DON’T NOD studio split the adventure game Lost Records: Bloom & Rage into two parts. In February 2025, the first one, “Cassette 1”, was released, and in April “Cassette 2” followed, which showed the end of the story. Was the two-month wait worth it, we will tell you in the review.
- Developer: DON’T NOD
- Publisher: DON’T NOD
- Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5 , Xbox Series X|S
- Release date: February 18, 2025 – “Cassette 1”, April 15, 2025 – “Cassette 2”
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage — Tape 2 picks up where Tape 1 left off. After an ill-fated concert, the girls’ friendship begins to fall apart. However, there is still a chance to restore the fragile union, albeit briefly, and that is what the main character will have to do.
If the gameplay of the sequel remains exactly the same as the previous part, not counting a couple of new puzzles and the addition of a short stealth segment, which here looks completely cartoonish, then in terms of the plot, “Cassette 2” may disappoint.
To begin with, the key riddle – what is in that mysterious box – turns out to be a dud. You can guess its contents in the middle of the story, and it becomes completely unclear what the grown-up heroines were so afraid of – so much so that some of them can even run away from the meeting if the player does not find arguments to stop them.
The oath that the girls often talked about in “Cassette 1” seems somehow forced and, frankly speaking, stupid. However, this can be attributed to teenage maximalism, since the girlfriends have repeatedly demonstrated that they have difficulty making balanced decisions.
The mystical component here also seems to be under-expressed. In fact, that very pit with the purple light might not have existed, and the script would not have lost any of its drama. Or , on the contrary, the developers should have focused more on mysticism and more clearly shown this part of the story in order to impress the player more.
Finally, the second part turned out to be very short , you can complete it in just three hours, despite the fact that the cutscenes here are quite viscous, with deliberately drawn-out pauses between lines and frequent insertions of episodes in which nothing happens. On the other hand, you don’t have to pay for “Cassette 2”, and together with “Cassette 1”, the duration of Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is the standard eight to ten hours for a walking simulator .
However, there is something to praise in the final part. For example, for the importance of the decisions made by the player, including building relationships with girlfriends – this will affect the final scenes of the game. In the statistics, which will be available after the credits, you can see all the possible forks of key moments and be impressed by how many options for the development of events in the game. Therefore, the company of girls will become exactly what you make it, making various choices throughout the entire passage.
And the plot as a whole is pretty good – a fascinating teenage story with notes of nostalgia for the 90s , diverse characters and a slightly ridiculous villain , who, however, is quite understandable, especially after some events closer to the end. Although the “movie” in Lost Records: Bloom & Rage sometimes feels drawn out, you don’t want to tear yourself away from it.
And the developers also surprise the players: the finale features the very song that the teenagers have been preparing for so long, and a professionally produced version of the track that perfectly completes the plot. And that’s not to mention the other compositions from the soundtrack that fit perfectly into a number of episodes and blend organically with what’s happening on the screen, sometimes even squeezing a tear out of the viewer.
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage — Tape 2 answers the well-known saying “a swing for a ruble – a strike for a penny.” The first part of the game intrigued with mystical elements and ended with a good cliffhanger, while the second part, although it answered a number of questions, left a slight touch of disappointment – while the imagination painted epic events, the reality turned out to be much more prosaic. In general, Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is, of course, weaker than the first Life is Strange, but it is worth paying attention to the title if you slightly moderate your expectations.