Burden Street Station tackles themes of commodification, grief, hope, and reconciliation. Sometimes glib, sometimes serious – always sincere.
Mortal lives are distilled into singular moments, those moments are transformed into sentient books, and higher beings consume them for their enjoyment in much the same way as you might watch a reel or a TikTok. You play as a librarian meant to catalogue these moments for The Collector. A chance encounter with a book without a moment somehow spirals into you being cast out with no real direction or guidance, tasked with finding a derelict God on a world where no new moments are being created. This is Burden Street Station.
Along with the momentless book, Memo, you quickly realize that the librarian has the ability to directly extract moments by untangling conversations with many of the characters you encounter. Each new conversation is a puzzle, and completing the puzzle lets you enter their mind to extract their moment. The game becomes first person, and not a little bit eerie, during the extraction segments. You know you need to do it to progress, but it feels very invasive.. Each extraction earns you a body part with a corresponding personality trait, and these traits each offer a different way to respond during conversations. They are simultaneously your inventory, your cosmetics, and you.
When I first played the demo for Burden Street Station, I assumed that it represented a relatively small portion of the game and that the gameplay would become more challenging as I progressed. Neither really ended up being the case. The demo (removed from Steam post release) was roughly 30% of the game. The “adventure” part of the self-assigned “narrative adventure game” description made me think there would be increasingly complex conversational puzzles as you get more tools.
It does get slightly harder to choose the correct reply, but there is no penalty for making wrong guesses. Sometimes a wrong guess will give you bonus dialogue, and many bad guesses in a row will generate a hint. You can also speed through dialogue if you need to guess again. It’s possible to earn “insight” (a free solution), but it isn’t really necessary. Using insight can lead to burnout though, and relieving your burnout is a cool little mini-game that you otherwise miss. Wrong answers and exploring also gives you “ideas,” which can be used to unlock more colors for your body parts or to take a nap. The gameplay appears to be designed to be experienced, not to be challenging.
Burden Street Station is a beautifully realized game with a deceptively rich visual style. Areas can be grimy, cozy, sterile, or borderline indescribable – but they’re always bizarre and gorgeous. The world feels simultaneously barren and vibrant. Lived in, but abandoned. It’s a place you could put down an ash tray. Main characters are thoughtfully designed and animated, and the squiggle-vision style art gives a sense of dynamism to otherwise still shots. The soundtrack is also excellent. Tracks range from jazzy to somber and perfectly set the mood. You can buy it separately on Steam for $9.99 or name your own price (no minimum) on the developer IODINE’s Bandcamp page.
The main characters and their stories are mostly compelling. There are also a number of NPCs you can speak to that don’t have full conversations or moments, but who often provide you with something funny or insightful. Without speaking about it too specifically, I think what the game presents is an ultimately hopeful story that reflects the troubles of our own world. We’re left to consider the dark thrill and monetization of voyeurism, the grim commodification of both art and self, the weight of grief, and the allure of misinformation. But we are also invited to consider self-discovery, reconciliation, purpose, and forgiveness.
I love to write a review where my goal is really just to convince the reader to try the demo. Games will always speak for themselves better than I can. In that regard, I am disappointed that the demo has been taken down post release. I think many players are going to see the 3-4 hour playtime and the $15 price tag and be turned off. Burden Street Station really needs to be seen in motion and heard to be fully appreciated, but you can at least get a little preview by watching their release date trailer on Steam. It does really capture the vibe of the game.
Accessibility
There are no color, sound, or timing based puzzles.
Burden Street Station supports mouse and keyboard or gamepad. Unlike many games, you can even plug and play a Dualshock controller and the in-game prompts will update appropriately.
Burden Street Station supports 13 language options and may add more in the future.
Content Warnings
Burden Street Station contains scenes which reference religious trauma, transphobia, chronic illness, depression, and abandonment. I believe only players with extreme trauma around one of these topics would have an issue with the fairly mild presentation, but please use your best judgment.
Verdict
Burden Street Station is a wonderfully presented game where the moment-to-moment gameplay feels almost incidental, yet somehow crucial. It’s funny, cool, cynical, hopeful, and earnest. It invites reflection and doesn’t overstay its welcome.
If you’re interested in the concepts and presentation style, keep an eye on IODINE’s other project – the surreal turn-based RPG PILLORY.
Reviewed on Steam.
A key was provided for the purposes of this review.
Developer: IODINE
Publisher: CRITICAL REFLEX
Release Date: Out now
Pros
- Beautifully presented world
- Charming, memorable characters
- Rich themes with room for interpretation and reflection
Cons
- Thin middle chapter
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Great
