A quick and dirty review of the game would be "Resident Evil in a prison." While on the surface that is true, the game breaks out of that prison (literally and figuratively) to deliver a good experience that makes the game stand on its own. It's a very good game, that falls just short of greatness. Starting in death row of Abbot Prison, you play a condemned inmate suddenly faced with horrors far greater than your impending execution. As you venture further in the prison, and eventually outside its walls to most of haunted Carnate Island, you learn more about the crime you may or may not have committed. Playing "evil" by killing everything in your path yields events that show you are a killer, while playing "good" by helping those who need assistance yields events that show it's all been a frame-up. Either way, you've still got a host of vicious creatures to contend with who want you for a snack. You'll travel all over the island, your trusty flashlight piercing the darkness, hoping to find a way off while learning about its terrifying past, and what its done to former residents of the island, some of who will aid you, and some who mean you harm. One neat aspect that makes this title differ from other survival horror games is the ability to transform for short bursts of time into a fearsome creature, the embodiment of your rage, with the power to do great damage rapidly. You also will receive conflicting "angel/devil" guidance, and with a surround sound system it will sound like they're on your shoulders, fighting to goad you into particular courses of action; a really neat effect. And the way the monstrosities you fight are almost all linked to various methods of death make them seem a genuine part of the environment, not just the developers saying "let's just come up with random, creepy monsters." The game could have used an additional enemy type or two, as there's only about a half-dozen and you see all their tricks pretty quickly. There are also a few times where it's so dark that you may wander aimlessly for 10 minutes only to discover you've passed the exit several times and been none the wiser. I also stumbled into a few times when all went grey but the protagonist and I could do nothing but restart, though luckily the ability to save at any time mitigates this somewhat. The gameplay works okay, though running and switching weapons at the same time (such as when retreating to regroup yourself) is very challenging with the inventory system they use. The mechanism to throw items could also use some fine tuning, as some things bounce way too much, often back at you. The graphics and sound are both on the same level: they're what you need, but not best in breed. While you get very good playtime out of the initial run-through, if you're looking for lots of things to keep you busy after, you'll be out of luck. The atmosphere is a genuine plus to the game, as you almost never feel truly safe. This was a very good game that forms a good foundation for the sequel to hopefully improve upon.
The Suffering was one of those games that kind of slipped under the radar for me, but one day I came across a review for it that was generally favorable and seeing as I'm a big fan of survival horror I wasted no time in ... Read Full Review
From the looks of the screenshots, you'd probably think this is your average third-person shooter. Lurking behind the box lies one of the most engaging horror titles I've ever played. Loaded with tons of blood, swearing,... Read Full Review
