Be Missed and Remembered: The Letter from Mayoiga Reviews
If there is one thing Be Missed and Remembered: The Letter from Mayoiga gets really well, it is the ageless nature of a problem many claim is a modern thing. By mixing in themes of old theology with the modern concept of unemployment and the hikikomori phenomenon, it unmasks it as a problem for all of humanity to solve, and not just those affected. It gives empathy and hope to outsiders, and hopefully, will encourage others to dare to take their hands despite what society tells them. However, at times it could have trusted its depiction of humanity to keep the reader turning pages. The story here is too good for cheap tricks like cliffhangers.
Kinetic visual novels often suffer from the limitations of their provided gameplay. Don’t let that discourage you, though; Be Missed and Remembered: The Letter from Mayoiga is a genuinely great visual novel. Its beautifully executed themes are anchored by the organic, emotional swings of its young protagonists, finding itself only minorly hamstrung by a rather forced execution near the finish line. When you factor in the immaculate full voice acting and a literal armory of gorgeous CGs, it becomes incredibly hard to regret buying this package at full price.
Be Missed and Remembered: The Letter from Mayoiga is a beautiful tale of memory, longing and endurance. It reminds us of our own humanity, of the long reach of the past and what it means to the presence. It’s rather short in comparison to some mammoth titles of the day, but it’s incredibly cozy and enjoyable in a sad, sweet way.
There is something to the heart of the story of Be Missed and Remembered: The Letter from Mayoiga. Its theme of what it means to be remembered and how saddening it is to be forgotten is a compelling emotional core that could have made for something so, so much better than what I got. Instead, it’s a poorly structured and even more poorly edited visual novel that got in its own way of trying to tell that story at every turn, one which I have next to no positives to speak of that don’t carry at least some form of caveat. It makes for an experience I expect I will very soon forget, and I most certainly will not miss my time with.