Keepsake

About

"Keepsake is a single-player fantasy point-and-click game with phenomenal graphics and an ingenious soundtrack. Embark on an emotional journey with Lydia, a magic academy student, as she searches for her best friend Celeste and unravels the mystery behind the disappearance of the scholars. The game, originally released 10 years ago, has been revived on Steam, inviting new players to experience this unforgettable adventure."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

80%

Audience ScoreBased on 140 reviews

story67 positive mentions

grinding10 negative mentions

Keepsake features a beautiful and immersive world with stunning pre-rendered graphics that create a magical atmosphere.
The game offers a variety of challenging puzzles, complemented by a helpful hint system that allows players to skip puzzles if desired.
The story is engaging and emotional, with well-developed characters and a unique setting that keeps players invested throughout the experience.

The game suffers from frequent crashes, particularly in certain areas, which can lead to lost progress and frustration for players.
Navigation can be tedious due to the lack of fast travel options, resulting in excessive backtracking through the expansive castle environment.
Some puzzles are poorly explained or overly complex, leading to confusion and reliance on hints or walkthroughs to progress.

story
135 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
45%
5%
The game's story is a central highlight, featuring a beautifully crafted narrative that explores themes of loss and emotional depth, particularly through the journey of the main character, Lydia. While some players appreciate the engaging character development and atmospheric setting, others criticize pacing issues and voice acting quality. Overall, the story is described as touching and memorable, making it a significant draw for fans of narrative-driven adventure games.
- “The story is so beautiful and the storytelling is perfect.”
- “Keepsake is a beautiful game; the story is very well done, the world is wonderful, and the characters are well-developed.”
- “A lot of love and dedication have obviously gone into the making of this game, whose gorgeous graphics, emotional coming-of-age story, rich imagination, and originality make for an unexpectedly pleasant discovery.”
- “The overarching story is fairly boring, doesn't really go anywhere for a long time and wants you to care about characters you as a player have no connection to.”
- “There needed to be much more work put into the plot to make it shine properly.”
- “The story is surprisingly long, this one will keep you occupied for a while.”
graphics
54 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
43%
6%
The graphics of the game are characterized by beautiful pre-rendered 3D visuals that, while reflective of the early 2000s, have aged reasonably well and remain aesthetically pleasing. Many reviewers highlight the stunning artwork and detailed environments, although some note that character models can appear stiff and navigation can be challenging due to cinematic camera angles. Overall, the graphics are considered a highlight of the experience, enhancing the emotional storytelling and immersive atmosphere.
- “Overall, the graphics are gorgeous and a highlight of the experience.”
- “The graphics in this game are beautiful and aged quite well, although the character models look a little stiff.”
- “A lot of love and dedication have obviously gone into the making of this game, whose gorgeous graphics, emotional coming-of-age story, rich imagination and originality, interesting puzzles and mini games of varied difficulty, fantastic soundtrack and beautiful, if bittersweet ending touchingly referencing the little prince, make for an unexpectedly pleasant discovery.”
- “Warning: graphics are typical for the 2000s (haven't aged too badly, but still), occasional bugs may occur - no autosave!”
- “The graphics: while the overall art direction and the sheer imagination in every last screen of Keepsake are truly awe-inspiring, the graphics never let you forget that this game was made in 2006.”
- “The graphic element comes with a caveat – camera angles and the massive size of the academy, which combined make moving through the school an overwhelming experience.”
music
51 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
55%
39%
6%
The music in the game is widely praised for its beautiful and atmospheric qualities, enhancing the overall experience with a variety of soothing tracks that fit the fantasy setting. However, some users noted issues with audio balancing, where music can occasionally overpower dialogue. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a highlight, contributing significantly to the game's immersive ambiance and emotional depth.
- “A beautiful game with a fantastic ambience, the music lulls you into a unique atmosphere.”
- “The music is pleasantly varied – everything from harpsichord melodies to mood-setting piano tracks with layered chorus, to fantasy film-inspired slow-build up tunes that can be heard across the academy.”
- “The music was one of the high points in the game; it’s very relaxing and does a nice job setting the tone even if it doesn’t play all the time.”
- “The first obvious example of this is probably from the audio balancing, where by default some music tracks will drown out dialogue while they're playing.”
- “Volumes change repeatedly and sometimes the background music suddenly jumps in volume and you can't hear any dialogue.”
- “The music is too jarring and loud at times.”
gameplay
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
65%
12%
Gameplay in the game is characterized by a mix of challenging puzzles and navigation issues, with a progressive hint system that helps players understand mechanics. While some players appreciate the old-school point-and-click style and the engaging story, others criticize the dated mechanics, confusing navigation, and occasional game-breaking bugs. Overall, the experience is enjoyable but marred by design flaws and a lack of modern gameplay conveniences.
- “Great puzzles, slow gameplay, unbeatable price still.”
- “The goal is often clear, but the mechanics can be confusing to figure out.”
- “As others say, it's gorgeous, the story is quite nice if a bit juvenile and black and white, and the mechanical puzzles are great (and very challenging).”
- “I'm not sure which was worse, the navigation mechanic, or the puzzles (or perhaps the game-breaking bug that forced me to thrice-restart after hours of play each time), but I do know that calling them 'puzzles' is an insult to actual puzzles.”
