In times of tragedy, particularly personal, we often seek to find meaning, reasons or patterns to explain why something awful has upended our world. Some find comfort in a Higher Power, or in releasing all responsibility to literally anything else, even if that thing is destructive itself. But there are those who cannot accept what has transpired and will do anything in order to make things “right.” This leads some down a path of conspiracy, paranoia and, undoubtedly, the occult. When whispers of magic and ritual permeate the undertone of what happens in the shadows, it’s only natural to try and use those same forces to regain control and order. And, for the characters of Recall: Empty Wishes, these same actions can lead to condemnation or forgiveness, depending on how closely you’re willing to look.

Yonny, our main character, tries to live one day at a time since the disappearance of her brother, Tommy. Once terrifically close, obligations and circumstances have caused them to grow distant, but his vanishing has upended her entire life. Yonny’s friend, Phoebe, believes that the answer can be found in dreams, and begins a mystical ritual to delve into their subconscious minds to try and divine exactly what was the reason for Tommy’s departure. However, amidst the traversal between nightmares and wishes come memories, and very soon the two girls are sharing reflections with Mocky (Tommy’s best friend), Eartha (Yonny and Tommy’s mother) and even Tommy himself. The revelations are informative and devastating and, slowly but surely, the dark reality of what has happened makes itself known, with the player alone to lead Yonny to redemption or despair.

“I wish that absolutely nothing terrible happens mere seconds after this photo is taken.”

Players should know a few things before diving into Recall: Empty Wishes. First, if you have any discomfort or trauma regarding implied suicide, you absolutely should be aware. Also, if you have a rocky relationship with your parents, particularly your mother, there are going to be moments of dialogue and sequence that will be hard. Finally, if you saw the artwork and setting (2010 Taiwan) and were hoping or expecting this game to be a nonstop tension roller coaster of horror moments, jumpscares, and survival, then you’re going to be very disappointed. For, though Recall: Empty Wishes has some excellent horror motifs and some viscerally excellent visuals, there was very little about this game that gave me the true heebie-jeebies. 

Puff Hook Studio, the developers, have created a very engaging side scrolling puzzle adventure with some excellent story beats and elements of horror and humanity interwoven throughout. You will begin the game exceedingly confused, as the decision to drop you in and explain later is executed fairly well, but still a bit disorientingly. Walking between rooms, dreams and memories, the lead character (who changes often but is usually Yonny) will interact with people, paintings, and phantoms (cursed memory spirits) and occasionally pick up items as you do so. The items all get used, but not always when you think they will be. There’s one moment, for example, where you can pick up a ladder, but the game will explicitly tell you you won’t use it yet if you haven’t activated the right trigger moment for the ladder to become viable.

Thankfully, I only need the number on it because my kanji is absolutely terrible.

I suppose that’s something that I enjoyed from Recall: Empty Wishes is that there is no way to essentially cheese the game. Even if you know the beats and what’s to happen, you still, for the most part, have to follow the rules so the narrative doesn’t get disjointed. While you can pick up a couple of things before Yonny realizes she needs them and you can brute force open a couple of safes without knowing the password, none of it breaks the throughline in the process. I often think about Gone Home, where you can finish the game in under three minutes if you just remember the static final password. Recall: Empty Wishes has taken pains to make sure that this arguably short game still has to be read, initially, from start to finish.

As you move forward in Recall: Empty Wishes, there is a lot that jumps out at you in terms of detail and design. I positively adore the usage of the pixel based character sprites, as it helps to lend itself to the sometimes ethereal nature of the world. While you don’t get a ton of emoting from the characters themselves, the portraits when dialogue is exchanged does a hefty job of conveyance. The way that a characters’ eyes darken completely when embarrassed or ashamed is brilliant, and there was enough nuance in Phoebe’s looks when she’s verging on tears but still trying to smile that really made me empathetic. She’s a good person caught in a very awful situation, and I feel for her.

“So you need to forgive him for the acts of terrorism against your stuffed animals!”

