Twin Mirror Reviews
The building tension and well-written characters make this small town mystery captivating, but it bites off more than it can chew in its rushed depiction of a man struggling with his mental health
As DONTNOD's first self-published game, the effort that's gone into Twin Mirror's world building should be commended. Between the added gameplay elements introduced by The Double and Sam's Mind Palace, not to mention the colourful cast of characters living in Basswood, Twin Mirror had my attention from the get-go, but its short length prevents it from delivering an emotional journey comparable with anything the studio has done before.
Relying on great narrative ideas, Twin Mirror turns out to be less compelling on the gameplay side, especially during the investigation sequences. The main plot is not very captivating as the real focus of the game is put on the moral dilemmas of Sam, with the Double and the Mind Palace, manifestations of its mental wanderings.
Review in French | Read full review
Twin Mirror is a game with a very strong narrative component, so much so that it eclipses any mechanics or section of the game.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
If I’m being honest, Twin Mirror is DONTNOD‘s most experimental work in a long time, though it also pales in comparison to previous outings. That’s not to say it isn’t good, it’s not just great. With such a high bar to hit, coming off truly impactful games, Twin Mirror just doesn’t quite manage to hit the same calibre (The Adventures of Captain Spirit FTW). I’m also disappointed that — based on previews and promos — I believed it had a Twin Peaks vibe didn’t follow through to the full release, but I’ll largely take responsibility for that one. Those who enjoy DONTNOD‘s work will certainly enjoy this, but those getting into the genre for the first time should consider this game’s predecessors before it.
Twin Mirror is a good psychological thriller that knows how to tease player's curiosity. Too bad the project is not so ambitious, with underdeveloped gameplay mechanics and too many forced choices.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Twin Mirror's inconsistent presentation and short length contaminate its otherwise excellent story-telling and solid detective gameplay to a degree, but thankfully, it still manages to land on its feet as a respectable narrative-focused adventure.
Its brevity aside, Twin Mirror is an investigative thriller worth playing. A more grown-up story than Dontnod’s other narrative endeavours, it’ll keep you glued to your screen as you unravel its dark mysteries. Sam is an intriguing and complex protagonist, and the people he meets along the way are equally rich and realistic. It’s just hard to shake that feeling of disappointment, though, when it all gets wrapped up a bit too quickly.
A polished mix of different genres, with an interesting story that loses steam. Still, a unique, though short, experience.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Dontnod knows how to tell stories to the people. Especially blurred and complicated ones. Twin Mirror is a good experience with all of its.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
Whether or not you take away a positive or negative experience may totally be up to you, for I found it to be different. Not bad, not great… Just good. But certainly an uncommon blend of DONTNOD’s previous workings.
It’s really a pity, as I believe if Twin Mirror had a lot more development time and a bigger budget to refine and flesh out its story, it would have been a great narrative murder mystery to rival Life is Strange. This isn’t to say I hated my time with the game. I still enjoyed the world, characters, and especially its overall central premise, which I found to be less grandiose and more grounded. Unfortunately, the short length, rushed plot, and presentation issues bring it down a bit.
Twin Mirror delivers what it promises: a great investigation story that shows the journey for change and the acceptance of the past. Fans of the genre will appreciate the story, but will be disappointed by an arrogant protagonist, forgettable characters and the undeveloped unique gameplay mechanic.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
DONTNOD Entertainment’s decision to depart from their usual episodic format and release Twin Mirror as a full experience without interruption is a welcome change. However, the short length means that characters and plot points are not fully developed therefore hindering the emotional connection the gamers tend to have with the company’s deep and usually complex personalities. Although not as strong as some of DONTNOD’s previous efforts, Twin Mirror is still a solid Interactive Drama which includes some interesting mechanics. The introduction of the Mind Palace is great but is unfortunately underutilized. However, even with pacing issues, the intriguing story and characters will keep you hooked.
A Dontnod game without signature episodes and supernatural powers, but with an intriguing murder-mystery and tensions between all involved as protagonist Sam returns to his hometown to visit the funeral of his best friend - and his partner, Sam's ex-girlfriend. Dontnod introduces some interesting new concepts like the mind palace, but they are not fleshed out enough to be memorable.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
Twin Mirror's mediocre character development and disjointed plot, accompanied with lush visuals and diverse characters, leads to an intriguing but ultimately lackluster experience.
Twin Mirror is an interesting experiment, I like the idea of a shorter narrative driven adventure but found this largely forgettable.
Twin Mirror is a teaser for an exciting adventure that it never delivers. There are some good ideas here, like the interesting Mind Palace world and a helpful imaginary twin, but they needed to be expanded. Ultimately it has a short and bland story, with minimal interaction, limited player choice, and a lack of memorable characters.
Alas, it wasn't meant to be. Twin Mirror is the rare game where I love the world, premise, and characters, but can't actually professionally recommend it. The foundation was laid, but a good story needs more than just the building blocks. In hindsight, following Life is Strange's episodic model might've worked wonders here, as it would've bought Dontnod extra development time along the way. All throughout Twin Mirror, people complain that Higgs abandoned Basswood and won't spend any time there. As it turns out, we need to spend more time in Basswood too.