Indie Explore memory and acceptance in emotional visual novel Chromatic Memories

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After playing Read Only Memories: Neurodiver, I am absolutely up for another visual novel that explores the idea of memory. Chromatic Memories is a bit different, though: instead of chasing a villain erasing the memories of others, it's you that is accidentally erasing your own. The game is set in a world where it is possible to tinker with minds. So-called "painters" can access and alter other people's brains to the point of changing or erasing their memories. It all seems rather unsettling. Chromatic Memories is set to launch via Steam just after being featured on Steam Next Fest from June 10-17.

Nayara is one of those "painters." She wakes up one day only to realize that items are missing from and things are out place at her house. She quickly learns this is because she is somehow erasing her own past memories. Someone isn't psychically attacking her: she's attacking herself, trying to hide… something… forever.

She will have to take a deep dive into her past by talking to those who were present in her memories and gathering information to solve the mystery of what she's hiding from herself. Things will start to make sense once she's able to piece some information together and open a new step of the investigation.

Painters often rely on color, right? So it only makes sense that color is important in Chromatic Memories. Nayara is able to tie specific memories to emotions or points in time. Through mini-games, she will craft new colors before using the pigments to better remember specific parts of her life or visit events from the same location but a different time. Contacting people she hasn't seen in some time may be key in why she's suddenly lost her memory.

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Chromatic Memories is set in an alternate version of the Canary Islands (Spain) in the 2000s. It features a distinct Fauvist art style that is inspired by early 20th-century artists.

Developed and published by Perla Oculta, Chromatic Memories will be released for PC/Mac/Linux via Steam on June 19.