I have been waiting for this game's release for a while ever since playing the previous game that hinted at this one's release. Might get it today after work :)
I have been waiting for this game's release for a while ever since playing the previous game that hinted at this one's release. Might get it today after work :)
I'm thinking this one over. They had been talking about it on one of the last podcasts I listened to and mentioned they really loved it up until about the last 1/4 of the game. It looks weird...
I'm thinking this one over. They had been talking about it on one of the last podcasts I listened to and mentioned they really loved it up until about the last 1/4 of the game. It looks weird enough to be up my alley, but not so totally weird and offputting that I wouldn't play it at all.
I played through it last weekend and it was a wild ride. Some of the sequences toward the end where you're jumping one "horrific experience inside the character's head" to another could've been...
I played through it last weekend and it was a wild ride. Some of the sequences toward the end where you're jumping one "horrific experience inside the character's head" to another could've been tightened up. Otoh some of the visuals in those sequences are really cool.
It's a pretty easy playthrough in a single evening if you get sucked in like I did.
I'm all for "to each their own", but surely I'm not the only one who is wholeheartedly uninterested in the recent influx of retro-graphics psychological & body horror games. Iron lung, FAITH,...
I'm all for "to each their own", but surely I'm not the only one who is wholeheartedly uninterested in the recent influx of retro-graphics psychological & body horror games. Iron lung, FAITH, KinitoPET, and Shotgun Roulette, Lethal company & Content Warning to a lesser extent (in the horror aspect, not the "wholeheartedly uninterested" aspect). It just seems like these are games that are primarily designed to have creepypasta video essays written about them. The closest I've come to liking this kind of game was milk inside a bag of milk, but that was short and more of an emotional experience than a horror one. I don't really care about pure horror in any media so maybe it's that, but could someone who enjoys these games give me some insight into what's to like?
The quality varies wildly so it's hard to throw all of those under the same umbrella. FAITH is probably the best of that batch (that i've played). Very high quality game that's using its retro...
The quality varies wildly so it's hard to throw all of those under the same umbrella.
FAITH is probably the best of that batch (that i've played). Very high quality game that's using its retro exterior for some really clever horror.
Next to me is Iron lung which understands what it's doing and doesn't overstay it's welcome too much (it could still be shorter but it's "fine").
On the other end, to my understanding, there is nothing more interesting about shotgun roulette. Its just an edgy aesthetic, and the gameplay actively undermines that (unlike iron lung), and there's nothing more to it.
Edit:
Not on your list but probably another example of doing it right is absolutely Signalis, which is going for the retro PS1 vibes and uses them very very well.
I can get behind the idea of someone disliking a particular aesthetic, I have my good share of ones I can't fathom to play. But specifically for your particular examples I feel there is a breath...
I can get behind the idea of someone disliking a particular aesthetic, I have my good share of ones I can't fathom to play.
But specifically for your particular examples I feel there is a breath of different takes on oldie aesthetics which particularly catch the eye when browsing a steam Discovery Queue.
And will instantly put me in a attentive mode on their store page.
They are way less prominent that your comment might attest to.
I guaranty you, once you do a certain amount of Discovery Queue (I kinda did too much of it: 11676 games by steam account), all of these examples jumps out by presenting aesthetics that seems thought out deliberately for the game they want to make.
Most of those games you listed are very fundamentally different games that all just happen to have a retro aesthetic. I've played all of them except Iron Lung and most of them did what they were...
Most of those games you listed are very fundamentally different games that all just happen to have a retro aesthetic. I've played all of them except Iron Lung and most of them did what they were going for well enough. Lethal Company was just a really funny and unique coop experience at release and the retro graphics contributed to the goofiness with the stiff animations.
I can understand not liking horror games in general, but it would be sad to lump all retro horror into the same pile. Some of them are real treasures.
It's a trend. It won't go away but I imagine it will peak soon and then fade a bit, as all trends do. I think it's more interesting to ask why they're popular. I like these kinds of games, so I...
It's a trend. It won't go away but I imagine it will peak soon and then fade a bit, as all trends do.
I think it's more interesting to ask why they're popular. I like these kinds of games, so I think I can shed some light:
Nostalgia for a warmer, simpler time: The 90s were awesome and more hopeful. These games bring me back to my aunt's basement where my cousins and I would play PlayStation 1 for hours upon hours. I had never heard of climate change, racism had been "solved," and war was going out of fashion. I get to go back to these games and get some of that feeling back without having to deal with the terrible controls and 1-dimensional stories that existed in actual vintage games.
The rise of Indie development: Graphics are a major resource drain. Indie studios are filling a gaping hole where AAA studios are failing. It's much easier for indie devs to make these types of games and focus on things like story and game mechanics when they aren't aiming for photorealism. It also makes these games "future proof." Try playing a game from 2007 that, at the time, was going for realistic graphics. They're genuinely hard to look at. Meanwhile, Mario 64 holds up just fine because the art style is timeless and can't be "beat" by better hardware.
It's a response to the focus on graphical realism that I just mentioned. AAA studios are focusing on graphics at the expense of other things. People have responded loud and clear to this issue. Realistic graphics are only important in some games, and they are never more important than making your game fun to play. Gamers have shown that they would rather play a fun game with Atari graphics than a boring game with cutting edge realism.
