Another Lost Phone: Laura's Story

Another Lost Phone tells an interesting story in an inventive way, but its characters are forgettable

Another Lost Phone: Laura's Story, as was the case for A Normal Lost Phone, will be over in a couple of hours at most, so this one will appeal to, say, fans of visual novels, as well as to, obviously, those of you that played and enjoyed the previous game on Nintendo Switch from Accidental Queens, Plug In Digital and Seaven Studio. It is available on its own for $5.99 on the Nintendo eshop, or you can a bundle with both games, as Lost Phones Stories, for only $9.99.

I really enjoyed my time with Another Lost Phone, which turns your Switch into a giant smartphone to provide a unique puzzle experience.

I'm not thinking about Laura. I don't care about her job or what her friends are doing. While Another Lost Phone: Laura's Story has noble intentions, it doesn't have a heart. The first game was about leaning on others and drawing strength from a community; this one is just about reading someone's texts.

Although not as narratively ambitious as A Normal Lost Phone, Another Lost Phone: Laura's Story nonetheless tells a compelling a tale with a great set of twists that recontextualise the entire experience with a grander scope than its predecessor. The deliberate lack of a traditional control is a bit of an odd one, but the Joy-Con's gyroscopic pointing is serviceable and using the undocked Switch to emulate a proper mobile phone remains the best way to play the game. The interactivity present isn't as extensive as in A Normal Lost Phone, but the puzzles themselves are far more engaging and require deeper levels of analysation to solve. Another Lost Phone: Laura's Story is a strong and consistent sequel that plays to the strengths of its medium, creating an original experience with an important message.

Another Lost Phone continues on the path that the original set, but it doesn’t really break any new ground aside from telling a different person’s story. If you enjoyed the original’s mechanics and would like to explore someone in a very different set of circumstances it’s easy to recommend. If you’re unfamiliar with the original and this sounds interesting I’d say the original, with a story tying to someone in an alternative lifestyle, is probably more compelling but it also more likely to make people feel uncomfortable comparably. Above all, as a commentary about what people can learn about others through only their phone, this series continues to be interesting and scary. How much “fun” you can have with them is likely a matter of wildly different opinions though.

Accidental Queens did a splendid job on raising awareness on a certain sensitive topic. It is a thoughtful game that touches your heart and lets your emotion enjoy a rollercoaster ride. I was angry, I was sad and I pitied Laura due to the story line. But as the game came to the end, I was satisfied with how it had its final moments. The important message I (and the developer, I assume) also want to deliver is that no one is alone. Billions of people exist in the world and one at least is out there to listen to you. If you find yourself in need, reach out, talk to people, get another opinion. Sometimes a friend, sometimes a stranger can help you. Hell, even if you have no one, reach out to me. Someone is out there, just speak up. Because no one can read minds, yet (but I heard there will be an update on that maybe).

Another Lost Phone: Laura's Story is the follow up to A Normal Lost Phone and it may actually be worth a look, but not for the reasons you are likely to suspect.

Offering up a small slice of emergent storytelling, Another Lost Phone does a good job of highlighting difficult themes.

That said, however, Another Lost Phone: Laura’s Story is an interesting, topical game that touches on some important issues with regard to our connected world and the impact it can have on young people. If you go into it knowing that you need to really be on top of the UI thing, you’ll find a good story that you’ll find yourself pondering over long after the game is finished.