Dwerve
Dwerve
Game
Game2018
The MISSING: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories
Developer White Owls Inc.
The Missing: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories (The MISSING - J.J.マクフィールドと追憶島 -, Za Mishingu - J.J. Makufīrudo to Tsuioku Shima -) is a puzzle-platformer horror video game developed by Hidetaka Suehiro's White Owls Inc. for Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. It was published by Arc System Works and released on 11 October 2018. The game's premise is that J.J. Macfield, the player character,… From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
222 reactions from 3 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon) · newest Nov 2, 2026 · last updated Nov 2, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
89
LovedLoved
163 positive · 21 negative
95% range 83–92%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 163 | 21 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 9 | 0 | 26 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 3 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
700 of 774 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
89% recommend · 165 yes, 21 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 186 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (1,276 of 1,440 positive).
Players praise the game's heartfelt and sincere queer narrative. [1][2][3] Some find the gameplay clunky and frustrating. [4][5][6] Many reviewers say the story is emotionally powerful and relatable. [7][8][9]
Liked
Representative posts
- [4]
“This game was made with the belief that nobody is wrong for being what they are.” The Missing is difficult to judge. On one hand, it’s an extremely audacious game that weaves its mechanics with its story, one that it tells without a hint of hesitation. On the other hand, its gameplay is slow, janky, and frustrating. I DO believe that it deserves accolades for dealing with tough subject matters earnestly and with …
- [1]
Everyone who's ever felt like they don't really belong somewhere... When you feel like nobody will ever accept you for who you are.. Play this game and just remember... You're not alone. And you are perfect, just the way you are.
- [2]
This was an absolutely beautiful game. It only took me about 5 hours to beat it and a futher 2-3 to get all the achievements (left the game open for a bit hence 10 hours), but I very much enjoyed my time with it. Although I wouldn't recommend the game on full price, I got it on discount for £4 which was absolutely worth it. As a transgender person, the story of this game is considerably realistic, and I respect the …
- [3]
genuinely, if you or someone you love is going through the mental anguish of gender dysphoria, or any kind of queer identity where you/they don't have the greatest support network, please do a blind playthrough of this game. i have never been more moved in my entire life then when i played through this game for the first time. it is really hard for me to shed tears when it comes to video games or other forms of …
- [7]
It hurt so bad I had to just turn it off. They understand queer trans people and it really, really shows. Completing puzzles while holding back the tears is something I never thought I'd do, but here we are. Update: I am too scared to continue playing. The imagery and themes haunt me, and I get chills thinking about it. I'm not joking.
Summarised from 34 of the 217 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 12, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
89% of the 186 Steam reviewers we collected recommend The MISSING: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories. The complaint that keeps coming up: clunky and frustrating platforming. Deal-breaker or nitpick?
Critics, per Wikipedia
The Missing: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories received "generally favorable" reviews for Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, and "mixed or average" reviews for the Nintendo Switch. Kotaku highlighted the game for being "transgressive and shockingly frank in talking about LGTBQA+ issues". Destructoid considered SWERY to borrow perhaps too heavily from Twin Peaks, but found The Missing appealing as a "brave, subtle, and at times cruel ... adventure featuring gorgeous animation, affecting visuals, and stomach-churning sound effects". EGM awarded the title four stars out of five and praised it for feeling highly personal, writing, "The Missing might be Swery's least ambitious game…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 222 · most liked firstAda's just hanging around. Scene from the game The Curious Case of the Missing Nurses :)
neutral · AI labelView post →original location in my original game, ill call it somthing like "the Missing Forrest"
neutral · AI labelView post →The Missing Letter: This week's puzzle is ready to play! 1 DOWN | Gets in a game of laser tag (4 letters) www.merriam-webster.com/games/missin...