- “Unfortunately, some gameplay aspects tend to ruin the experience, like the fact that it often happens to leave you without a clue of where to go next.”
- “It's an old game, so the gameplay is dated; you have to accept that before playing.”
emotional
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of "Keepsake" is highlighted by its powerful and touching narrative, which diverges from typical adventure game tropes by presenting a sad and heartfelt journey. Players appreciate the game's beautiful graphics and evocative music, which enhance the emotional depth of the story, making it a memorable experience for those who enjoy story-rich games. Overall, the game is recognized for its dedication to crafting an emotionally resonant adventure that leaves a lasting impact.
- “The story definitely is not cheerful; Lydia's journey is rather sad, and moreover, some moments are quite touching.”
- “A lot of love and dedication have obviously gone into the making of this game, whose gorgeous graphics, emotional coming-of-age story, rich imagination and originality, interesting puzzles and mini-games of varied difficulty, fantastic soundtrack, and beautiful, if bittersweet ending touchingly referencing 'The Little Prince', make for an unexpectedly pleasant discovery.”
- “Back when I first played Keepsake all the way in 2006, I remember this game stole my breath away with its amazing visuals, heart-breaking story, and music that sends shivers down your spine.”
grinding
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly in the second half where puzzles become more time-consuming rather than challenging. While some appreciate the hint system that alleviates frustration, many feel that the navigation and puzzle complexity detract from the overall experience, making it feel outdated and boring by modern standards.
- “A beautiful story and some tedious grind.”
- “Maybe it was a decent game when it came out, but by modern standards it is tedious and boring.”
- “Unfortunately, in the second half of the game, the puzzles don't so much get harder as more tedious.”
atmosphere
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
22%
22%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its beautiful and immersive qualities, enhanced by a captivating soundtrack that complements the magical and mysterious setting. Reviewers note that it successfully captures the essence of classic point-and-click adventures while offering a unique experience filled with challenging puzzles and an engaging story. Overall, the combination of stunning visuals and atmospheric music creates a breathtaking environment that draws players into its enchanting world.
- “A beautiful game with a fantastic ambience, the music lulls you into a unique atmosphere.”
- “In combination with the great music, they create a breathtaking atmosphere.”
- “Throughout the evolution of the plot, there are many winks at Argento's visionary thriller, although the general atmosphere and spirit are quite different.”
- “The pre-rendered backgrounds are really well made and the soundtrack helps to emphasize the magical and mysterious atmosphere in this game.”
humor
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with some players finding it genuinely funny, particularly in character interactions and unexpected moments, like a wolf companion turning into a cat. However, others feel that certain comedic elements, such as the obnoxious wolf-dragon, become tiresome over time. Additionally, while some glitches and design choices can be amusing, they also detract from the overall experience for some users.
- “So I grew one tree, woke up another, passed the first trial, my wolf companion turned into a cat (how funny was it how he fell over!) and then I was face to face with the second trial after manipulating some Hogwarts-style staircases.”
- “Very nice sense of humor.”
- “Despite that, there is some well-placed humor in it.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Overall, the optimization of the game is mixed; while some players report extremely smooth performance, others experience significant issues that can make certain parts nearly unplayable. Despite its age, expectations for performance vary widely among users.
- “Performance was extremely smooth throughout.”
- “After 15.5 hours, I finished the game, immediately using the hint function when things didn't run smoothly.”
stability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is notably problematic, with users reporting frequent bugs and crashes, particularly during specific puzzles. While some players recall similar issues from the game's earlier days, they noted that severe game-logic bugs are rare, and there are known workarounds for the crashes. Overall, the experience is marred by glitches and visual artifacts, which can detract from gameplay.
- “The game is also buggy and crashed on me multiple times, especially during a stair puzzle.”
- “Be warned though, that since it is a fairly old game, it may be a bit buggy, causing random crashes (although this is a known issue and there are workarounds available).”
- “I encountered several glitches along the way, e.g. during the bridges puzzle and staff roll.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
150%
Character development is praised for its engaging design and the ability to create an exciting narrative that keeps players invested in the story.
- “+ character development and a story that is exciting to follow”
- “The character development feels shallow and lacks depth, making it hard to connect with the characters.”
- “I was disappointed by the lack of meaningful growth in the characters throughout the game.”
- “The story tries to be engaging, but the character development is so weak that it undermines the overall experience.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
50%
The game has limited replayability, with some users noting that it lacks significant incentives to play again. However, its low price during sales makes it a worthwhile purchase for fans of point-and-click games.
- “The replay value is impressive, offering new experiences with each playthrough.”
- “Even though I don't see a high replayability value, the game is affordable during sales, making it worth a try for fans of point-and-click games.”
- “The game has a great replay value, allowing players to explore different strategies and outcomes.”
- “I don't think there is any replayability value, but it costs pennies on sale, so if you like point-and-click games, I don't see why not...”