Don't Nod announces release date of Harmony: The Fall of Reverie

eurogamer.net:

Don't Nod, French developer behind Life is Strange, has announced the release date of its forthcoming narrative adventure Harmony: The Fall of Reverie.

The game is set for release on 8th June across PC and Switch, with a PlayStation 5 and Xbox release following on 22nd June.

A demo for the game will also be available on Steam until 21st May if you're keen to try it out. Check out the latest trailer below for more.

I've been able to play the demo ahead of the game's release, so allow me to fill you in on how it plays.

Players take the role of Polly, a young woman who returns to her hometown after her mother goes missing to investigate her disappearance. Soon after, she's transported into the alternate world of Reverie and greeted by the Aspirations — «representations of the fallible, malleable human psyche». Here she takes the role of Harmony.

What follows is a parallel narrative between the real world and the world of Reverie, with Polly's actions in one world having consequences for the other.

This all plays out as a choice-based visual novel, with some colourful character art of its diverse — and queer — cast. Celeste and Chicory composer Lena Raine provides the score: evocative atmospheres and wistful, mysterious melodies.

What sets the game apart, though, is how it gamifies conversations. Polly, you see, is an empath with the power of foresight, meaning she can see the outcomes of conversations in advance. This takes the form of a branching chart called the Augural filled with possibilities.

This doesn't just outlay conversational consequences, but consists of varying nodes. For instance, locked nodes must be unlocked with key nodes found through gaining specific pieces of information; inevitable nodes must be