44) Loretta (2023)

Released in 2023, Loretta bills itself as a psychological horror game that centers around a young woman, Loretta, as she moves with her husband to the American countryside in the 1940's. The story focuses on their strained marriage as the husband, a relatively famous author, withdraws from his wife, and the lingering resentment she feels for having her life uprooted. The game is presented with beautiful pixel art, and follows the traditional point and click adventure game formula. At the outset of the game, the developers include a warning that, for the sake of accuracy, the game includes language that is frowned upon today and does not reflect the feelings and values of the developers.

We begin with the story in mid swing, a somewhat risky storytelling decision that is certainly effective in drawing the player in. Loretta has, at this point, already killed her husband and disposed of the body as a car pulls up with a shady individual asking to speak to him. This allows us to get accustomed to how the game works, as we're given a few options as to how to proceed as well as giving us a glimpse into how Loretta thinks. From here, we flash back to the events that led to this moment, and it's here that the game truly begins to shine.

Going in, I expected a relatively short point and click adventure, and I generally tend to avoid the genre for a number of reasons, almost all of which Loretta deftly sidesteps. The story is well thought out and engaging with just enough mystery to keep the player on their toes. Loretta is established fairly early on to be a less than reliable narrator, which the game uses to wonderful effect. In addition, where most titles in the genre often rely on some degree of moon logic, every choice presented here makes sense, especially as our titular character devolves further and further into madness. More than once, I found myself debating on which option to choose when presented, and to my delight they quite often led to numerous branching paths.

My biggest concern with the genre tends to be the simple fact that, once you figure everything out, there's little reason to revisit it. Here, you're presented with social interactions and Loretta's dark urges rather than puzzles, and the story unfolds rather naturally as you make your choices. In doing so, the game does an amazing job of providing incentive to play again. The game isn't long, lasting only a few hours, but the desire to go back and try other options is palpable, especially with the sheer number of different ways in which the story can unfold.

Beyond all of our choices and the slow degradation of Loretta's psyche, the underlying story, pieced together slowly at first, is absolutely stunning and chilling. I generally dislike twists in a narrative, as they oftentimes come off poorly written, cheap, and near insulting to the viewer. Here, every twist and turn works well and, once you have the full picture, re-contextualizes much of the narrative without undermining everything leading up to it. While it rarely ventures into true horror territory, it does an excellent job keeping you invested and curious, as any good thriller should.

Loretta was a surprisingly engaging experience that I look forward to revisiting. Having heard nothing of the game, I stumbled upon it while it was on sale, though I can fully encourage buying the game at full price. The writing and atmosphere are amazing, the choices and outcomes are engaging and realistic, and it has a visual style that works surprisingly well and is wholly its own. I cannot recommend Loretta more highly, whether you're a fan of the genre or simply looking for a captivating story to experience that gives you choices and consequences that matter.