Gone Home deeply resonated with me, much like only a handful of games I've encountered in the past. It bears striking resemblances to my initial playthrough of Edith Finch, to the point where I wouldn't be surprised if the developers of Edith Finch were avid fans of Gone Home.

Right from the start, I was hooked by its eerie and detailed sound design. you can hear faint whispers and cracking of old wooden floors, all while a thunderstorm raged outside. This created the perfect atmosphere for uncovering the bittersweet stories of the family members in an old house all by yourself. In particular Sam's story was relatable and beautifully conveyed through fragments of notes and diary entries that were voiced in the background.

As someone who longs to have experienced the '90s as a teenager, it was an absolute delight to discover all the pop culture references throughout the game. And as a fan of noise rock, I couldn't contain my excitement when I came across mentions of Guided by Voices on a magazine cover or a concert poster featuring Sonic Youth. The cherry on top was the emo song playing during the credits, which definitely brought a tear to my eye.

i feel like this game was made for a really specific audience and i'm probably one of them.