Hidden Memories of the Gardens Between VR review — Diorama of Dreams

My latest foray into virtual reality is an intriguing little puzzle-centered indie gem developed and published by Australia-based The Voxel Agents. Hidden Memories of the Gardens Between isn’t just a remaster or updated VR version of the original 2018 title, The Gardens Between. Hidden Memories adds quite a few new things, with the most notable being forty newly added puzzles, something I was surprised to learn.

It’s a relatively respectable length, taking around 8 hours to roll credits. That can fluctuate depending on the time it takes to solve the many, many puzzle-filled levels. Like hundreds of other puzzle games, Hidden Memories acts more as a relaxing experience. The tone and vibe are established the moment the start screen appears, setting up the expectation that you’re there to have a calm gaming experience. It is genuinely one of my favorite parts of this title. Let’s dive in and talk more about why you should be on the lookout for this one, as I expect it to slip under gamers’ radars.  

The story for Hidden Memories of the Gardens Between focuses on the memories and adventures of two children, Arina and Frendt. Beginning on an unusually rainy night, the children, who don’t feel like going to bed at the moment, sneak out to their shared treehouse. As the rain continues to fall, Arina and Frendt suddenly transport into a cloudy dreamlike area, host to several different worlds with a variety of environments replicating and reimagining memories of both Arina and Frendt.

From here, our protagonists begin their journey. The journey to remember and reminisce about stories and experiences from the past, driving them to explore and see where the end of the road takes them. Figuring out what happened to them, how they ended up where they are, and how they are going to get back home is all part of an intriguing and beautiful narrative that took some big risks with its presentation.   

Despite lacking dialogue or vocal narration, Hidden Memories turned out to be surprisingly enjoyable, relying on strong visual storytelling, engaging artistry, and intuitive gameplay to take us through the highs and lows of both Arina and Frendt. Its environments and character animations were expressive enough to guide me emotionally, making key moments feel impactful, even without spoken words. That said, the absence of dialogue did leave certain story beats feeling vague or emotionally muted, where a voice or even a few lines of text could have added depth. Still, the experience was compelling, proving that a game doesn’t always need voices to speak volumes. I’m looking at you, Link. 

While I have played a respectable number of puzzle games, Hidden Memories’ gameplay style is not your average puzzler. It revolves around manipulating time to guide our two friends through a series of dreamlike, memory-laden islands. You don’t move Arina or Frendt directly; instead, pressing forward or backward advances or reverses the passage of time, causing the characters to automatically traverse winding paths. Arina uses a lantern to hold and transfer light, while Frendt activates chimes and mechanisms that influence their environment. Together, their journey plays out across miniature dioramic levels that embody childhood memories—dinosaur bones, packing crates, TVs, and foggy bridges—each offering a unique puzzle. As you progress, new mechanics are introduced with each new world, culminating in a wholesome narrative revealed through constellations that light up with each memory unlocked.

One of my favorite aspects of Hidden Memories, besides the journey of Arina and Frendt, is the visual artistry and immersion each level expresses. VR excels when players become fully immersed in the worlds they travel and the objects they interact with. Utilizing a child’s paint-like style, warm colors, and soft textures, the visuals express a comfy, calming atmosphere that I enjoyed and found relaxing just to play. This may sound contradictory for a puzzle game, but it works great here. The immersive experience of interacting with objects to solve puzzles and hidden secrets worked wonderfully and will be appreciated by the hardcore VR gamers out there.

Overall, Hidden Memories of the Gardens Between is an endearingly crafted puzzle game that breathes new life into its originator within the innovative and immersive realm of virtual reality.  Offering 40 new puzzles alongside its original, emotionally driven story, I found lots of things to like and enjoy about this game. Don’t let the lack of dialogue or voicework turn you away; the foundation of expressive visuals, immersive interactions, and emotional storytelling passes the test as a guide for players from start to finish, even if a few moments would’ve hit harder emotionally with it.

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