A figure of light flies between small glowing planets, a star leading the way

Forgotten Stars

An “infinite destinies” - but only one that you can live through.

Made for thatgamejam #02 by Lucentshard, Page, and Scarlet.

Play it on itch.io

Where it started

When I listened to the jam song, it reminded me of my dream of becoming an astronaut. Of my childhood. The creaking sound in it feels like rewinding the clock, and the whole thing feels bittersweet.

So I wondered. What if we could go back and reach for our dreams again? What would we give up for it? Would it be worth it? And what if the dream was never to be something, but to be with someone?

A child on a small blue planet under low stars, a ring of light turning around them

What is it?

Forgotten Stars are a game that take you to an experience where you can choose one amongst the infinite destinies that you dreamed of. But destinies are never infinite, arent they?

How do you play?

WASD

Walk around small round worlds, one for each age, and fly between them with your star.

F

Talk, reach, knock, carry, choose. Nobody talks to you until you press it.

Typing

You name who waits for you, say what you want to be, and write letters to yourself.

What does each choice cost?

You can’t redo it

Every choice is saved the moment you make it. Close the tab, come back, and it’s the same life.

People remember

What you said back, warm or cold, follows you into later ages, and people answer you differently.

Your planet shows it

The house is dark if you left home, the lamp is out if you missed your friend, and the door is open if you took the chance.

There’s no right answer

At the end you see what you gave up and can’t get back, like “Your home, at eighteen.” That’s it. No score.

Two figures on a pink planet, a thread of light between their hands

What if the dream is a person?

If you say your dream is “to be with you”, the life goes to different places: a summer fair, a station platform, a ferry pier.

A thread of light runs from your star to them, and it gets thinner every time a choice pulls you apart. Sometimes it’s them who leaves, and all you can do is run after them for as long as you can.

What does it look like?

Everything is made of tiny grains of light over soft bodies: the grass, the houses, the people, your star. Each age has its own planet and its own sky, from a blue night at seven to a dusk at eighteen.

Why these songs?

The soundtrack are written by Scarlet, Page, and me - Lucentshard. The music box pieces in the game came from an original that I wrote. The lyrics of these songs are actually a reflection of what's happening in the game.

Lucentshard

The songs with lyrics

Scarlet

  • Innocent Dreams7 and 13
  • Time21
  • Isolationthe end, when everyone was left behind

Page

also known as KaktusDoesMusic

  • Somewhere in Between the Stars63

Jason Grace

  • The thatgamejam #02 songthe other endings

Hana, and The Cry of the Sky

Hana

i’ll give you a million goodbyes
i’ll give you a billion sorries

These are the years you leave or stay. Goodbyes and sorries, one after another.

i just need one chance to be with you

And if your dream was to be with someone, maybe you never need an infinite destinies? You just want one destiny with that person in it.

The Cry of the Sky

hold my hand tight
even with one wings
we can fly together

The Cry of the Sky is a song about broken yet still fully functional relationship. Like a marriage without a love.

broken into pieces
would you gather me

ALCYONE

the wind has scattered us to different skies

This plays when your dream was a person. By the end, life has pulled you apart, each on your own planet.

i see you soaring, your golden bright wings
i flutter close and orbit around your light

After the end you become a butterfly of light, gliding from one finished planet to the next. Trying to rediscover your destiny again.

An old figure on a small planet among other finished planets

Forgotten Stars

Lucentshard
Direction, gameplay, tech, and some of the soundtrack
Scarlet
Some of the soundtrack
Page (KaktusDoesMusic)
Some of the soundtrack
Play it on itch.io