Every Wednesday, Itching For More is written, even if my eyelids feel like tombstones. Today, Night In The Woods Ghost Story: Lost Constellation

Lost Constellation is beautiful. It’s not often a game so effectively touches you, but Lost Constellation slowly wraps itself around you until you’re enveloped in it. Offspring of soon-to-be-released game Night In The Woods, to call this a side project would be to massively undersell it. Perhaps the longest game I’ve covered so far on Itching For More, Lost Constellation clocks in at a M A S S I V E 60 minutes. Every scene and character looks beautiful, it’s very easy to see the amount of effort put into this project.

I think the biggest praise I can give this game is that Night In The Woods went from being on the outskirts of my radar, to joining Dark Souls 3 and No Mans Sky as being one of my most anticipated games this year. It is quietly excellent, exquisitely paced and gracefully put together.

Lost Constellation is a story driven game, told as a bedtime story about an Astronomer trying to get through the woods to get to the Frozen Lake. On her way, she speaks to ghosts, Gods and gets into different situations. I laughed out loud at some of the writing, yet felt profoundly moved by other parts. Lost Constellation strikes a perfect balance between humour and seriousness, with some quite dark moments scattered throughout.

And don’t get me wrong, even though this is a game about cute animals (…very cute animals…), it is at its core a ghost story. Not a horror game, but a ghost story with some quite chilling moments. Its story, whilst not being completely simple to understand as it moves around different tangents, dipping in and out of them, is beautifully executed and keeps you hooked. It comments on narrative and questions life, throwing morality and hints of existentialism into the mix, touching on them and then moving on, leaving the thoughts lingering in the back of your mind.

Lost Constellation is evidently very confident in itself and it shows. Wandering through the cold forest, snow drifting down from the heavens, trees rising from the depths, gives Lost Constellation a quiet beauty, contrasting cold blues with warm oranges and dangerous reds.

Play Lost Constellation. Become lost in its woods, talk and play with its characters, build snowmen in clearings, gaze at the stars and ponder the impact of your choices. Lost Constellation is a game meant for a cold night, to be slowly enjoyed and explored.

Lost Constellation is pay what you want, available here