Not that one is better than the other. I find realistic graphics to be very immersive and they're a huge bonus to a good game. But the focus on retro and vintage aesthetics didn't pop up for no reason. People are enjoying it.
Not sure about the horror aspect. I'm not an especially big fan of horror, especially body horror. But I can enjoy the masterpieces of any genre. I suppose a sociologist could probably share insightful commentary on the resurgence of horror lately.
I have been waiting for this game's release for a while ever since playing the previous game that hinted at this one's release. Might get it today after work :)
What was the previous game? I like the concept of Mouthwashing and I'm curious if their other stuff is also worth checking out.
I'm thinking this one over. They had been talking about it on one of the last podcasts I listened to and mentioned they really loved it up until about the last 1/4 of the game. It looks weird enough to be up my alley, but not so totally weird and offputting that I wouldn't play it at all.
I played through it last weekend and it was a wild ride. Some of the sequences toward the end where you're jumping one "horrific experience inside the character's head" to another could've been tightened up. Otoh some of the visuals in those sequences are really cool.
It's a pretty easy playthrough in a single evening if you get sucked in like I did.
I'm all for "to each their own", but surely I'm not the only one who is wholeheartedly uninterested in the recent influx of retro-graphics psychological & body horror games. Iron lung, FAITH, KinitoPET, and Shotgun Roulette, Lethal company & Content Warning to a lesser extent (in the horror aspect, not the "wholeheartedly uninterested" aspect). It just seems like these are games that are primarily designed to have creepypasta video essays written about them. The closest I've come to liking this kind of game was milk inside a bag of milk, but that was short and more of an emotional experience than a horror one. I don't really care about pure horror in any media so maybe it's that, but could someone who enjoys these games give me some insight into what's to like?
The quality varies wildly so it's hard to throw all of those under the same umbrella.
FAITH is probably the best of that batch (that i've played). Very high quality game that's using its retro exterior for some really clever horror.
Next to me is Iron lung which understands what it's doing and doesn't overstay it's welcome too much (it could still be shorter but it's "fine").
On the other end, to my understanding, there is nothing more interesting about shotgun roulette. Its just an edgy aesthetic, and the gameplay actively undermines that (unlike iron lung), and there's nothing more to it.
Edit:
Not on your list but probably another example of doing it right is absolutely Signalis, which is going for the retro PS1 vibes and uses them very very well.
I can get behind the idea of someone disliking a particular aesthetic, I have my good share of ones I can't fathom to play.
But specifically for your particular examples I feel there is a breath of different takes on oldie aesthetics which particularly catch the eye when browsing a steam Discovery Queue.
And will instantly put me in a attentive mode on their store page.
They are way less prominent that your comment might attest to.
I guaranty you, once you do a certain amount of Discovery Queue (I kinda did too much of it: 11676 games by steam account), all of these examples jumps out by presenting aesthetics that seems thought out deliberately for the game they want to make.
Most of those games you listed are very fundamentally different games that all just happen to have a retro aesthetic. I've played all of them except Iron Lung and most of them did what they were going for well enough. Lethal Company was just a really funny and unique coop experience at release and the retro graphics contributed to the goofiness with the stiff animations.
I can understand not liking horror games in general, but it would be sad to lump all retro horror into the same pile. Some of them are real treasures.
It's a trend. It won't go away but I imagine it will peak soon and then fade a bit, as all trends do.
I think it's more interesting to ask why they're popular. I like these kinds of games, so I think I can shed some light:
Nostalgia for a warmer, simpler time: The 90s were awesome and more hopeful. These games bring me back to my aunt's basement where my cousins and I would play PlayStation 1 for hours upon hours. I had never heard of climate change, racism had been "solved," and war was going out of fashion. I get to go back to these games and get some of that feeling back without having to deal with the terrible controls and 1-dimensional stories that existed in actual vintage games.
The rise of Indie development: Graphics are a major resource drain. Indie studios are filling a gaping hole where AAA studios are failing. It's much easier for indie devs to make these types of games and focus on things like story and game mechanics when they aren't aiming for photorealism. It also makes these games "future proof." Try playing a game from 2007 that, at the time, was going for realistic graphics. They're genuinely hard to look at. Meanwhile, Mario 64 holds up just fine because the art style is timeless and can't be "beat" by better hardware.
It's a response to the focus on graphical realism that I just mentioned. AAA studios are focusing on graphics at the expense of other things. People have responded loud and clear to this issue. Realistic graphics are only important in some games, and they are never more important than making your game fun to play. Gamers have shown that they would rather play a fun game with Atari graphics than a boring game with cutting edge realism.
Not that one is better than the other. I find realistic graphics to be very immersive and they're a huge bonus to a good game. But the focus on retro and vintage aesthetics didn't pop up for no reason. People are enjoying it.
Not sure about the horror aspect. I'm not an especially big fan of horror, especially body horror. But I can enjoy the masterpieces of any genre. I suppose a sociologist could probably share insightful commentary on the resurgence of horror lately.