Lushfoil Photography Sim preview: a walk in the woods

Lushfoil won't offer a heart-pumping experience or story, but it gives you something much more real.

Lushfoil Photography Sim / Annapurna Interactive

Lushfoil isn’t your traditional game. There are no puzzles to solve, there are no enemies to fight, and there is no story to read. When people call something a walking simulator, they are usually referring to something like Firewatch or Gone Home – games where you do a lot of walking but it’s in the name of storytelling and discovery. Lushfoil is about walking for the joy of walking. You walk and explore some of the world’s most picturesque locations, snapping photos to savor the memories. There are no points, there are no level-ups, there are only whimsical views, hidden details, and opportune moments to find.

During my 30-minute preview, I was able to explore Tyrol in Italy, Meelup Beach in Australia, and Kyoto, Japan. However, the final release will also feature locations from Italy, as well as France, Nepal, China, the UK, and Yamadera in Japan. As soon as you step foot in Tyrol, you are shown a breathtaking view of a sparkling lake with a snowy mountain range, but no way to capture it. A few steps down the road you find a camera, and from then on you can savor every scene.

Lushfoil Photography Sim / Annapurna Interactive

These few moments where you are desperate to save and share the view, but unable to, help to connect you more strongly with your camera. The camera has all the settings you’d expect from a DSLR, but for amateurs, there is an easier mode with minimal options so you can point, focus, and click. All the images are then saved in your camera roll, so you can look back in your album whenever you wish. You can’t walk too far off the beaten path, but each road you walk down there are new, unexpected moments to discover.

When I was walking down the road off Meelup Beach in Western Australia I saw a wallaby bound across my path. I caught just its tail with my camera, and when I walked over to the spot, it was lost in the bushes. I may have failed to capture the moment, but just like all the fleeting experiences I’ve had while traveling, it stayed with me. I felt the same way when I discovered a piece of abandoned origami while walking through the iconic red gates of Fushimi Inari, or coming across a wooden church deep in the mountains of Tyrol.

Lushfoil Photography Sim / Annapurna Interactive

Lushfoil isn’t going to offer you a heart-pumping experience or heart-breaking story, but it gives you something so much more real. It would be almost impossible to put your boots on the ground and experience all these breathtaking and often remote places for yourself. Lushfoil isn’t the same as really being there, but it’s pretty close. Sitting up with your eyes pressed to the big screen – just like your mom told you not to – you can almost fool yourself that you are there, if only for a beautiful, fleeting moment.