neutral · AI labelView post →i've re-released my Games For The Missing & The Found series, a set of zines i made in 2019-2020, alongside a set of new unpublished lyric games from that same time period. these are very near and dear to my heart and i hope you enjoy! jaydragonwrites.itch.io/g4tmaf
neutral · AI labelView post →Next Pubic Update (V0.98) for my game The Curious Case of the Missing Nurses will be out on 8/22 ;) #JillValentine
neutral · AI labelView post →Is it BOGO friday? Curious Case of the Missing Nurses game for those wondering. Next public update in 2 or 3 weeks :)
neutral · AI labelView post →Want to see how Ada ended in this situation? Check out the new update for my game, The Curious Case of the Missing Nurses, in my bio! #AdaWong
neutral · AI labelView post →🎉Curious Case of the Missing Nurses V0.98 out now for everyone! Give it a shot and find me some bugs to fix :)🎉 Check out my profile for the game
neutral · AI labelView post →Everyone who's ever felt like they don't really belong somewhere... When you feel like nobody will ever accept you for who you are.. Play this game and just remember... You're not alone. And you are perfect, just the way you are.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is hard to digest and quite uncomfortable because of how raw it is, but above all it is honest, sincere, and full of empathy. "fix your hearts or die"
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Toshinden is honestly 90s anime the fighting game (before Guilty Gear: The Missing Link showed up) but I still dig a lot of the designs Also, I wouldn't be surprised if Sho's design had any influence on Sephiroth
neutral · AI labelView post →The Missing Piece, a cafe and game lounge, will soon re-open in its new location in the West Seattle Junction, taking over the former Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy location (4707 California Ave SW).
neutral · AI labelView post →Heavenly Potemkin Buster references the 1998 classic arcade game "Guilty Gear: The Missing Link" which has a character named "Potemkin"
neutral · AI labelView post →bruh this game is too ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ relatable it gets even more viseceral when my deadnames initials are also "J.J." on a more serious note its a relatively short but easy play even if ur horrible at platformers like me there typically checkpoints close enough and I only ever needed a guide for collectibles and 2 puzzles
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Lair of the Missing Sock! My Halloween game for 2024, and or the first time in Pixel art! 🦎
neutral · AI labelView post →I will only recognize the Witch-Finding-the-Missing-Cat-in-an-Alpine-Village game as the true successor
neutral · AI labelView post →It hurt so bad I had to just turn it off. They understand queer trans people and it really, really shows. Completing puzzles while holding back the tears is something I never thought I'd do, but here we are. Update: I am too scared to continue playing. The imagery and themes haunt me, and I get chills thinking about it. I'm not joking.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The Missing is on sale for 7$ Cad on PSN, if you want a game about self harm that is never the less very redemptive & heartwarming.
positive · AI labelView post →Here's our upcoming game list for Back to The Lab! Nov 03: Guilty Gear: The Missing Link (GG1) Nov 17: Ninja Master's Haoh Ninpo Cho Dec 01: Far East of Eden: Kabuki Klash Dec 15: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon S: Jougai Rantou?! Shuyaku Sodatsusen (Big Zam edition) Join our discord, see you soon!
