'Emily is Away 3' Is An Interactive Story That Brings Players Back To 2008's Facebook

Independent developer Kyle Seeley has announced a brand-new entry in his Emily is Away series, titled Emily Is Away 3. And while the first two games in the series had players time-traveling back to the early 2000s and glory days of AOL, the third will take nostalgic junkies to 2008, when Facebook was taking over the world.

For those unfamiliar with the series: the first two games -- Emily is Away (2015) and Emily is Away Too (2017) -- were interactive stories presented through a chat client on Windows XP that mimicked the style of early AOL Instant messenger. In the games, you create a screename, choose buddy icons, customize your profile, and dive into a branching story that changes and adapts to the choices you make in conversation with characters over the chat client.

Both games were short and simple, but masterfully done, and in my opinion, some of the best immersive storytelling of this generation. And of course, both experiences are also pure dosages of nostalgia.

None of the games are connected beyond small references here and there. In other words, you can play all of them or play just one and get basically the same experience. And with the series jumping from AIM to Facebook -- I mean, "Facenook" -- it's a great time to jump in, especially if you were an adolescent or young adult during the days of early Facebook.

"Emily 3 is a brand new game set on an old-new social media," reads an official game pitch. "Customize your Facenook profile, send some friend requests and determine the outcome of your senior year."

Like the previous games, everything you say in Emily is Away 3 is up to you. You will decide what characters to befriend and how to define your character, and depending on your choices made in conversation, you will get one of multiple different endings.

That said, Seeley is pitching the game as more of a spiritual successor, because it won't simply be limited to a chat client. You will be able to interact with all of the features of early Facebook, and as a result, the experience will be more evolved and personal.

Emily is Away 3 is in development for PC and currently doesn't have a release date. However, it will be playable later this month at PAX East.

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