Tell Me Why Review (Xbox Series X|S)

Tell Me Why is a bit like a novella with a scrambled blurb, yet one that’s also like a jigsaw puzzle that you can’t help but gradually piece together over the space of eight hours. A clue draws you deeper into a tale; a piece of dialogue forces you to question your identity; and a peculiar “gift” that allows two siblings to rebuild memories that knocks you back and forth between assumptions, realities, and previous relationships.

It begins with a simple question: can two estranged siblings reunite after a decade since their mother’s death to sell their former home? Initially, it feels like an ordinary tale between a brother and a sister—Tyler, a homebound young man who leaves a juvenile home to reconnect with his sister, and Alyson, whose search for closure ends with a mysterious encounter with memories foregone. After arriving at the lakeside town of Delos Crossing, however, the cogs begin to scatter, and the questions slowly start to appear from behind a smokescreen of traumatic events. A mentally unstable mother—Mary-Ann; a missing father figure; a town of silent acquaintances; and two “Crafty Goblins” who simply crave the truth behind their childhood memories and the events that led to Mary-Ann’s perplexing transformation from a loving parent into a seemingly hostile individual with a firearm.

Tell Me Why spreads out its three-episode saga over a series of questions, light interactive segments, and choice-based discussions that lean into the traditional Don’t Nod formula. As both Tyler and Alyson, you find yourself on a relentless quest to unravel the truth of the past—a journey that takes you across the snow-drizzled mountains of Delos Crossing and into the back pockets of several residents. With the gift to talk and share thoughts internally, as well as construct old memories, the story invites you to traverse various locations, collect heirlooms, rebuild timelines, and, true to the nature of a Don’t Nod tale, forge alliances and create your own timeline through the power of dialogue and the occasional QTE. Like Life Is Strange, only with a whodunnit twist.

While evidently light in terms of gameplay elements, Tell Me Why does a brilliant job of weaving its world with excellent character development and side stories. And for the most part, it is as simple as exploring the world, examining items, and making the occasional choice to help define the outcome. But it’s the little things that matter here—the decisions and the actions that you take to tailor the narrative and conclusions, for example—that make Tell Me Why so darn alluring. One door opens, but then another creaks open over your shoulder, forever handing you more questions to find the answers to.

With thanks to its convincing dialogue and chemistry between its characters, Tell Me Why comes across as a provoking adventure that’s as equally compelling as it is more-ish. The lightweight choice-driven gameplay, too, provides you with more than enough moldable sequences to keep you second guessing your actions and forever hanging on that next all-important beat. “Should I have said that? What would have happened if I had chosen Alyson’s recollection of a memory over Tyler’s? How will my actions affect the bond and the future of Delos Crossing?” Suffice it to say, everything that you do here has a little weight to it. And to be honest, that’s sort of why I adore it; it makes you ask questions, though never quite gives you the answers that you’re looking for.

Of course, if you’re something of a die-hard fan of Don’t Nod’s episodic sagas, then you’re likely to feel at home in Delos Crossing and, more importantly, in the collective mind of both Tyler and Alyson. Similar in most aspects to your traditional Life Is Strange flick, Tell Me Why happily congregates on most of the same textbook trimmings, including the consequential dialogue and the ever-famous butterfly effect that leans on your actions to shape the narrative and the ending. Granted, it’s a little more linear than your usual Don’t Nod escapade, and there aren’t quite as many alternate routes or timelines for you to explore. That said, Tell Me Why certainly feels like a brainchild of Don’t Nod’s, and frankly, it bleeds through most of its core elements here.

Tell Me Why might be the underdog in the Don’t Nod catalog, but that isn’t to say that it’s without the same pulsating heart that binds to most of its chapters. It’s still a lot shorter than the other entries, with just three two-hour episodes to work through. And yet, for what it’s worth, it manages to wrap a ribbon on its overarching plot and its characters incredibly well, with enough closure to keep you satisfied with your contributions.

Verdict

Tell Me Why leans into traditional Don’t Nod facets with a thought-provoking timeline of episodic events and supernatural memoirs, all in the hopes of finding and completing a heart-binding tale that can keep you second guessing your choices long after the Crafty Goblins unearth their final memory. With convincing dialogue and palpable character chemistry, as well as a compelling tapestry of stories to propel its world, it immediately stands tall as a classic Don’t Nod work of art. Sure, it’s a little shorter than the other games in the catalog, but for where it lacks in longevity, it makes up for in in-depth lore and world-building techniques. The choices and the consequences, too, essentially speak for themselves here. But that’s a Don’t Nod guarantee for you, I guess.

It goes without saying at this point, but if you are a fan of Don’t Nod and, more generally, interactive tales that orbit Life Is Strange-like trappings, then you’ll most likely find a second home in the sleepy hollow of Delos Crossing. And I strongly advise that you do, as there is a brilliant storyline to poke at here. Again, it might lack the in-depth gameplay and creative details that border on innovative concepts, but honestly, I’d say that the characters and the narrative, in general, carry most of the weight here.