Closer to the distance: The complex characters of this slice-of-life simulation

In Closer to the distancePlay Angela, who observes the village of Yesterby from afar. Angela soon learns that there was a fatal car accident that killed her. Mysteriously, Angela’s sister Conny hears Angela after her death and begins to follow her voice to help the other villagers. Miraculously, the sisters manage to work together to ease the villagers’ grief and give hope back to Yesterby. Over time, they discover that other villagers are also connected to Angela, who shows them the way in their lives. However, this is not as easy as it sounds. The villagers of Yesterby have wishes and dreams that are not easy to fulfill.

All this together results in Closer to the distance a slice of life simulation that combines a compelling dramatic narrative with fully simulated characters that act on their own – if you let them. Characters have “wants”, big or small goals they want to achieve, and “needs”, which represent their physical and mental requirements. Fulfilling these wants and needs is your main task in the game, but both can vary greatly depending on the character.

Take Zek, for example: Zek is Angela’s boyfriend and a carpenter’s apprentice. He had been fed up with Yesterby for some time and wanted to leave, but stayed out of love for Angela. These desires are reflected in two of Zek’s basic needs: “success” and “belonging.”

At the beginning of the game, Zek is grieving for Angela and wants nothing more than for her to stay alive. His need to belong is extremely high, which makes him feel disorientated and lonely. We can try to meet his needs by looking at the overview, which shows all interactions associated with a selected want or need. From there, you as a player can send Zek to play a song he wrote for Angela on the beach. Reminding him of Angela will partially meet his need to belong and stabilize his emotions. The better his needs are met overall, the better he will feel, which in turn will influence his behavior and decisions throughout the game.

But simply singing a song won’t magically make Zek’s grief disappear, nor will it suppress his desire to leave Yesterby. Parts of his need to belong will remain locked away and thus can never be fully satisfied.

This is where desires come in. Desires reflect things a character wants to achieve. With Angela gone, it’s no surprise that Zek eventually develops a desire to move to the city. Following the steps to fulfill that desire and helping Zek achieve that goal not only fulfills his needs, but also impacts his personality. When this happens, the boundaries of his belonging and achievement needs can change or be removed entirely, allowing Zek to feel happy again.

While Zek is mainly focused on herself, Galya is a completely different story. Galya is the village doctor, a busy bee who feels responsible for everyone in Yesterby. She feels great loyalty to her best friend Pia, Angela’s mother, but also doesn’t want to neglect her partner Leigh. Fulfilling her wishes and needs often depends on social interactions and who she helps or spends time with. In addition, her need to be “busy” ensures that lazing around is not an option, as Galya quickly feels stressed if she hasn’t been productive for a while. Fortunately, Galya also has a certain emotional “resilience” that she can build up through training, for example.

As you can see, no two characters are exactly alike, and their wants and needs shape personalities that feel and play differently. Often there is more than one way to fulfill a want or need, and sometimes characters’ wants are intertwined with or even contradict those of other characters.

How you let them spend their days is important in Closer the distance, as time constantly marches forward. But don’t worry if juggling multiple characters sounds stressful; for the most part, the villagers can take care of themselves pretty well, even if you’re not constantly looking after them. Still, the actions you choose for the characters will determine not only their own stories, but the fate of Yesterby as a whole.

How will you lead the people of Yesterby? Will you make sure that they can overcome their grief and be happy again? Find out today, because Closer to the distance is coming to Xbox Series X|S today.