Lake

Lake is a 2021 graphic adventure game developed by Gamious and published by Whitethorn Games. Set in 1986, the story follows Meredith Weiss, a software developer who spends two weeks in her hometown of Providence Oaks, Oregon, where she temporarily assumes the role of the town's mail carrier. The player interacts with residents while delivering mail to them. The game presents dialogue options which influence the events of the story and its ending. The four-year development began in 2017 after director Dylan Nagel pitched the concept to Gamious. The setting was chosen for its aesthetics, while the time period was selected as it offered a nostalgic and relatable feeling. The world and characters were inspired by several American sitcoms and actors, and research was conducted into narrative-focused adventure games. The development team performed extensive research of Oregon for the game's setting. Lake was first showcased in 2018. It was released for Windows, the Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S in September 2021, for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 in April 2022, for Stadia in June 2022, and for the Nintendo Switch in February 2024. It received mixed reviews, with praise for its world, characters, and performances; critics were divided on the repetitive gameplay and soundtrack. A downloadable content prequel following Meredith's father at Christmas was released in November 2023.