the three factors, you will always find the right answer. There is no room for mistakes that might affect the story, which is a missed opportunity.
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Smaller scale
Twin Mirror is therefore clearly a slightly smaller project. As far as choices are concerned, the biggest twist is with the different endings, which are not nearly as far apart as those of, for example, Life is Strange 2. The game is also slightly shorter than we are used to with about seven hours of playing time. Those aren’t the biggest downsides though, because in the end Twin Mirror is just a smaller, more grown-up Dontnod adventure that plays nicely thanks to its structure and has a fairly satisfying solution to the mystery.
Twin Mirror is now available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.
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