Moreover, there’s a great subtlety in the shift of elements in the world as dramatic moment’s are realized. A lot of the memories take place at the home of Yonny, Tommy, and Eartha, and you’re mostly confined to the same sets of rooms. Yet, even when not being warped completely by poisonous emotions and memories, the rooms have shifts of subtlety that make the experience throughout and meaty. Yonny adds and loses color and detail as her life shifts from enjoyable to academically backbreaking. Tommy creates a facade that’s further represented by the neatness and order of his own room. And Eartha’s choices and her temperament have so much impact on both the metaphorical and literal damage to the world around her that you can’t help but be locked in.

The art direction of Recall: Empty Wishes further extends to the horror elements. The use of reds and darkness is palpable without being saturated, and I was absolutely here for it. There are moments of dread early on where the sadness and anxiety bleed through the screen and keep you stock straight and attentive. Little moments as you move forward – vanishing text, flickering shadows, things that change in the blink of an eye – have you riddled with anxiety even as you try and get your bearings. Some of the transformations that occur in important characters are horrifying, with delightful consistency as they become mainstays for pivotal sections of the game.

Cool, cool. Listen, it looks like you’re busy…derezzing…so I’ll just let you get back to that.

Yet, as I mentioned before, you start to relax as you realize the horror won’t directly impact your play. Sure, it’s unpleasant to behold and almost painful to read some of the lines delivered, but you’re going to be okay, gameplay wise. The only time I encountered anything that would be considered a “classic horror game moment” was a bit of Clock Tower adjacent hide and survive that takes place towards the end of the game, and that was very easily thwarted. Not only are there easily accessible places to hide, but the manifestation of the “monster” takes a moment and is clearly indicated with a musical shift, giving you time to simply leave the room. It doesn’t chase you between areas, so, if you step out and re-enter, the “monster” may vanish, leaving you free to move forward unfettered.

Thankfully, the soundtrack is another star of the show, and Recall: Empty Wishes makes a meal out of careful and important musical and general audio cues. There are smatterings of voices in a game where no one is voiced, there is excellent directional audio for sound effects and music coming from other areas. The score runs the gamut of piano and strings to genuine rock and roll (loved the sound at the school festival) and discordant classics. The distortion on “Happy Birthday” towards the beginning is so brilliantly creepy and really sold the kickoff to the entire dream dive. As an old fogey aside, the sound of speaker feedback before a cell phone rings is such a recognizable sound that it was perfect to add before some important calls come to the house.

This one caught me a bit off-guard; definitely a personal gut punch.

Throughout everything is the story of Tommy, Yonny, and Eartha, and I feel like the story itself has a lot of hit or miss moments. In spite of all the supernatural trappings, the central focus is the tale of a family that’s changed by tragedy and how that then spirals outwards in different ways. For some, it’s trying to create a facade of happiness in spite of everything. For others, it’s anger and mourning that turns into a wedge and, eventually, a dagger. While the beats are recognizable and completely understandable, it’s the presentation that makes it mostly relatable, particularly when you see Yonny and Phoebe trying to simply keep on living. Sometimes, just being able to keep moving on is the only way to process your own grief, and it helps with remembering there is life after loss.

Having said that, there is one plot twist in Recall: Empty Wishes that just never quite sat right with me, and I will not spoil it here as it is central to identifying some of the actions of certain characters in the plotline. But it’s a twist that really feels out of left field, has no clear indications whatsoever before it appears, and doesn’t fully explain or excuse the subsequent actions of the mother and daughter relationship that we need to process and accept. It’s bizarre in its appearance and activation, and I feel like it could have been removed easily without affecting the overall theme of Tommy’s disappearance. I don’t know how personal this story is, so perhaps the element is necessary from the perspective of Puff Hook Studio. It just came across as a very awkward extra detail from my view.

Again, incredible detail for absolutely offputting moments, well done.

Recall: Empty Wishes does a phenomenal job of telling a tale and giving players agency within how the story turns out. Though the “good” ending might be a clear shot for some players, the time you take to explore, to talk and decide upon the consequence of your own and others’ actions, makes it an engaging and provocative experience. There’s a lot of spectacular turns in how things appear and relate, and there’s just enough gore and disturbing imagery to keep you twisting in your seat. If you’re ready for a family therapy session disguised as a horror exploration, then come answer the phone: it’s for you.

Recall: Empty Wishes is available now on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch.

Reviewed on Nintendo Switch.

A copy of Recall: Empty Wishes was provided by the publisher.