Last Day of June

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Last Day of June
Developer(s)Ovosonico
Publisher(s)505 Games
Director(s)Massimo Guarini
Producer(s)Elia Randon
Designer(s)Mattia Traverso
Programmer(s)Briano Casotto
Artist(s)Francesco Abbonizio
Writer(s)
  • Massimo Guarini
  • Mattia Traverso
  • Brenden Gibbons
Composer(s)Steven Wilson
EngineUnity[1]
Platform(s)
Release
  • PlayStation 4, Windows
  • 31 August 2017
  • Nintendo Switch
  • 16 March 2018
Genre(s)Adventure, puzzle
Mode(s)Single-player

Last Day of June is an adventure puzzle video game developed by Ovosonico and published by 505 Games. It is based on Steven Wilson's song Drive Home. The game was released for the PlayStation 4 and Windows in August 2017, and ported for the Nintendo Switch in March 2018.

Gameplay[edit]

Last Day of June incorporates elements of adventure and puzzle games in a third-person perspective. The player initially controls Carl, who is on a date with June at the lake, on the day leading up to their car accident. The game then moves back to the day before the crash, where the player now controls June at their house, and Carl shortly after. Then it switches back to their date at the lake, where the player controls Carl again, and drive back to their home. Afterwards, the player controls Carl in their house at a later date, and discovers that June's paintings can be interacted with. This allows the player to take control of various characters from the day of the accident in an attempt to solve puzzles and alter the sequence of events that indirectly caused the accident.[2] As the player fails to prevent June's death, new paintings and characters are unlocked to allow for an increasingly complex sequence of changes. Throughout the game, the player alternately controls six characters (in chronological order: Carl, June, The Kid, The Best Friend, The Hunter, and The Old Man).

Plot[edit]

Last Day of June is centred around Carl and June, a couple who suffers a tragedy when a car accident kills June and leaves Carl in a wheelchair.[2][3] One day, Carl touches one of June's paintings of people who had been present on the day of the accident and discovers that he can revisit their memories. As Carl relives their memories, the characters can perform actions that change the sequence of events that led up to June's death.[2]

Carl manages to prevent the initial accident, but another event causes the car crash. He continues to change events multiple times, but each attempt still results in the accident by different circumstances. In the finale of the game, Carl finds a sketchbook made by June which lists attempts by her to save him, rather than the other way around, and realizes that he cannot change what happens, the crash is inevitable and somebody will die on that day. Seeing no other option, Carl goes back in time to the day of the crash and swaps seats with June. By doing this, he is the one who dies in the wreck, sacrificing his life to save his wife and unborn child. The game ends with June visiting Carl's grave, which sits atop a pretty hill facing the lake.[4]

Score[edit]

All tracks are written by Steven Wilson[7]

No.TitleBased on[5][6]Length
1."Some Things Cannot Be Changed""Belle de Jour" from Grace for Drowning2:58
2."That Day By The Pier""Year of the Plague" from 4½3:58
3."There Must Be A Way"Title track from Bass Communion "Chiaroscuro"1:17
4."The Last Day Of June""Routine" from Hand. Cannot. Erase.8:18
5."Suspended In Me""Loss - Part 2" from Bass Communion "Loss"1:09
6."Driving Home"Title track from The Raven That Refused to Sing (And Other Stories)1:39
7."I'm Still Here...""Raider II" from Grace for Drowning1:35
8."The Boy Who Lost His Friends""Deform to Form a Star" from Grace for Drowning2:16
9."The Crib""After Dark" from Bass Communion "Box Set"1:05
10."Time For A New Start"Title track from Insurgentes3:27
11."Suspended In You""Haze 1402" from Bass Communion "Molotov and Haze"1:18
12."Under The Shadow Of My Father""Track One" from Grace for Drowning1:29
13."Accept""Veneno para las hadas" from Insurgentes4:13
14."Deceive""Ghosts on Magnetic Tape V" from Bass Communion "Ghosts on Magnetic Tape"1:07
15."Together, Forever Again""Significant Other" from Insurgentes3:52

Development and release[edit]

Last Day of June was developed by Italian studio Ovosonico and published by 505 Games.[8] The game was directed by Massimo Guarini [it],[3] who based Last Day of June on the song "Drive Home" by British musician Steven Wilson.[3] Wilson himself was involved in composing music for the game.[3]

The game was announced in May 2017,[9] and released for the PlayStation 4 and Windows on 31 August 2017.[8]

Reception[edit]

Last Day of June was received favourably by critics.[2][8][10][11] Eurogamer ranked it 33rd on their list of the "Top 50 Games of 2017",[14] while Polygon ranked it 38th on their list of the 50 best games of 2017.[15] In Adventure Gamers' Aggie Awards 2017, it won the award for "Best Story",[16] while it was a runner-up each for "Best Concept", "Best Graphic Design", and "Best Non-Traditional Adventure".[17][18][19] It was also nominated for "Game Beyond Entertainment" at the 14th British Academy Games Awards.[20][21]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Last Day of June (2017) Windows credits". MobyGames. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  2. ^ a b c d e Hood, Vic (31 August 2017). "Last Day of June review". Eurogamer. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d Hall, Charlie (30 May 2017). "Last Day of June blends stop-motion animation with a gut-wrenching story". Polygon. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  4. ^ Nate Hohl (6 October 2017). "Last Day of June – Figuring Out The Game's Ending". AllGamers. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
  5. ^ Glass, Polly (January 25, 2018). "Steven Wilson – Last Day Of June: Original Soundtrack album review". Prog.
  6. ^ Frangella, Luca (October 16, 2017). "Last Day Of June Soundtrack". Video Games & Art. Retrieved 2023-09-30 – via WordPress.
  7. ^ "Last Day of June Credits". mobygames.com. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  8. ^ a b c d Campbell, Colin (30 August 2017). "Last Day of June review". Polygon. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  9. ^ Matulef, Jeffrey (30 May 2017). "Shadows of the Damned and Murasaki Baby director reveals tearjerker drama Last Day of June". Eurogamer. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  10. ^ a b "Last Day of June for PC Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  11. ^ a b "Last Day of June for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  12. ^ "Last Day of June for Switch Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  13. ^ Meister, Rich (4 September 2017). "Review: Last Day of June". Destructoid.
  14. ^ Eurogamer staff (27 December 2017). "Eurogamer's Top 50 Games of 2017: 40-31". Eurogamer. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
  15. ^ Polygon staff (18 December 2017). "The 50 best games of 2017". Polygon. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
  16. ^ AG staff (21 February 2018). "The Aggie Awards - The Best Adventure Games of 2017 (Page 2)". Adventure Gamers. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  17. ^ AG staff (21 February 2018). "The Aggie Awards - The Best Adventure Games of 2017 (Page 7)". Adventure Gamers. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  18. ^ AG staff (21 February 2018). "The Aggie Awards - The Best Adventure Games of 2017 (Page 9)". Adventure Gamers. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  19. ^ AG staff (21 February 2018). "The Aggie Awards - The Best Adventure Games of 2017 (Page 15)". Adventure Gamers. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  20. ^ deAlessandri, Marie (15 March 2018). "Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice at forefront of BAFTA Games Awards nominations". MCV. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  21. ^ Makedonski, Brett (12 April 2018). "BAFTA names What Remains of Edith Finch its best game of 2017". Destructoid. Archived from the original on 25 April 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2018.

External links[edit]

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