Lost Ember Reviews
Despite the relatively interesting story and narrative, the Nintendo Switch version of Lost Ember has suffered from a number of problems that have made it difficult to recommend the experience. The combination of numerous graphical bugs and gameplay with a very sharp and continuous frame drop has made Lost Ember a nerve-wracking experience that is not worth your time and money. In fact, the $ 30 price of the Nintendo Switch version of the title is more like a joke.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Lost Ember attempts to be an artistic experience, yet struggles to be an enjoyable game. The story is uninteresting and predictable, the gameplay is boring and sometimes frustrating, and the huge performance issues on Switch makes this game close to unplayable at times. While there is clearly potential here, Lost Ember fails to deliver on nearly every front. There are plenty of other artsy games on Switch to pick up over this one.
Unless you're curious about the narrative, we'd beware of the dog in this case.
Lost Ember is almost a good game. Its animal exploration mechanics are well-realized. Unfortunately, it's bogged down by technical issues, lackluster storytelling, and frustrating event flagging.
The game's mechanics betrays its core premise of exploration and the weak environments are allergic to wonder. Lost Ember's story isn't the only thing that feels like it's happening in the past tense.
If you're prepared for some eyeroll moments as you reset the game because your wombat got stuck in a boulder, you'll be rewarded with the spectacle of battering through walls as a buffalo, or soaring through rainbows as a hawk. At such moments of wonder, that initial escapist promise of soul-wandering through the animal kingdom feels tantalisingly close. But, in the end, the game's limitations break the necessary immersion, and bring you back down to earth with a thud.
Lost Ember has its heart and soul in the right place, and every time I discovered a new area I was left amazed with the gorgeous vistas and intense beauty of it all.
Lost Ember is a great looking game that provides a number of different ways to play and explore its world. However, there are too many distracting performance issues that need addressing to improve its playability.
Lost Ember is a glimpse and brings an exciting, dense and quirky story. The silence of the wolf in his memories was very well translated in the narrative, which shows a reality subject to forgiveness, revenge and anguish in the discoveries. Lost Ember should be played calmly, enjoying the view, especially the small details and the sounds of nature, braving the forest with various animals. Only loses points in processing and uneven fps, leaving the experience tiring.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Very promising story from fallen world from perspectives of different animals, but result is not so amusing.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
The hard-hitting emotional narrative, beautiful score and pleasant visuals were just enough to drag me through a game that was at times, not fun to play. Technical issues ranging from freezing to death loops soured what could have been a very fun and touching exploration game. I did enjoy my time with it but the issues I had did take a few points off the overall score. Perhaps wait for an update before purchasing.
Games that dare to be different are always a bit of a risk...
The story in Lost Ember is one about a lone wolf and a curious spirit trying to remember what they have forgotten about their past lives in a journey across a beautiful world where past stories are re-told and truths are revealed.
Lost Ember wears its influences proudly but it doesn’t surpass them. Nonetheless, it’s a personal tale told with style on a large and frequently beautiful canvas. Unfortunately, the Nintendo Switch version suffers from performance problems that are detrimental to the overall experience. If they can be fixed – and we’ll update this review if they are – you can happily add another half-point to our score.
Lost Ember offers a beautiful and unique adventure that’s unfortunately held back on the Nintendo Switch by some technical issues. Are these issues problematic to make the game feel terrible to play? Certainly not, but you won’t be getting the same compelling experience with the game that you can get on other platforms. Outside of these issues, Lost Ember has its share of special moments. I loved discovering its open-world and switching between creatures felt great, with the game offering this genuine sense of freedom that just makes exploration so enjoyable and liberating. Here’s hoping that a patch with fixes is released sooner rather than later then, because as it stands this gem of a game is a little too flawed to make it essential for Nintendo Switch owners.
Lost Ember is a great narrative adventure that acts as a wonderful game to play over an evening. However, the Switch version lacks the beauty found in the other versions. It’s ultimately something that holds this version back because the visuals are a key feature of what makes this such a memorable game. Ultimately, Lost Ember is a game that you should play, but maybe not on the Switch.
It's very apparent that Lost Ember is a labour of love; one that forgoes any sort of depth and complexity in gameplay for the sake of beautiful presentation and an interesting story.
Great graphics, a compelling experience, and overall heart, paint the general picture of this adventure game. While some aspects of the story go unexplored and the animal-shifting aspect largely goes under-utilized, these are not enough to distract from a positive experience. Gamers need to know going in that Lost Ember is a very casual-friendly experience, but one that is still well done. The only thing holding it back is a lack of truly diving into the mechanics presented, or truly investigating the story themes brought forth.
Lost Ember provides players with an open world to explore through the viewpoint of various animals. And although it can be effective, its high price and downgraded graphics mean the Nintendo Switch may not be the best way to play it.
Lost Ember is a visually stunning game with a breathtaking world to explore. These features, as well as its beautiful soundtrack and engrossing narrative, make it a must-play indie - but its constant performance issues really hold it back. It is worth fighting through them, but be aware that your immersion will consistently be broken.