I love playing games to unwind. Although playing video games can be stressful in itself, they always help me escape from the everyday struggle. On those really rough days, I like to even out things with a more relaxing gaming experience. I might’ve found the perfect game to do so: Lake by Gamious a dutch indie developer.
Let’s take a break
It’s 1986 and Meredith Weiss is a successful businesswoman working for a booming software developer from the big city. Working from deadline to deadline and pulling out some all-nighters from time to time has taken a toll on Meredith. It’s clearly time for a vacation and a break from corporate life. Meredith decides to go back to her hometown Providence Oaks in Oregon, a quiet little town built around a lake for a two weeks vacation. During the vacation, she takes over her dad’s job as a mail carrier. Driving around town soaking in every bit of the beautiful lake-side town and enjoying the simple life.
Social Sim
The game is split into two parts. During the first part, you drive the mail truck around town and deliver packages and letters marked on a map. While delivering mail you’ll encounter many townspeople. Some of them are old acquaintances/friends and some of them are new residents of Providence Oaks. Lake flows from interaction to interaction during this part of the game. You get to know the people and find out interesting stories. Some of these stories are quite trivial while others will develop over the course of the game. Some interactions add new gameplay elements if you choose to pursue them. For instance, I got to know the owner of the video store who presented an idea to deliver films straight to people’s houses. I accepted to help her resulting in added locations for me to visit during my mail route.
The second part of each day ends with Meredith taking some free time. Depending on the interactions you had and the way the conversations went, you’ll be able to choose to develop certain relations further… or not. You could also choose to just stay home and read a book if you feel like it. That’s what makes Lake a different but wholesome game. It’s all about how you choose to go about your day. There is no right or wrong here. Games like “Life is Strange” give you choices that can implicate drastic things further into the game, Lake’s choices have repercussions but they are all very “gently” and “easy-going”. Lake is what you want it to be. You can get involved in town life as much as you want. On the other side of the spectrum, you could choose to keep working on your software project and keep to your own. Every experience you have through playing Lake is equally as valid.
Excellently written
Lake is all about developing stories in every way you choose. The writing done by the people on Gamious is why Lake really shines. The easy-going vibe Lake is going for is not only getting through via the beautiful lake-side town but is also in the writing. The stories develop seamlessly based on your interactions. The general things you might expect from a quiet town are all present with a few surprises along the way to keep you hooked. The game tries to give you a “slice-of-life” and fully succeeds. So much so, I wouldn’t mind going again for a second (or third, or fourth, …) slice.
Conclusion
Lake is unlike anything you played before. Lake is all about experiencing a few days of calmness and succeeds at that premise. If you want to unwind through some excellently written branching stories, Lake is perfect for you.
