Demo Thoughts

[IndigoWraithe]

Been looking forward to this game since I saw the very first previews back in like 2021. Demo was pretty good, I enjoyed it a lot. The vibes were immaculate. Really like the unconventional protagonist. The visual design of the game is great. Feels like a blend of Silent Hill and HR Geiger. That side view shot of the orange hallway that connects the two areas is really striking.

Tbh, there's a lot of jank in the movement. For a small indie team, it's not a deal killer for me, but it is noticeable. I think tank controls could help. There's just too many hard camera cuts where "modern" controls don't work as well. It's especially bad whenever you go from camera behind Roman to camera suddenly in front of him.

Combat is good, but has some issues. It took a bit for me to realize that you need to be more methodical about engagements, which I do like. It's unique and fits the survival horror tone well. However, it feels inconsistent at times. For example, the fight with the legless I did without taking a hit, but even locked on I still swung directly over the monster's head or slammed down and missed somehow. It's also just really annoying to bait out attacks. Strict dedication to fixed camera angles does not help with combat, especially when the monster is in a position where the camera changes 180 degrees.

Puzzles are good. I didn't find them hard, and I am shocked that so many people struggled with the combination lock puzzle. I felt that these are pretty standard survival horror puzzles. The difficulty felt just right to me, especially at the start of the game. At least I didn't have to know a lot about Shakespeare. That said, the generator puzzle is awful. It isn't hard, if anything it's too "easy." The solution is the only 3 Ds and the only 2 Bs, which by necessity turns on 2 As. Then you can turn on any 1 of the remaining As and any 1 C, which means there's multiple valid solutions. Because of that, there doesn't feel like the puzzle has a specific a rhyme or reason to it, and it isn't satisfying to "solve." Worse, the puzzle's outcome doesn't follow logically. Your forward progress is halted by a key card and not knowing a door code. You're presented a fuse box and a generator, but the power isn't out anywhere. So this is not an obstacle to your progress logically, but it's the only thing the game is giving you to do. When you get the generator on, a key card you didn't even know was there falls down. I get that there's a certain level of dream logic to this game, which is fine, but this just feels haphazard.

Like I said, I enjoyed the game overall, and I'm excited about the full release. I'm a bit worried about the projected 3/31 release date, but I'm hoping you pull it off and the game performs well.