Every few years a game comes around that sits with you in the best and worst ways. It could open up truths that are hard to sit with or make you reflect on your own existence. Schrodinger’s Call seeks to do the same for all of its players. Who are the people you want to speak to in your last nanoseconds of life? What are the regrets that you may be carrying with you and how did you get to this place? How would it feel to know that someone is so important to you and yet those memories are slipping away faster than you ever thought possible. All this and more is found in Schrodinger’s Call, in the simplistic setting of a room with a telephone with a girl, a cat, and a notebook.
Premise
In Schrodinger’s Call, we follow Mary, a girl who has no memory of who she is and thanks to a cat named Hamlet, is now the hotline for those stuck in between life and death. Mary is the last confidant, the only person capable of helping those fully cross over. Each of the five chapters finds you trying to save a person while also understanding Mary’s grief. In each chapter we also get to know Mary’s grief while untangling the binds the tie characters together. All of this takes place through a series of phone calls to characters who passed away when the moon crashes to earth. Unravel their grief, their hope, and help them find peace.
Throughout the conversation, Mary will write notes in her notebook, probably a good move when your memory is questionable. During the game, players will refer back to these notes in their conversations with callers. Some of these are drawings in which Mary imagines settings and characters, others just pieces of information she receives from phone calls. All of these characters have unreliable memories, for many due to their memories beginning to fade, for some, just wanting to push out the truth and negative feelings. These moments explore human loneliness and longing for connection in a way that only childlike curiosity can do.
It is partially her naivete that allows players to strip away any barriers in their heart to feel the true pain and joy each character experiences. Help them face the truth and free them as Hamlet instructs you to. Of course, it is not just to free them. It can also help Mary remember her own memories and who she is.
Gameplay
Schrodinger’s Call is broken up into five chapters to tell it’s full story. The gameplay loop is simple as this is a almost a near perfect example of a visual novel where you make your choices to tell the story. There isn’t right and wrong per say as the story unfolds. Whether it be Hamlet nudging you in the next direction or Mary questioning the choice, the game will guide you. If you select an option that may be incorrect, you’ll see some text and be provided another opportunity to select the right choice. At times, Mary may speak about the topic you’ve chosen and the character on the other line will decline or answer or try to change the topic. This is your indication that you have not selected the correct next step.
So while yes, your choices may not matter, it is not about the choice but the story. When you choose the correct option while on calls with those you need to save, you may uncover new important information. Mary will jot down information for you to refer back to when necessary. You can refer back to the notebook at just about any time if you need to refresh your memory as well. Phone numbers are also within the notebook so you never need to memorize these numbers thankfully.
During her conversations, players will select choices to have characters share more information to get to the bottom of their story or empathize with the caller. At times, players will refer back to the notebook to select the right option in trying to bring closure to the caller. There are times when the book will open on its own. Other times players will need to select the option. Either way the notebook is a great tool full of beautiful drawings and sometimes terrible sadness. The gameplay loop is simple as this pattern repeats each with its own theme and story to tell. Connect with your caller, return their memories, free them, all in a matter of nanoseconds before that true final passing.
Emotional Warning
Schrodinger’s Call is also not for the faint of heart. The themes in this visual novel are heavy. The first chapter follows a mother who just wanted to connect with her son after getting out of prison. Her son feels he was abandoned, the mother just longing to hear her son call her Mama, and a world where they can never see each other again. While this first chapter may not stir up difficult emotions within you, it is possible others will. Every chapter may hit a different nerve depending on your past and your experiences.
To name a few, themes in Schrodinger’s Call include abandonment, jealousy, lies, self-hatred, harm, guilt, loss of a child, and more. It is not a game to necessarily power through. It is an emotional roller coaster with very few brakes in this 7-8 hour visual novel. Please be sure to take the game at your own pace and take breaks where needed. If it does stir up any negative emotions, please also be sure to practice self care.
Visuals and Music
Schrodinger’s Call is a visual novel to it’s very core and it’s the emotions players will feel that truly bring it to life. These emotions are heightened by the music and visuals that accompany the scenes. At times suddenly the screen goes red, or blue, or another color meant to make you feel. Other times it is the haunting background music that allows players to feel the emotional pain of loss, sadness, and possibly even self-loathing.
While as Mary in the room where she makes her calls, everything is in black and white. However, her calls with others begin to bring color to the screen. Small pops of color appear in the caller’s background, almost to highlight that they had an important connection before death. During the conversation a small explosion of light when callers remember something important. The colors feel symbolic of the melancholy Mary holds within her heart with seemingly little to live for.
Then slowly, like a light dimmer being turned, you may see color behind Mary as she is hearing a memory of the last call. She is living their moment, trying to understand their last phone call and the music feels like small yet deep breaths, like breathing into a bag to calm an anxiety attack. Please note it’s not really recommended to breathe into a bag for anxiety attacks. Then again, it isn’t recommended to listen in on other people’s calls either.
Pops of color will also happen as the moon falls to earth and disrupts these final phone calls. It is sudden, jarring, and can even feel like sensory overload as black, white, red, blue flash across the screen and you hear an uncomfortable static noise in a rhythmic pattern. Unsettling images don’t just come in colors either. Black and white imagery will flash across the screen, sometimes asking, “who are you”? Other times these images may be an unsettling collection of eyes blinking as you.
The music picks up its pacing and franticness during these moments when trying to empathize with your caller. It’s clear you are breaking through to them as the black and white clock begins to break as the hand ticks revealing color underneath. The juxtaposition of colors and monochrome shock the eyes at times, but also remind us that living can be both lively and dull. It’s beautiful and painful, it is sweet yet full of anguish, but hopefully the person on the other end of the call can help us through it.
Final Thoughts
Schrodinger’s Call is a beautiful yet haunting visual novel touching upon the human condition. We explore love, grief, human connection, and the memories that haunt, harm, and heals us. Be it the little white lies we tell ourselves or the the strength we find to face the truth. It is at its core a visual novel which means the game play will feel minimal for many. It’s strength is in the story. It is how it causes us to reflect upon our selves. Schrodinger’s Call will call out to players, wanting them to connect with those important to them. It reminds you that you are not alone, you are loved, you are important, and you matter. There is someone out there waiting to hear your voice. Call them before it’s too late.
Schrodinger’s Call was reviewed on PC. We’d like to thank SHUEISHA GAMES for providing this review code. Schrodinger’s Call is now available for PC, Nintendo Switch and Switch 2.
