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When The Past Was Around - Prologue similar games & best alternatives

When The Past Was Around - Prologue

PC (Microsoft Windows) • 2019

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Quick resume

This is the prologue chapter of "When the Past was Around", an upcoming adventure point-and-click puzzle game about love, moving on, letting go, and the joy and pain of everything in between.

Global score

94/100

Genres

Adventure, Casual, Indie

Similar games

    Pros

    • Beautiful hand-drawn art
    • Soothing and fitting music
    • Emotional and poetic narrative
    • Simple and accessible puzzles
    • Relaxing and calming atmosphere

    Cons

    • Very short demo length
    • Puzzles are too simplistic
    • Music can be repetitive and annoying
    • Lack of story clarity for some players
    • No audio options to adjust music volume

    Analysis

    A very typical example of its motivational profile. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Strategy, Survival, Competence, Violence. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Intimacy, Story. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Idle.

    How to use the graph
    Similar games map

    Each dot is a game. They are arranged from the same motivation profile as in the “Motivations” section below. Closer dots usually mean more similar reasons to play (exploration, competition, relaxation, etc.)—not that one game is “better” than another.

    • Larger dot with a light outline: the game you are viewing.
    • Colour: groups of games with comparable motivation patterns (statistical clusters).
    • Hover a dot to see the game name; click to open its page.
    • Scroll or double-click the chart to zoom out and see more games.

    Why don’t the axes read like a score? This view uses t-SNE: it only keeps who is close to whom. The scales are not “good to bad” or hours played—they separate groups on the map. Read distance between dots, not the axis numbers.

    Motivations

    • Autonomy
      3

      "Players direct their own actions through point-and-click mechanics and puzzle solving, with freedom to explore scenes at their own pace."

    • Competence
      1

      "Puzzles are simple and easy, providing some sense of accomplishment but minimal technical challenge."

    • Competition
      -5

      "No competitive elements; focus is on personal experience and story."

    • Continuation
      2

      "Short demo but players express desire to continue with full game, indicating some attachment."

    • Cooperation
      -5

      "Single-player experience with no cooperative gameplay."

    • Creativity
      2

      "Players interact with environment and solve puzzles creatively, though within predefined scenes."

    • Domination
      -5

      "No elements of exerting control or superiority over others."

    • Escapism
      4

      "Players use the game as a relaxing, emotional escape with soothing music and art."

    • Expectation
      -4

      "Engagement is voluntary and driven by intrinsic interest in art, story, and puzzles."

    • Experimenting
      1

      "Some exploration of puzzle solutions and environment interaction, but mostly straightforward."

    • Exploration
      2

      "Players explore new environments and discover story elements through interaction."

    • Expression
      -3

      "Limited customization or self-expression; players interact with fixed art and story."

    • Fantasy
      3

      "Imaginative, abstract narrative with surreal elements like owl-headed character."

    • Fellowship
      -5

      "No social or community features; solo experience."

    • Growth
      1

      "Some learning through puzzle solving and narrative understanding, but limited complexity."

    • Health
      -5

      "Sedentary gameplay with no physical activity."

    • Idle
      -3

      "Requires focused attention during puzzle solving and story progression."

    • Intimacy
      3

      "Emotional connection to story and characters, conveying intimate feelings of love and loss."

    • Leadership
      -5

      "No leadership or group management elements."

    • Progression
      2

      "Progression through unlocking new scenes and story segments, with item collection for puzzles."

    • Relaxation
      4

      "Calming music, gentle puzzles, and soothing art create a relaxing experience."

    • Sensation
      3

      "Enjoyment of visual art and music provides sensory pleasure."

    • Status
      -5

      "No social recognition or status systems."

    • Story
      4

      "Strong narrative immersion through visuals, music, and gameplay without text."

    • Strategy
      -2

      "Puzzles require some thinking but are generally simple and straightforward."

    • Thrill
      -3

      "Low suspense or risk; experience is calm and contemplative."

    • Value
      4

      "Free demo well received; players feel good value for short, artistic experience."

    • Violence
      -5

      "No combat or destructive gameplay; focus on constructive puzzle solving."

    • Survival
      -5

      "No threats or survival mechanics; stable, low-risk environment."

    Where to buy

    Come talk about it on Discord!

    Last update: 29/04/2026