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The store’s description calls Loretta, “a psychological thriller that makes the player an accomplice in the heroine’s crimes, leading her through a self-made nightmare.” It’s essentially a point-and-click adventure where you’re a 1940s housewife who’s committed murder, with flashbacks letting you decide exactly how it happened and then how you’re going to cover it up.
One section might lead you to figure out how to deal with a nosy detective after the fact, while another will take you back before the murder happens to buy some rat poison. The story unfolds slowly and, if you’re not careful, so do your lies.
There are chapter-splitting mini-games, simple puzzles, and word-matching games, but it’s mostly about picking the right thing to say and trying to hold things together. It’s rural noir, with all the tension of an Alfred Hitchcock film.
Diego Arguello gave some impressions of a demo last year, saying, “The way it deals with infidelity and marital issues from Loretta’s perspective sets a promising baseline, as does the way the writing changes, increasing profanity as a deliberate reflection of Loretta’s internal state after committing murder, and how she chooses to remember everything leading up to this moment. Whether his attitudes aren’t undermined by the rest of the game’s writing remains to be seen. Even with just a brief glimpse of his deeds, however, I’m willing to hear his side of the story.
According to Loretta’s feature list, “branching paths and multiple endings allow for a personalized experience or opportunity to replay. Choose Loretta’s destiny and explore the multiple opportunities that come her way.
Loretta will be available on To smoke (opens in a new tab) and GOG (opens in a new tab) from February 16.