Half Past Fate is an adorable 2D/3D rom-com adventure, following the lives of six characters as they find each other in their unusual ways. It time hops throughout the course of 8 years, so you’ll need to keep up and stay on top of things. As someone who’s not usually partial to rom-coms, and can be picky about story-driven games, Half Past Fate still hooked me in – helped further by its beautiful pixel art.
With there being six different characters, it can be a little tricky to get to grips with initially, but once you’re involved in each characters’ story you’ll be eager to know more. The game’s broken down into twelve chapters, which unfold at a nice laid-back pace. You’re encouraged to take your time, keep your eyes open and soak up all the little details and social interactions.
Progressing through each chapter involves solving various puzzles, some of which are a little tricky. Wandering around and looking at all the objects and characters is crucial, until you spot an eye icon – highlighting that this has something to do with a puzzle. You’ll need to take in all the dialogue to get hints too, as characters refer to things you’ve spotted earlier that will help you with your current task.
This is a genre that suffers from a lot of aimless wandering, where there isn’t much actual gameplay other than finding the next thing that will solve a puzzle and progress the story. Some people like that though. I found myself struggling when restarting a session the following day, not quite knowing what to do or where to go next, needing to talk to everyone again and endure a lot of dialogue to get my bearings.
The beautiful pixel art style was something I adored, nicely complemented by the soundtrack. The game world is vibrant and lively, full of animation that brings the backgrounds to life and draws you in. The whole experience is like a pleasant walk in the park, with the light-hearted story flowing through. It’s enjoyable seeing how the characters’ stories develop and how they cross paths with each other. Give it time and you’ll find enough to sway you. Â