4/5 ★ – crimson2877's review of Eastern Mind: The Lost Souls of Tong Nou.

I don't like calling games trippy usually. It always feels like selling a carefully crafted piece of dream-influenced art short, as if anyone who took drugs could make it. This game is a very very good example of this, but it's also exactly the kind of game that I wouldn't feel bad calling psychedelic? After all it's made by the guy who made LSD Dream Emulator. It leans into strange imagery similarly to that game too, using it to get you into the right state of mind to experience this world. And what a world it is! For a point and click adventure, the island of Tong-No feels like a surprisingly fleshed out place, with all different locations to explore and a culture of it's own. The characters in the game are instantly memorable (GA-SHOW!!!!) and seem like inhabitants of the small spiritual island. The only issue is the act of progressing through the game. I heavily recommend using a walkthrough, because without one you'll be completely lost in the first part of the game. Like, completely, directionlessly, aimlessly wandering around forever. Using a walkthrough makes it much easier to get into the world without getting annoyed with it. And that's what it comes down to really. Get into this world, experience the art and atmosphere and characters, and then leave it behind. It's a hugely rewarding game, much more than I was expecting, and I highly recommend it to anyone who is confident enough to fuck around with dosbox to play it.