neutral · AI labelView post →This was an absolutely beautiful game. It only took me about 5 hours to beat it and a futher 2-3 to get all the achievements (left the game open for a bit hence 10 hours), but I very much enjoyed my time with it. Although I wouldn't recommend the game on full price, I got it on discount for £4 which was absolutely worth it. As a transgender person, the story of this game is considerably realistic, and I respect the developers for genuinely knowing what the trans experience can be like for…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I don't like the gameplay that much but the few negative reviews I've seen complaining that the game is woke because it's about mental health and lesbians, have made the purchase more than worth it and an easy recommend.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you're trans or even any sort of queer please I beg of you to please play this game. It's a very very wonderful game with a fantastic story that is sure to hit home with anyone under the queer umbrella. Some puzzles may be irritating, the voice acting a little odd and the animations a bit slow but it is so worth it for the story the game tells. This game shook me to my core and i'm sure it will with many others as well. Please please play this game. "This game was made with the belief that…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I hope this game finds the people that need it. It's clunky and slow sometimes, but it's message makes it more than worth it if it's enough to save a life by finding it. It might hurt, but it's only temporary- you'll be okay, the world is better with you in it even if you have to get to the good part. Cherish your loved ones, and make sure to include yourself among them...if you can't seem to right now, then make sure you do eventually. i'm kinda dumb tho, took me a little for some…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The Missing is such an underrated game. Gorgeously designed and wonderful to play. @swery65.bsky.social is iconic 💕
positive · AI labelView post →a very heartfelt story that made me ugly-cry several times, still thinking about it months later
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I have learned of the pc game 'Coronation Street: The Mystery Of The Missing Hotpot Recipe' and might buy a pc just to play it (I won't)
neutral · AI labelView post →This would have changed my life if I played it 5 years ago
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →genuinely, if you or someone you love is going through the mental anguish of gender dysphoria, or any kind of queer identity where you/they don't have the greatest support network, please do a blind playthrough of this game. i have never been more moved in my entire life then when i played through this game for the first time. it is really hard for me to shed tears when it comes to video games or other forms of media, but this game managed to legitimately make me BALL my eyes out because of how…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is sincere. The mechanic and resulting self harm tie in directly with the narrative and experience. And in many ways, that makes the game hard to play and uncomfortable. But it's not cheap. The game doesn't use gore for pure shock value or a cheap thrill. It's trying to convey a message. I found myself feeling that, throughout parts of the cell phone texts, that it felt pretty realistic. That these are the kinds of conversations I've seen or heard before, and that these are the types…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →as a trans woman, this game ate me up chewed me out called me a ♥♥♥♥♥ and gave me like estrogen in the mouth directly...that was c*nt 10/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →“This game was made with the belief that nobody is wrong for being what they are.” The Missing is difficult to judge. On one hand, it’s an extremely audacious game that weaves its mechanics with its story, one that it tells without a hint of hesitation. On the other hand, its gameplay is slow, janky, and frustrating. I DO believe that it deserves accolades for dealing with tough subject matters earnestly and with sincerity, but I’d be lying if I said that I enjoyed actually playing it.…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Actually peak story about a trans woman, made me cry
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The MISSING is a lovely and interesting story that was greatly hindered by gameplay, especially towards the end. It left me so frustrated and I feel the gameplay section of the finale could have been handled a lot better, as it greatly soured my overall enjoyment and left me struggling through, until I could finally see the credits roll. However, I am still going to say, it is a game one should experience for themself. It is VERY in your face with the story it is trying to tell, so I don't…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Swery is perhaps one of the nicest, most understanding people I've ever seen create art about the topics he does. The writing in this game, and understanding why he wrote it how he did, has led me to understand that some things I had previously considered mis-steps in his prior work were actually intentional and I've actually come to appreciate his view on things quite a lot. It's really hard to describe what makes this game so good without outright spoiling a large amount of the plot, but I…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is not a good game. Just the most frustrating platforming, bad puzzles, overstays its welcome. The story is the kind where it is told in a cryptic way and when you finally get it it turns out to be actually pretty simple. The metaphors kinda work, but are a little on the nose and they do not really give any new insight. More the "hey I get what they're trying to do" kind of thing. The game kinda pretends to mean more that it actually does, which is frustrating.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hi! I'm Emmanuel Pangan. An indie game developer from the Philippines. Creator of these games in thread. Working on this sweet, children-friendly Visual Novel called the Bedtime Story: The Case of the Missing Cheese Popsicle. And I'm planning on making this Bedtime Story a series. #gamedev #unity
neutral · AI labelView post →People say Celeste is THE trans game? No. The Missing is! (Both are, in their own ways!)
