In My Shadow Preview

Written by Joseph Moorer on 2/12/2022 for PS4  

When I opened this game, I knew I was in for a very interesting time. At 11pm, I turned on this game, mere hours before it's release, and I was immersed. The music starts with a piano track and a young woman sitting at a computer looking over what appears to be family memories. Then, all the feelings happened. And I mean all of them. In My Shadow is a game that took every human emotion that I had, and held it there until I was done playing it. 

Developer Playbae Games and publisher Overgamez describes the game in the press release as follows: 

...more than a cleverly designed puzzle platformer; it is a heart-warming story into the mind of a young woman looking for answers to questions in her past. 

And they mean every single word of it. The first cutscene is the young woman, Bella, looking at a family picture, then checking a non returned text message from her parents. She flashes back to her moving out, saying she just had to get out of there. Then it throws you in. What happened to this family? 

The object of this game is described simply, again in the press release:

The game features 4 rooms with a total of more than 50 puzzles to solve. Each room offers a different glimpse into her memories, exploring the changing relationships in her family. The shadows within each level must be manipulated via objects to progress and there is often more than one solution to a challenge.

Pretty self explanatory. In My Shadow is a puzzle game, but that's not what your 11.99 is going to get you. Bella starts telling the story of her puppy Fisker, and how she can only remember the darkness, even though there were good times. Then it kicks you into the game, where you move the objects to manipulate the shadows cast on the wall. Then you can guide Bella to collect fragments of her memories with this puppy. If you've made a mistake, or you fail, you start again. You can also switch back and forth between movement of the objects, and Bella, which resets her. After you collect them, you reunite with the shadow of the memory you're having, which in this case is Fisker. 

As the puzzles get more challenging, the cutscenes become more heart wrenching. I don't want to give too much away, but let me just explain what I went through. I was sad that the dog felt neglected at times. I was confused about what happened to the rest of the family. I was worried that the worst could happen, as I only got through the brother's story arc. I got frustrated because some of the puzzles were EXTREMELY hard (and I didn't even use the skip level option, though I was tempted). The part where "some objects don't cast a shadow" is anger inducing when you don't know what's causing you to fail. Me screaming "I CAN'T SEE IT" didn't seem to help at all. 

In My Shadow is going to make you feel like you are not good at the game, but it will make you look back on your relationships with your family and friends. If you're playing this alone, have tissues on the ready. Again, I stopped at the end of the brother's story arc, but I would HIGHLY recommend this game if you want a little something unique, and thought provoking in every way possible. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to find out what happened to the rest of this family.