Spooky time games for spooky times.

[Ack]

While the Nintendo 64 isn't known for horror games, it did have a few that leaned in that direction. That was where I first encountered the game Shadow Man, based on the comic of the same name, though I am sorry to say that when I first played it, it simply did not click.

Now I'm getting back into it via the PC release, and I'm actually enjoying it highly. It's not blatant survival horror, but it definitely leans in that direction. Enemies range from people with autopsy scars which will suck out your soul to winged demons to chainsaw-weilding maniacs. The levels include a massive blood-stained asylum and it's infernal machines, temples to the undead, and the alligator-ridden bayou of Louisiana. There is a ton of content too. I am about five hours in, and there is way more for me to discover. It's like a voodoo-themed 3D metroidvania.

[Sarge]

Dang it, why'd you have to bring the word "Metroidvania" into this? Now I'm interested.

How's the PC version compared to the Dreamcast port?

[BoneSnapDeez]

I'd be interested if "Metroidvania" wasn't prefaced with "3D."

[Ack]

Like I said, Bone, I first played it on the Nintendo 64.

Sarge, I'm afraid I can't say since I haven't tried the Dreamcast version. The PC version does have some interesting controls because the mouse isn't fully implemented properly, but beyond that, it plays great.

[noiseredux]

Halloween DLC is now live for Dead By Daylight. On sale for $6.30 right now.

[Xeogred]

Finished up Code: Veronica last night, and I still feel it's the best of the first four games in the series. I looked at some footage of the HD remakes of CVX, and the lighting effects seem like an extreme detriment to the game. It is way too dark, and poorly contrasted. I'm not surprised you had trouble seeing items, Xeogred.

So, there were a handful of things I found upsetting: the dual Lugers "puzzle" (I still don't understand the "solution"), cargo hold boss (I thought he would at least indicate when he was softened up enough), SSJ5 Steve, the second music box puzzle (I can't just grab the plate, and, oh, I don't know, close the box?), the linear launcher (maybe it's easier to aim with the analog pad). I would have been more upset about the first Alexia fight, since the only things I had in my inventory were two combat knives, and the handgun, with a full clip, but the retry option put me back right before the fight. Plus it probably made the fight a little more exciting. Those aside, I really enjoyed the setting and presentation, the music was excellent, the controls felt like a dream in comparison to a lot of other tank controls, and left on its own, the story isn't terribly annoying. It doesn't have the absurd amount of replay value and extra content that 2 does, but I enjoyed my time with CV more, anyway.

Now I really only have Gamecube REs left unplayed (0, REmake, and 4), but I had kind of forgotten that I own Deep Fear, so I think I'm going to try beat that before the end of the month.

Well, glad you liked CV.

When you get to Zero and REmake though, you might understand my frustrations with CV's boring 3D style. With the HD versions of Zero and REmake, they look practically current gen. I think CV looks worse than the PSX versions of RE2-RE3. I'm a huge fan of pre-rendered background art so maybe I'm just a little biased, but yeah the boring flat look of CV didn't help make me like the levels. I guess it's like, comparing Mega Man X4-6's style and looks compared to Mega Man X7. X7 is technically more advanced, but yeah...

I really enjoyed the ice level though, feels a bit like the RE1-RE2 and Dino Crisis labs. And the later mansion-esque bits with Chris were great.

[strangenova]

I finished Simons Quest. It was not as fulfilling an experience as Draculas Curse but it was a nice easy game to take on after 3 and 4.

[J T]

Today I played Innsmouth no Yakata, which was a Japanese-only release for the Virtual Boy. I'm playing via emulator (VBjin) with an old pair of red/blue 3D glasses.

The title is a reference to HP Lovecraft's "The Shadow Over Innsmouth", but the game doesn't get real deep into that. You're in a spooky mansion with scary monsters that have some fish-like features, and that's about the extent of its Lovecraft homage. The game is a first person shooter, but not quite like any other I have ever played before. You have to run as fast as you can to get through a maze full of monsters. What makes it different from other FPS games is that the focus is all on speed. You have very little time to find a key and get to an exit.



The 3D effects are pretty solid, even on red/blue glasses. It was fun to have that added layer of depth, and it seems strange there weren't more first-person games on the Virtual Boy. That said, it's that old kind of maze game where you turn and are instantly rotated 90 degrees. There are no connecting animations, so you have to keep track of your taps to know if you have turned 90, 180, 270, or 360 degrees. The walls all pretty much look the same too, unless they have a door. In other words, it's really easy to get lost in this game, and if you aren't good at keeping track of things in your head, you will die because the timer runs out very quickly.

Not only does the timer require a fast pace, but the game also has branching paths that lead to multiple endings. Which branch you take depends on how fast you get through each level. There are also monsters that you can't run past, and are really slow to kill, not to mention you have limited ammunition and have to take time to reload after every 6 rounds have been fired. The time pressure makes this game pretty stressful, and with the horror setting, that feels even more anxiety provoking. The items you collect are randomly put in a different spot every time you play, so you never know where the key is going to be. Sometimes you don't find it right away, and when you're running for the exit and trying to beat the clock, the last thing you want is for some monster to jump out and slow your escape.

The game is fun in short bursts, but it's so hard to keep track of where you are in the maze, so it is hard to recommend full heartedly. You can get Orbs, which will give you a map, or highlight items on the map, which helps, but it's still easy to get lost and have no idea where you are when you need to run so fast all the time. I did find this game to be a unique experience though, and it was a fun little run of terror for the Halloween season.

[Ack]

Hey Sarge, if Shadow Man still interests you and you don't mind playing it on PC, it's on sale on GOG right now for $0.89.

[Stark]

So I just finally played a spooky game!

It is called Inside and it's from Playdead the folks that made Limbo.


Just like Limbo, you're playing as a young child, you mostly travel from left to right, on a single plane. Death in this game is even more shocking and gruesome when it happens and the level of tension is insane. Such a great atmospheric game and considering it's legacy, this game outperforms it in every way. Highly recommended!