Her Story

About Her Story

Her Story drops you into a grainy 1990s police computer terminal to solve a murder mystery. Sam Barlow created this indie simulation after his work on Silent Hill: Shattered Memories. It launched in June 2015 for PC, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS. You play as an officer reviewing seven video clips of a British woman named Hannah Smith questioning her missing husband. There are no cutscenes or scripted dialogues here. The narrative unfolds entirely through your search queries. This is a point-and-click experience where you type keywords to find new footage. The game stars Viva Seifert, who brings a raw intensity to the role. You piece together the truth by watching these live-action segments in any order you choose.

Gameplay

Your session starts with a single search bar and seven video clips. You type a word like "husband" or "blood" to filter the footage. The game only shows you clips containing that specific term. You watch short, unedited interviews where Hannah reacts emotionally to questions from two different police officers. You cannot skip ahead or fast forward. Your goal is to find enough clues to understand what happened. You might type a name you heard in one clip to find another interview featuring that person. The controls are simple mouse clicks and keyboard typing. There are no puzzles other than connecting the dots yourself. You can spend minutes just rewatching a single sentence to catch a detail or a tone shift. The non-linear structure means your path changes based on every search you perform.

What Players Think

Critics and players agree this is a standout title. Metacritic gave it an 88 out of 100 while IGDB lists a solid 81.4 rating across 279 user votes. The average playtime hovers around two hours for most sessions. Only 41.2% of the community has unlocked all 13 achievements, which suggests many players get lost or give up before finding every secret. Reviewers often praise the acting and the unique interface. Community moods skew toward curiosity and confusion as you try to make sense of the timeline. Some users report frustration when they miss a keyword early on. The low achievement rate indicates that not everyone enjoys piecing together the fragmented narrative. Despite this, the high critical scores show that those who engage with the system find it rewarding.

PlayPile's Take

This game is for people who like solving puzzles without traditional mechanics. It costs around ten dollars depending on your platform and current sales. The achievement unlock rate tells us that finishing everything requires patience and attention to detail. You do not need any gaming skills, but you do need an open mind. Sam Barlow built something that feels more like a research project than a standard adventure. If you want a quick mystery with no combat or inventory management, this fits the bill. The price is fair for the experience provided. I recommend it only if you are willing to sit in front of a fake computer screen and type for hours.

Storyline

Her Story sits you in front of a mothballed desktop computer that’s logged into a police database of video footage. The footage covers seven interviews from 1994 in which a British woman is interviewed about her missing husband. Explore the database by typing search terms, watch the clips where she speaks those words and piece together her story.