Inner Ashes Reviews

Recommended with caveats. The game starts with a warning about photosensitivity- this is important for people with photosensitive neurological conditions and some vision disorders. There are flashing lights, areas of extreme brightness or darkness, and sequences where the screen will white-out making it hard to see where you are moving the character. UI contrast is not so good- white text or icons that get lost on bright or light colored backgrounds. There are very few settings to adjust things- no colorblindness settings, no UI scaling, no UI contrast settings, no resolution options, no VSync on/off. The game is locked to 30 (31) fps, and the camera can be a bit jerky at times. The voice overs do not always match the dialogue text on screen in English. A few words missed here and there, nothing that changes the meaning of what is being said- the native Spanish version is much better, if you are fluent in Spanish. That all said: The music is fantastic- moody, charming, calming, energetic, dark- changing to suit the scenes and story well. The art styles are quite good- both the comic style used in cutscenes and the stylized almost psychedelic style used in the playable game world. The puzzles are tangram-style puzzles (fit shapes together to fill in a space, but not classic tangrams) and logic puzzles that can feel a bit trial and error at times. Which was fine for me- it suits the theme and context of the game. Confusion and uncertainty go with playing an Alzheimer's patient- you are seeing the world through his eyes.The puzzle difficulty progresses at a reasonable pace- some are quite tricky as you go on. [b] "Alpha Snowflakes" be advised[/b]- there is a strong LGBTQ+ theme that runs through the game. Not with the main protagonist, but with his daughter Enid (who is not the protagonist- not sure why "female protagonist" is in the user-defined tags, but LGBTQ+ is not.) If LGBTQ+ stories trigger you- you'll want to avoid this game, it might upset you. :) Th story seems to be well researched as far as Alzheimer's symptoms and treatments go, and what someone with the condition or someone caring for a person with the condition may experience. The game is quite surrealistic at times- I have family members who had Alzheimer's and eventually passed from its effects. I found it both enlightening and concerning that this *may* have been what the end of their lives was like- wandering through a confusing world filled with things they could not understand, created in their on minds, and could not escape from. Yes, the game made me weep for them many times. TL;DR- the game has some Accessibility issues. It can be an emotional roller coaster if you know or are related to anyone with Alzheimer's. The UI and controls are not great, but the game ran quite well on an older gaming desktop, no crashes, no stutters, but expect it to feel like what it is- a port from an older console. I did enjoy the experience, even though it was quite emotionally draining at times. Buy on sale, and know what you are buying before you drop $$$ on it.

This game is the story of single father Henry Hughes and his daughter Enid plus Henry's best friend Joseph who is an important link between past and present. Henry's wife has died and he is a busy park ranger and has to raise Enid on his own. This is their story. Henry has Alzheimer's Disease and can't remember why Enid and him have been estranged for so long. The narrative is an retrospective journey into Henry's mind about the past and what an emotional rollercoaster it is! Henry's mind is in a dreamlike psychedelic state and his memories are unlocked by tangram puzzles. In the real world, you collect fragments of their past. You experience the day to day struggle of Henry and see the many mechanics used to jog his memory. For example there are post-its all around the kitchen explaining what each object was and how to use it; there was a corkboard with instructions for the day and it was very emotional to see messages of how he was loved. Tangram puzzles and post-it stickers are real life techniques used to alleviate symptoms in patients with AD. The game is really a walking sim collecting glowing boxes which represent Enid's paintings which jog her father's memory. There are about 9 chapters and be aware that there is no chapter select at the end of the game, so be sure to check everything in both worlds before going deep into Henry's mind. Warning: there is a bit of a head bob as you walk along, so I reduced the camera sensitivity and that helped a bit, but I had to play this in short bursts. Another warning is that there is photosensitive issues for epileptics and those with eyesight issues. There are areas of whiteout representing Henry's cloudy mind and some very dark scenes where he gets lost. One other thing is that there is a chapter where there is music involved, so you have to follow the sound. Music is actually an aid for AD sufferers and calms them. But it is difficult for deaf people to hear the music in this chapter. Other things you collect are clinical notes or letters. These are very educational about the disease and were a real eye opener! This is where I felt the reality of what I was playing really hit home. The loss of memory and cognitive behaviour; the confusion and frustration and then the eventual disassociation from the world showed what a terrible brain disease this is. When Henry descended into darkness and the ice world representing his frozen mind, I just wept for all the people with this horrid condition. I am not the sooky type but people of my vintage know others who have this disease or who have died from it. And as I played, fear gripped my heart that I could end up like this. I've witnessed the impact on their families and the heartbreak of seeing a loved one become a shell of who they were before. To me it is the total humiliation of a human being, but it does bring the best out of others. I applaud those working in this difficult field. The music in this game was sublime and evocative in particular scenes. The last chapter's music was exceptional, which is where I totally lost it!!! The graphics were bright and colourful and went through the seasons. The man who played Henry was really, really good, but the lass who played Enid had a very strong Spanish accent which was a little difficult to understand at times. There is also positive LBGTIQ representation here for those in that community. The game was made with great love and with the desire to educate others and raise awareness about AD which they succeeding in achieving. Be aware that you will shed a tear or two as this is an immersive experience. Now I'm heading off to tend to my broken heart....sniff! Please support this game for AD sufferers. 8/10

The only game that makes you forget things. I played the demo 1 or 2 years ago, I don't remember at the moment. Nice story and setting...I think. My rating is 7 or maybe 8. I should play it again but I don't remember if it's in my library.