The Chinese Room is one of the most interesting game development studios working right now. It has produced part of the Amnesia franchise and, more recently, the extraordinary Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture. A gentle, profoundly moving story of the final minutes of a small village before something impossible (and perhaps hopeful) happens, it’s one of the most powerful games we’ve ever played.

Dear Esther, one of the company’s earlier games, is just as good. It’s a ‘walking simulator’ that opens with your character on the shore of a desolate Scottish island. As you walk through the harsh and beautiful landscape, the narrator tells your story, the story of how you got there and the stories of those who came before you…

It’s an extraordinary game and last year it became an extraordinary live event. Mixing a playthrough with a dramatic reading and live music, Dear Esther Live is a theatrical experience unlike anything else we’ve seen. And now it’s going on tour.

Dear Esther Live is playing across the country from 3 November to 2 February. It’s taking in venues in Nottingham, Bristol, Birmingham and many more. It’s an amazing experience and one we cannot recommend highly enough.

Full details are here and if you can’t make it, Dear Esther is available now for PC, PS4 and Xbox One.

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