It's an oddly compelling story, with not much gameplay and some great atmosphere at times
What constitutes as a game? In 'Gone Home', you can walk around and click on things but are these controls just an afterthought to a story the developer wanted to tell? Why, in this medium, is it important to tell this story? I suspect that indie games are the new 'cool' thing, so maybe this was a way to cash in on a growing niche market as well as a massive social debate.
The lone gameplay mechanic this game has which I wish other games would adopt is the ability to put an item back in the same location where you found it. Seriously, it's brilliant. That being said, there's NOTHING in this game--be it atmosphere, storytelling, or any semblance of difficult puzzles--that couldn't be said in another medium. In fact, the story that so many people keep going on about is told entirely through audio files that pop up spontaneously.
It's lazy--the developers are cashing in on an "indie darling" niche that some people (such as the GB reviewer that absurdly gave this game a 5/5) eat up in an effort to stand out or feel good about themselves (i.e. the game snobs).
It's overpriced--regardless of whether you find fun in having a narrative spoonfed to you or not, the most amount of time you can spend on this game is around 2 hours. If that's a value proposition you can live with, fine!
I will say that this pseudo-game does have its moments. Despite an unnecessary side narrative surrounding a ghost that never really goes anywhere, there is a fairly good story being told here. Also, there's a lot of well-crafted details that were put into it. Small details like 80's-themed duotang folders and 90's alternative rock mixtape cassettes are a nice touch. The problem I have, unfortunately, is that this game combines afterthoughts together to create what I consider a semblance of a real game. Is it an experience? Yes, certainly. But it doesn't have enough to constitute as a game if you ask me.
