Best Month Ever! [Xbox]

7 May

Developed by Warsaw Film School Video Game & Film Production Studio, Best Month Ever! follows Mitch, as he retells the story of his last month with his mother, Louise, prior to her death from a terminal illness. Being a single mother in the 1960s, with a severely strained - in-fact pretty much nonexistent - relationship with her family, Louise has spent much of her time working to support herself and her son. Due to this, she hasn’t been able to spend much time with her young son, Mitch, so she decides to quit her job and take him on a road trip to allow them to bond, as well as get a chance to find where, and with who, he will live with once she’s gone.

The choices you make throughout the story as either Louise or Mitch, will determine the way that Mitch’s character develops, and how he ends up as an adult. Decisions will impact various stats: Righteousness, Confidence, and Relations; and these will all impact how Mitch interacts with the world around him, and his relationships to others. Experiencing misogyny from the likes of Louise’s (now ex) boss, references to sexual abuse as a child from her pastor, Father Judah; as well as racism from family members and strangers towards Mitch, the game touches on a lot of heavy subjects.

The visuals give off an almost nostalgic vibe, with muted tones that gives a very hazy, memory-like feel to things. Movement is somewhat limited, with particular objectives being forced once the prompt buttons appear on screen, such as knocking on a door upon walking close enough (and being unable to walk away), as well as having decisions that you can make ranging from feeling like you actually have a choice, to others being unavoidable - feeling like that choice has been stolen away from you. The voice acting from Mitch and Louise feels decent, though most of the other characters feel quite over-acted and cheesy, which can feel a bit strange - especially given the context of the scenes. The soundtrack however, is fantastic - with a variety of country and jazz vibes that are really pleasant to listen to, and perfectly fit the 1960s setting.

There are nine available endings to be unlocked, and this can be quite a challenge to attain - as you’ll need to play through the game in full each time to do so. The tragic story is a bit of a mixed-bag, with a decent plot but with a few parts that feel awkward and artificial, but overall we found it to be an interesting, if somewhat unpredictable, time. If you like the sound of Best Month Ever! and want to check it out, you can find it for £16.74 on the Xbox Store, though discounted slightly for a limited period; there’s also a Demo available if you’d like to try it out without dropping any cash first.