Oof, where to start? So you’re at PAX East 2025, right? And it’s this wild place buzzing with energy and cosplay and, I don’t know, the smell of stale soda and fried food. Amidst all this chaos, there’s this game demo for “Perfect Tides: Station to Station”. Some folks might call it a ‘refreshing take’ on the point-and-click genre. Well, it’s definitely something.
Meredith Gran, the brain behind this creation, seems to have her head full of interesting ideas. I mean, how would you make a point-and-click adventure stand out these days? It’s not like you can reinvent the wheel, but maybe you can slap some cool rims on it? Her answer: conversations and relationships to level up in life. Gotta love that twist.
Anyway, the game’s a sequel—didn’t play the first one? No worries, apparently, you can dive right in. You get to be Mara, an 18-year-old wrestling with the funky mess of adulting. Kind of relatable, isn’t it? Mara’s wandering around a big city, doing the classic coming-of-age shuffle (if that’s even a thing). Imagine mixing point-and-click with RPG spices. Crazy right? Conversations, recording stuff on your phone like you’re on some reality show, and somehow these chats help you progress. Oddly intriguing.
While navigating the city, honestly, I got lost a few times. Not the game’s fault, probably mine. It doesn’t use the typical point-and-click stuff like “Look At” or “Talk To”, which, trust me, made me scratch my head a bit. You chat with townsfolk, whip out topics like they’re cards in a magic trick, and boom—story advances. Decisions pop up too, shaping Mara’s journey. Love a game that mirrors real-life choices, don’t you?
Short play, but I got to part two, hunting down party details with detective skills I didn’t know I had. Seriously, it nails teenage awkwardness to a tee. Maybe it’s nostalgic, or maybe just oddly familiar.
Despite the crowded madness of the convention, “Perfect Tides: Station to Station” kind of pulled me in. There’s heart in there, probably because it’s a personal project for Gran. It’s a year-long journey packed into about 16 hours. Watch out for it on Nintendo Switch and PC. Keep your eyes peeled—or don’t. Life’s unpredictable.
