To the Moon is an experience. Released in 2011, just when indie games were exploding, I had never played anything like it before or since. It's an RPG, but there's no combat. It's kind of a visual novel, but there's some interactivity. The main draw is the story.

You play as two scientists, whos job is to allow dying people to relive their entire lives - and fulfill their dreams - inside their head. Our patient here is Johnny, a man whos final wish is to go to the moon. What follows is an emotional journey full of simple puzzles where we slowly piece together the pieces of Johnny's life. It's a tragic tale, sullied a bit by dialogue that at times can be "cringe", but on the whole the story on display here is nearly unmatched in gaming - maybe because the developer focused entirely on the story in lieu of any gameplay beyond very simple puzzles. This is fine, and exactly what the developer intended, but be warned that this game is more of an experience than a game.

One thing I have to mention is the soundtrack. This game has maybe the best soundtrack of any game I've ever played. I first played it in 2013, and while the details of the game have faded in the decade since, the soundtrack hasn't. I'm not normally one who listens to video game music outside of playing games, but I made an exception for To The Moon. When I first played this game, I downloaded the soundtrack and listened to it for months. Simply incredible.

The developer has released a few games since To The Moon and while none have had quite the cultural impact To The Moon has, they're all similarly well-reviewed and are on my list to play eventually.

Verdict: Finished

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