Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode

 

Review by · October 4, 2024

Freebird Games, the small team behind the To the Moon trilogy and the recent standalone story Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode, have always been top-tier storytellers. The balance of light, carefree humor, nuanced understanding of the psychology of human behavior, and impactful emotional depth has led to a history of quality. All of this, wrapped up in great pixel art with an RPG Maker XP shell, proves that sometimes less is more.

I am writing this review of Beach Episode within minutes of finishing my playthrough of this short, powerful narrative adventure game. Well, you know the saying, “I’m not crying, you’re crying?” I think we should all be honest with ourselves. Everyone playing this game is crying. I tried to hold the tears back, knowing what I would face in the final few cutscenes. I couldn’t.

Screenshot of Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode, showing characters Eva and Neil parasailing.
Wait, who’s driving the boat?

If you’ve played through the whole trilogy before this (To the Moon, Finding Paradise, Impostor Factory), you will know within minutes what the premise of this story is. Each game in the series has death, grief, and memory at its center. But this one skirts past patients of Sigmund Corp and delves right into our protagonists’ lives. For those who may only tangentially know what’s going on or have not played the complete trilogy, the story’s plot twist may take longer to recognize. There is no framing in advance of booting up the game. The player, taking control of Sigmund Corp scientist Dr. Eva Rosalene, goes on a summer beach vacation with the entire Sigmund Corp staff. It’s a company retreat! She attends with her work partner and “are we/aren’t we” love interest Dr. Neil Watts, as well as about a dozen other supporting characters from the series.

Upon arriving at the resort hotel, Eva notices two people playing piano in the lobby. In approaching them, their names are revealed as Johnny and River. There’s the early tip-off for those in the know: something isn’t quite right.

Throughout the course of this short title, Eva and Neil join with fellow scientists Roxie and Rob on a one-day excursion visiting an extreme sports center, a fancy restaurant, a haunted basement in the hotel, and finally a lighthouse. Minigames abound throughout these scenes, and the humorous dialogue during the scripted cutscenes and among the many NPCs placed throughout each area is a treat. Well-versed Freebird fans will recognize self-inserts among the NPCs, including founder and lead writer Kan Gao himself, playing on the beach with his family. Like so many other aspects of this series, the gentle, sweet wholesomeness found in these idyllic stories can be incredibly moving.

References to the previous titles abound as well. It’s safe to say that the more familiar you are with the earlier titles, the more you get out of Beach Episode. I think this one could be played standalone, though I would strongly recommend players experience To the Moon itself first.

I’m not going to spoil the major revelation found in this episode. But, as I hinted at the beginning of this piece, it is a tear-jerker. And it’s not just a tear-jerker; it’s complicated. It touches at deep wounds, the grief and loss we all carry, in various ways. The hints are there throughout the vacation activities, but when it all comes together, wow. Not wanting to let go. Having a safe place, perhaps a little too safe, to indulge in our favorite memoriesβ€”even the memories we inventβ€”can be both help and hindrance.

Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode Screenshot, showing Johnny and River building a sandcastle lighthouse on the beach.
Yes, River. Eventually that lighthouse must fall. Eventually, all things…

I’m still crying. I think I needed to play this one. It is telling that I, a therapist by day, still find something healing and therapeutic in the best narrative-based games. Just a To the Moon Series Beach Episode, through its title alone, undersells the promise of having one’s heartstrings pulled. This isn’t “Just” anything. Though it is short (approximately 2-3 hours to experience everything the game has to offer), this game is well worth the time. Also, without saying too much, I will note that the game ends with a single image teaser letting us know this is not the final chapter in the Sigmund Corp characters’ stories. Another title is definitely on the way.

Before signing off with this review, I also want to point the reader in the direction of the DLC bonus content offered via Steam. One pack on offer is a soundtrack and art bundle, and I offer some thoughts on the soundtrack separately in my Beach Episode OST review. The other is a digital pack to print out your own version of the recently Kickstarter-funded card game To the Moon: Bestest Memories.


Pros

Effective use of music, top-tier storytelling.

Cons

Shorter than some fans may want.

Bottom Line

"Beach Episode" demonstrates both the staying power and versatility of the Freebird Games formula, both in terms of narrative pacing and evocative scenario.

Graphics
85
Sound
85
Gameplay
75
Control
75
Story
90
Overall Score 85
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Patrick Gann

Patrick Gann

Therapist by day and gamer by night, Patrick has been offering semi-coherent ramblings about game music to RPGFan since its beginnings. From symphonic arrangements to rock bands to old-school synth OSTs, Patrick keeps the VGM pumping in his home, to the amusement and/or annoyance of his large family of humans and guinea pigs.