Wayward Strand follows the personal stories of patients in a floating hospital. As for whose story, that all depends on where you go and who you talk to.
Casey, a young journalist, will be spending the long weekend with her mom at her workplace. It’s a floating hospital, which is pretty cool. It’s filled with patients and staff you can interact with throughout your time here as well. Many of the people here are carrying some private grief or suffering, and while you might be inclined to pry into their lives, not everyone is ready to have some random kid bug them about their personal problems. The people on this ship have their own personalities and emotions that they’re dealing with, and you’ll have to earn their trust if you want to know more.
Choosing who to know about isn’t easy, as there are many interesting tales you can hear in the halls. The game shows snippets of dialogue as you explore, and it’s up to you to follow the threads that interest you. The people all have their own schedules as well, so if you really want to know someone’s full story, you’ll need to figure out where they go throughout the day. However, as I said, they all have different personalities. Many of them react differently depending on what you do and how they feel. Sometimes, the best thing you can do is just sit in silence with someone until they feel ready to talk. There’s a way to get to know just about everyone, but you need to figure out how.
You won’t be able to hear every story in Wayward Strand on one playthrough. There’s too many events happening in real time to keep up with them all, which created a sense of regret, at times. I felt sad that I had abandoned certain people in my pursuits of other stories, and while this is a game, I think that feeling of regret is important. With it, the game provides a vital reminder that the people around us won’t be here forever. If we don’t prioritize the people we care about, or take the time to get to know folks, then those lives and tales will be gone and never come back. There’s something sad about the silence of the stories we don’t hear, and in them, a call to make sure we’re listening to the people around us who need to be heard before they’re gone.
Wayward Strand is available now on the Nintendo eShop, PlayStation Store, Microsoft Store, and Steam.
