Lifeless Moon Review

Lifeless Moon throws you into the cold, desolate shoes of an Apollo-era astronaut who awakens in an eerily quiet, abandoned lunar colony – the forgotten husk of a 1970s experiment, to be precise.  Equipped with a trusty jetpack and a head full of questions, it’s up to you to piece together the colony’s fate by scouring the environment for documents and unravelling the lunar base’s shadowy secrets. Does Lifeless Moon offer an experience that’s out of this world, or does it send your expectations crashing back down to Earth?

Unearthing a Lunar Enigma

Lifeless Moon‘s gameplay revolves around exploration and puzzle-solving.  Your jetpack becomes an extension of yourself as you navigate the low-gravity environment,  soaring through deserted corridors,  clambering over industrial machinery, and carefully avoiding the occasional environmental hazard.

Scattered throughout the base are clues in the form of documents and audio logs that slowly chip away at the enigma of the colony’s demise.  The narrative unfolds organically through these scattered pieces,  leaving you to fill in the gaps with your imagination and a growing sense of unease.

However, this doesn’t always work in Lifeless Moon’s favour. I was often left wondering what just happened and what to do next as the narrative is sometimes so sparse that it causes confusion rather than intrigue. I appreciate that the atmosphere of the game is deliberately thin, yet it was sometimes so thin that became immersion-breaking.

Soaring Through a Silent Tomb

The core mechanic of Lifeless Moon is, of course, your jetpack.  Mastering its thruster control is essential for navigating the lunar landscape.  The jetpack feels intuitive and responsive,  allowing you to pull off precise manoeuvres and adding a layer of satisfying skill to your exploration.

Another interesting aspect is movement on the lunar surface. It is immediately apparent how everything feels somewhat slowed down when compared to movement on Earth. You can jump higher, land more softly and take longer steps, all of which create the effect of moving slowly as if gliding through water.

The puzzles you encounter often involve environmental manipulation using the strange technology scattered around the base.  These puzzles are cleverly designed and avoid being overly frustrating,  providing a rewarding sense of accomplishment when you crack their codes.

A Solitary Trek

Lifeless Moon is a single-player experience, which is a good thing!  While the lack of multiplayer might disappoint some,  it fits perfectly with the game’s atmosphere of isolation and discovery.  There’s a certain poetic loneliness to exploring a deserted lunar colony that wouldn’t be the same with companions.

A Desolate Beauty

Lifeless Moon‘s graphics, while not cutting edge,  effectively capture the sterile eeriness of an abandoned lunar colony.  The muted colour palette and stark environments create a palpable sense of isolation.  The sound design is equally effective,  with  its  haunting  silences  broken only by the  hiss  of your  jetpack  and  the  occasional  creak  of the  lunar  base  itself.  The deliberately-elusive soundtrack,  when  it  does  appear,  is spare and atmospheric,  adding  to  the  game’s  overall  sense  of  mystery.

Unearthing New Secrets

Lifeless Moon‘s replay value is decent. The fragmented narrative encourages multiple playthroughs to catch all the lore bits scattered around the lunar base. Additionally, the open-ended nature of some of the environmental puzzles means there might be solutions you missed on your first go around.

Conclusion

Lifeless Moon is a compelling exploration of a lunar mystery.  While it might not be the longest game out there, it packs a punch with its engaging gameplay, intriguing story, and haunting atmosphere.  If you’re looking for a short, atmospheric adventure that will leave you thinking long after the credits roll,  Lifeless Moon is definitely worth checking out!

Pros and Cons

Grade: 7/10