Sometimes, final messages to a loved one aren’t just about closure. They’re about providing someone with the means to carry on living. Visual novel Upwards, Rain! The Post Office of Farewells beautifully conveys that sentiment throughout the puzzle adventure’s sensitive narrative by creating a heartfelt yet simplistic gaming experience that manages to bring both tears and smiles.
Upwards, Rain! The Post Office of Farewells is set in a fantasy world where magic is woven into people’s everyday lives, allowing the deceased to leave a final message to a loved one upon departing from this mortal coil. In a small seaside village known as Vitae, a post office fittingly called Mortem Post handles the receiving and delivering of these special letters to their intended recipients. A winged and clumsily eager rookie courier named Rain handles front desk duties at Mortem Post, and for the past three weeks, a meek girl from Vitae named Mila has visited in search of a letter from her best friend. Rain is always the one to tell her the bad news, that they don’t have a letter addressed to Mila. Mila’s despondency tugs at Rain’s heartstrings, so Rain offers a helpful wing to Mila by bending the rules of Mortem Post. Together, the two girls venture deeper—or rather, higher—into the inner workings of Mortem Post than most ever dare to see in search of Mila’s missing mail. What secrets will the pair uncover in their journey upwards?
Upwards, Rain! The Post Office of Farewells‘ story is of friendship and healing, carried by a memorable small cast of key characters who all breathe life into the game’s narrative: the kind and gentle courier botanist Mizore, the capable and teasing big sister figure Neve, and the harsh but thoughtful mentor Caile. Mila and Rain’s tentatively developing rapport serves as the story’s vital heart and soul, with both girls drawing strength and comfort from one another throughout their journey. The plot is insightful and heartwarming without being overly preachy, and I enjoyed how diverse-friendly and downright wholesome the story-verse it takes place in is.
At its core, Upwards, Rain! is primarily a visual novel that you advance through by completing interactive puzzle segments. These puzzles are relatively easy to piece together and figure out, but they help keep investment in the story. As a courier and avid stamp collector, Rain has an impressive collection of stamps at her disposal that help her and Mila figure out how to solve the puzzles they encounter. For instance, “Inspect” allows you to carefully investigate points of interest on a screen to potentially uncover clues as to what to do to advance. “Trust” enables you to switch between controlling Rain or Mila at specific points when necessary. No two puzzles are alike, offering players different and creative ways to complete them. For example, one puzzle requires you to figure out how to get both girls safely over an intimidating chasm. At the same time, another needs Rain to distract someone from seeing Mila rummaging through shelves using coded wordplay. The puzzles provide diversionary fun, managing never to overstay their welcome or border on frustrating.
Upwards, Rain! The Post Office of Farewells never drags on, with a short playtime of roughly two to two and a half hours. However, it still feels complete and successfully tells a satisfactory tale. There isn’t a ton in the way of replayability, but Extras do unlock after completing the game. Like Rain herself, you earn a “stamp collection” to peruse at your leisure, allowing you to see all of the achievements you’ve gotten through playing the game in stamp book form. There’s also a handy Records section covering worldbuilding lore in impressive detail to look through if you’re so inclined. My personal favorite unlocked Extras option was Stories: illustrated and well-written short stories set before and after the game’s narrative that delve more into the characters and their various dynamics together. They were a delight to go through, and you even earn an extra stamp for doing so!
Visually, Upwards, Rain! The Post Office of Farewells is a very pretty visual novel adventure with an artistic, almost dreamy storybook aesthetic. I love the detailed and expressive character art throughout, as well as the colorful and picturesque backgrounds. There’s a clever creativity to the visual presentation that captures the eyes. Sound-wise, the sound effects are extensively utilized and realistic, and while the OST is somewhat limited given the length of the game itself, it’s very moving and fitting for event scenes such as with the ending theme “Onwards, Upwards.” The voice acting for all of the characters is top-notch and quite emotive as well! The script is near flawless, which is impressive when you consider just how much text there is, not just in the main game, but in the Extras as well.
I have nothing but praise for Upwards, Rain! The Post Office of Farewells. If I had one critique, it’s that the game does such an excellent job building up its fantasy world setting and the characters who inhabit it that I simply wish there’d been more time with them! But I can’t say that the game doesn’t offer a satisfactory and heartfelt conclusion, despite its shorter length. Upwards, Rain! The Post Office of Farewells‘ underlying message is hopeful and healing, one that I hope many others experience for themselves.
