Hidden Memories of The Gardens Between – A Review

When a reimagining of a beloved puzzler arrives in a new medium, it has the opportunity to enhance the original experience further. After all, being immersed in the game means new ways to look at and interact with it. Hidden Memories of The Gardens Between is a virtual reality adaptation of the charmingly peaceful experience of The Gardens Between, first seen on flatscreens. If you were a fan of the original game, there is not much that will surprise you beyond observing things from the inside, but for newcomers, this is an inventive puzzle game that will make its way to your heart.

Developed by the same team, The Voxel Agents, the soul of The Gardens Between remains intact and perfectly transposed to VR. A fond memory I remember from the base game’s menu is how it was raining nonstop, and lightning would sometimes strike, lighting up the screen and reverberating through the controller. An adapted sequence in the light narrative elements of this version does it with more impact, as it feels like being huddled up in the treehouse under the rain with the childhood best friend protagonists.

As the title suggests, the story of Hidden Memories of The Gardens Between is inferred by the items in every level. Parsing through a long-lost diary, they are reminiscing about their most precious memories. Building a treehouse, the first video game they played together, or a day at the pool in a sweltering summer heat are among the heartwarming puzzle representations of said memories. The picture is painted strongly in no small part due to its lifelike sound effects, such as the sound of parents fighting or kids playing in a pool.

For the uninitiated, the puzzles of Hidden Memories of The Gardens Between work this way: starting from the bottom of a beautifully rendered diorama, you must reach the top with a glowing orb on your lantern to finish each level. The trick is that with every step you take, you manipulate time as well, effectively being able to advance or rewind it at your will. Repeating actions like stepping over a big saw to cut wood and make a new path are among the many little ingenious actions you will need to engage in to solve each puzzle.

Although unable to interact with puzzles in the diorama directly, a fun new ability exclusive to VR is being able to grab hidden artifacts and add them to a notebook that will fill a drawing to the delight of completionists. Big and small, these are smartly placed from beach balls to video game controllers and will take a while to find, putting the most perceptive players to the test. Holding the stage itself to zoom in or out to carefully inspect every nook and cranny is also a luxury only VR can afford.

That said, while some puzzles are brand-new, some are repeats from the base game. The change in perspective to look closer at certain parts of the level does make it feel novel to its benefit. But at the same time, beginners will be the ones to reap the rewards of this adaptation rather than longtime fans. The only constant for both is that when that headscratcher finally clicks, the motivation to move forward onto the next big challenge is exhilarating.

Whereas in the original game, you could move the camera as you pleased while the characters and the world were progressing or regressing, a nuisance in Hidden Memories of The Gardens Between is that the game insists on moving your perspective along. This preset flow disrupts your advantage to see the whole area at your will and does not let you analyze it naturally. You cannot do the forward or backwards animation while looking at the diorama from other angles unless you hold it manually, giving a less-than-intuitive impression.

Verdict

A zenlike puzzle experience that is not particularly difficult, but that does not mean that they are straight up easy. There are some clever forks in the road in the latter stages that will please a variety of puzzle enthusiasts. Carried by heartwarming memories of a cherished bygone era, every level’s theme does enough to apply a distinct kind of gimmick all the way to the end. At the beginning of the game, while packing things up to leave the house, you have the option to keep or donate items. Each resembling a cherished memory, Hidden Memories of The Gardens Between reminds us that some moments are worth saving for posterity.

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