Dont Nod has ventured into the RPG space in recent years and left the Life is Strangefranchise in its rearview mirror, but even now, the interactive narrative-driven adventure genre is what the studio is most strongly associated with. Soon, it will be returning to its roots withLife is Strangespiritual successorLost Records: Bloom and Rage,a game that seems to be looking to capture everything that defines a Dont Nod experience first and foremost. For fans of the studios work, theres certainly reason to be excited.Ahead of the games approaching release, here, were going to talk about why, as we take a look at the key details that you should know aboutLost Records: Bloom and Rage.SETTINGYou could never overstate the value and importance of the setting of Dont NodsLife is Strangetitles, and it seems likeLost Recordsis going for something similar. The game is set in a fictional town in Michigan named Velvet Cove. Described by the developer as a seemingly sleepy little town surrounded by dense woodlands and serene lakes, Velvet Cove is apparently a place where beauty meets the bizarre, which sounds very on-brand for Dont Nod.STORYComing-of-age stories, mystery, and buckets of interpersonal drama are the things you expect first and foremost in a Dont Nod story, and yes, thats whatLost Records: Bloom and Rage is promising as well. Its story will focus on a group of friends who swear never to speak to each other again after a mysterious and fateful event. Now, they are reunited 27 years later, forced to come face-to-face with that secret.DUAL TIMELINESLost Recordsstory is going to be told across two different timelines, interestingly enough. With one half of the story set in 1995 and the other half 27 years later, players will not only gradually uncover the secrets of the past over the course of the story, but also shape the present-day story alongside it. True to form for Dont Nod, your actions and choices will also shape the story, with multiple endings and different outcomes possible for both timelines.CHARACTERSDont Nods talent for crafting compelling, relatable characters is known to anyone whos played one of the studios games, which means expectations fromLost Recordswill be high. What do we know about the games cast though? According to the studio, the aforementioned group of friends that the story will be focused on will be four strong- Swann, Nora, Kat, and Autumn. That said, not each character is going to be equally prominentONLY ONE PLAYABLE CHARACTERThe four aforementioned characters are going to be central toLost Recordsstory, but only one of them Swann will take on the role of playable protagonist. Speaking to GamesRadar about why the other three arent playable, creative director Michel Koch said the decision was made to avoid a feeling of disconnect from on-screen events. I play a character in one scene, but then in the next scene I see this character talking to me, and Im not choosing the words? he explained.DIALOGUE SYSTEMOne of the bigger improvements that Dont Nod is promising inLost Recordsover its previous adventure game is the dialogue system. For those who have played theOxenfreegames, this might be familiar, because apparently, dialogue interactions inLost Records: Bloom and Ragewill be much more dynamic and contextual. Players will be able to move in and out of conversations, interrupt characters at moments of their choosing, and even interact with things in their surroundings to open up new dialogue options. Speaking in an interview with CG Magazine, Koch said, What were trying to do withLost Records: Bloom and Rage is to make the dialogue system slightly more interactive and naturalistic in a way that you will be able to have much more urgency about when to talk when not to talk, how to use some of the things that are around your surroundings to bring new dialogue topics to the discussions.CAMCORDERAnother important part ofLost Recordsgameplay loop is going to be the camcorder- in half of the game, at least. In the past section, set in 1995, Swann will be equipped with a camcorder that she will be able to whip out at (almost) any time. The camcorder will be used for both puzzles and storytelling purposes, of course, but with the ability to record at almost anytime, anywhere, zooming in and out of things to your hearts content, it looks like players will also be given the freedom to goof around in creative ways. After recording videos, in fact, youll also be able to edit them in various ways.RELEASING IN TWO PARTSDont Nod is no stranger to episodic releases, and thoughLost Recordsisnt quite adopting the oldLife is Strangeformula, its not releasing as one contiguous release either. The game is coming in two parts, or two tapes, as Dont Nod as dubbed them, with Tape 1 called Bloom and Tape 2 titled Rage. Tape 1 will release on February 18, while Tape 2, which was previously set for March, was recently delayed to April 18.LENGTHDont Not has also confirmed thatLost Records: Bloom and Rageis going to be about 10-12 hours in length. Thats across both tapes, though its unclear whether that runtime will be roughly evenly divided across the two parts. The game is, of course, also promising some replay value with its multiple endings and choice and consequence mechanics, for those who want to get more out of it.PHOTO MODEAnother details that the developer has confirmed for the upcoming adventure title is that it is going to have a Photo Mode available at launch. Further details on the features the mode will come with havent been revealed, though with the camcorder serving as a crucial gameplay feature, youd expect the Photo Mode to be pretty full-featured.BEGINNING OF A NEW SERIESMoving on fromLife is Strangewas a big decision forDont Nod, but it looks like the studio now wants to own its own adventure series. In fact, it has confirmed that its viewingLost Records: Bloom and Rageas the beginning of a series. Of course, that doesnt say anything about what potential sequels or follow-ups could look like, but Dont Nod has made its intentions to release further instalments in the universe pretty clear.ACCESSIBILITY FEATURESOver on the games official FAQ page, Dont Nod has also revealed brief details onLost Recordssuite of accessibility features. The game will feature options for motion sickness, gyro controls while using the camcorder, crosshair options, customizable controls, and more.PC REQUIREMENTSAs youd expect,Lost Recordssystem requirements on PC arent particularly demanding- at least on the lowest settings. Minimum settings (which will run the game at 720 and 30 FPS) stipulate either an i7-2700K or an FX-8350, along with either a GeForce GTX 1050 Ti (4 GB), a Radeon RX 560 (4 GB), or an Arc A380 (6 GB), and 8 GB of RAM. Meanwhile, to run the game at 1080p and 60 FPS on recommended settings, youll need either an i5-11400 or a Ryzen 5 5600X, along with either a GeForce RTX 3080 (10 GB) or an RX 6800XT (16 GB), and 16 GB of RAM.Finally, to run the game at 4K and 60 FPS, youll need either an i5-12600K or a Ryzen 5 7600X, as well as a GeForce RTX 4090 (24 GB). On all settings, players will also need an SSD.PC FEATURESFor those intending to playLost Records: Bloom and Rageon PC, Dont Nod has confirmed that the game will feature support for DLSS and FSR right out the gate. That said, ultrawide resolutions wont be supported. The game will run on ultrawide monitors, but with black bars on the sides, according to the developer.PRICEWhenLost Recordslaunches for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, it will be sold for $39.99. Thats the price for both tapes put together, with no individual purchases being offered for each. When tape 2 releases in April, itll arrive in the form of a free update for all owners.