positive · AI labelView post →The puzzle mechanics of this game are good and engaging. The graphics are good. But the symbolism. Oh. My god. The symbolism. The symbolism is what made me stick around. Sometimes it feels like the only way forward is to hurt yourself. Cut. Burn. Bleed. Just so you know you're here. That you know who you are. Do you know who you are? You think you do. But there's a demon inside of you that wants to cut you up. You don't want to cut yourself up, do you? Of course not. Everyone has those…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →They go to the bacon store gay/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Classic SWERY jank but with one of the most important stories I've seen in a video game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →how did the deadly premonition guy make this game
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game does depict some heavy topics with it so-so gameplay, so how well it hits you may depend on you as a person rather than the you as a player.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I have been wanting to buy and play The Missing for what seems forever (probably since it was released on Steam) and am glad to have finally indulged myself after all these years. In a way, it feels like a game I should have played years ago, when I was still getting into indie games, especially those focusing on queer narratives. It would probably have packed a bigger punch if I didn't have already quite a lot of other references. For example, The Missing heavily borrows from Limbo in its…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →all trans women should play this game imo
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →it's been about five years since i first played this game- i got it on sale on steam recently to play it again, and i find myself still in the same tears and awe this game left me in all that time ago, as well as feeling familiar swirling emotions as the credits rolled. this was a game needed in the world when it first came out, this was a game i wish we could've been able to see shine even sooner than that, and this *is* a game that still remains strong with a timeless narrative many will…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you had told me a week ago that one of the most heartfelt and powerful queer narratives in all of gaming was a game made by Swery, I would have laughed at you. The idea sounds ridiculous—Swery? The Deadly Premonition guy? But it's true. I teared up when I finished The MISSING: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories. The integration of the gameplay with the story elements is masterful, elevating both and putting you into that emotionally raw place of alienation, dysphoria, and…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →this new Zelda game should've been called The Missing Link and that's that
neutral · AI labelView post →honestly my favorite game got every achievement on ps4 switch and ps5 when i found this game here i knew i had to complete it here too, this game made me realize that i am a trans woman, happy pride month <3
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →J.J. Macfield is NOT a bad game. It has it's cons as you'll read in other reviews with the movement being clunky and you'll notice lots of other smaller issues like the hair clipping everywhere in the opening cut-scene, which got a good laugh out of me. At it's core it's a story-platformer driven game similar to something like Inside with more jank. The story is both obvious and not obvious, I knew the main twist from the start but missed out on the secondary one- so I think it's not ENTIRELY…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Whenever I feel like I can't keep going anymore, I replay this game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The MISSING is a great game, I need to draw her again
positive · AI labelView post →Another great game from SWERY and unlike Deadly Premonition, gameplay is not terrible. Loved story and message, puzzles were not very difficult but interesting, which is fine by me. Can recommend to anyone who not foaming at the mouth over LGBTQ+ themes.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A strong and nuanced narrative of a queer young student's struggles with her family, friends, and school life told through her phone conversations and a brutal nightmare that forces her to tear herself apart, set herself on fire, and flee horrifying monsters to progress and hopefully find what she's been missing. THE MISSING has some of the realest, most painfully relatable conversations in video games and I cried multiple times. It's not an easy story but it is increasingly needed in today's…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →flawed but okay
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →As a game, THE MISSING is pretty weak, and as as story, it's confusing at best and disorienting at worst. Overall, I found it to be a disappointing experience that tries very hard to be deep, but ends up shallow and oddly disgusting in the weirdest ways. The only good things about the game are the grounded environmental designs and the soundtrack. The main story of The Missing is about...something? I won't spoil it, but it becomes pretty obvious what the story is about in general, but even…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Amazing game, dark and introspective stories are my thing! The platforming was pretty fun too, and got more and more challenging and complex.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The gameplay is flawed but the game mechanics are interesting to mess around with. A few puzzles are frustrating but most of them are cleverly designed. The writing is irregular and often lacks subtlety but still manages to be deeply moving. A game full of contrasts and contradictions that I'd still wholeheartedly recommend. We desperately need more games that tell this kind of stories.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of the most important games ever made.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →i... love this game so much. I have to agree with the other reviews saying to please play this game if you are trans. It's absolutely worth it. Otherwise, please watch a playthrough. This game needs to become better known. The animations, sound design, and voice acting really made me feel how painful the gameplay was for J.J.... and the story hurt so much more. The queer themes felt well done here Also puzzles 👍
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's great. I love getting turned into char or minced meat or get my head bonked and catapulted through walls. 👍 🏳️⚧️
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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