The Past Within

Review by eFreeware

The most distinctive thing about The Past Within is that it cannot be played alone. This is a co-op only point-and-click adventure from Rusty Lake, and both players need their own copy on their own device, plus some way to talk to each other while they play. That single design decision shapes everything else about it.

It is built for pairs who enjoy puzzle adventures and are willing to treat the game as a conversation. You each see a different version of the same story, and the only way forward is to describe what is in front of you. If you like the idea of solving a mystery with someone rather than next to them, this is the setup it was made for.

The game has been out since November 2022 and sits at a 4.9 average across more than 49,000 ratings, with over 100,000 installs. The developer's most recent update was a bug-fix release. It carries a Teen rating and costs $2.99.

Two eras, one mystery

The story belongs to the Rusty Lake universe and centers on Albert Vanderboom. You and your partner each occupy a different era: one of you works in the Past, the other in the Future. Neither era can be explored on its own, which is the premise the whole game rests on.

The two players also see their surroundings differently. One side is presented in 2D, the other in 3D, which the developer describes as a first for this series. That difference is not just visual decoration; it means the two of you are not looking at mirrored copies of the same room but at genuinely separate views that have to be reconciled through speech.

Together you help Rose carry out what her father planned. The developer frames the game as piecing together the mysteries around Albert Vanderboom, and the cooperation is the mechanism for doing it: you report what you see, your partner reports what they see, and the puzzle sits in the gap between those two accounts.

How a session actually runs

A typical playthrough is short by adventure game standards. There are two chapters, and the developer puts the average play time at around two hours. That figure describes one pass through the story, not the total life of the game, and it is worth knowing before you and a partner set aside an evening for it.

The structure is point-and-click, so expect to examine scenes, gather what you notice and work out how the details fit together. What changes here is that the information you need is usually held by the other player. A clue in the Future may only make sense against something visible in the Past, and the reverse is equally true, so progress depends on how well the two of you communicate rather than on how quickly either of you clicks.

Because both players need their own copy, the practical cost of starting is two purchases rather than one, and you will also need a channel for talking while you play. The developer notes that you can pair up with a friend or look for a partner on the official Discord server, which is a useful route if you are interested but do not have someone ready to play.

Platforms are flexible. The game runs on PC, Mac, iOS and Android, with a Nintendo Switch version described as coming soon, and either player can pick whichever of those they prefer as long as the two of you can communicate. One of you could be on a phone and the other on a computer.

Why the second run matters

Two hours is not much for a puzzle adventure, and the developer addresses that directly. The recommendation is to replay the game from the other perspective for the full experience, which effectively doubles the content without adding new chapters. Since the two roles see different things, a second pass is not simply the same game again.

There is also a replayability feature that resets the puzzles with new solutions, giving a fresh start rather than a repeat of the answers you already worked out. For a game this short, that is a sensible way to extend its value, and it gives a pair a reason to return after the credits.

The trade-off is that the core content is still two chapters. If you finish it once and move on, you will have had a brief but unusual evening rather than a long campaign. The design clearly assumes you will play both sides, and the price of $2.99 per player is low enough that a two-hour first run followed by a second pass is a reasonable proposition.

What it costs and what it does not

The Past Within is a paid game at $2.99. There are no ads, and there are no in-app purchases, so the price you see is the whole of what you pay on your own device. The one thing to keep in mind is that co-op only means two copies, so a pair should budget for two purchases.

There is nothing else to buy and no advertising to sit through.

That straightforward model suits the kind of game this is. You pay once, you play with a partner, and the replay features are part of what you bought rather than an extra.

A two-player puzzle worth planning around

The Past Within is easy to recommend to the right pair. If you have someone who enjoys puzzle adventures and can be on a call or in the same room while you play, the two-era structure gives you something a solo adventure cannot: a mystery that genuinely requires two people to hold it.

The conditions are worth stating plainly. You need two copies, two devices, and a way to communicate. You need a partner who is available at the same time as you, because neither of you can make progress alone. And you should expect roughly two hours for the first run, with the second perspective and the puzzle-reset feature as the reasons to keep going.

For $2.99 per player with no ads and no in-app purchases, that is a fair arrangement for a short, focused co-op mystery. I would point it at pairs who like talking their way through puzzles and who are happy to replay from the other side. Anyone who prefers to explore a story on their own will find the design working against them, since the game never lets one player carry it.

What's new in version 7.9.1.1

Thank you for playing The Past Within, we fixed some bugs in this new version!