Previews
[Hands-on Preview] Become ‘The Blob’ in Reverse Horror Game ‘Carrion’
Carrion casts players as an oozing red spaghetti beast with hatred in its heart, or in whatever is at the center of all those meaty tentacles.
Phobia Game Studio offered a demo of their “reverse horror game” as part of The Game Festival, an interactive Game Awards tie-in event that gave players short looks at a variety of upcoming games via Steam from Thursday to Saturday. In the very small dose this demo provided, I was impressed by how great it felt to slide through this eerie facility, stealth kill guards (and, admittedly, a whole bunch of unarmed, shrieking scientists) and upgrade my globby mass.
Carrion’s Steam page states that your monster’s origins are unknown and the game, likewise, doesn’t reveal much about the creature. In the opening beats, I don’t get the sense that the monster is a victim with vengeance on its mind, à la the primate pugilist at the heart of this year’s Ape Out. The best horror films leave their antagonist’s origins shrouded in mystery, so my hope is that I can finish this game knowing absolutely nothing about this violent creature.
No, I don’t know why the blob is killing people. But, I sure am glad it is. Movement feels effortless, as the meat ball’s agile cilia allow it to move left, right, up and down with ease. You won’t need to jump or climb: move the left thumbstick in any direction and the creature follows. Taking out enemies is similarly easy. You can move tentacles with the right thumbstick, and grab guards and grates with the right trigger. A fanged bite icon shows up whenever you can grab something; a nice touch. Though your creature can’t use a gun, maneuvering it through the facility feels a bit like playing a responsive twin-stick shooter.
During my time with the game, I picked up one ability and a pair of upgrades that increased my size. The ability upgrade allowed me to dash, which can be used to burst through wooden barricades and access new areas. Growing in size, unsurprisingly, increases the amount of damage you can take but slows your monster down.
While I easily steamrolled the first rooms I encountered, it quickly becomes apparent that maintaining your reign of terror requires stealth. There are plenty of vents to slink through, and sneaking up behind shield-bearing guards was especially fun, though, as they carry powerful flamethrowers, trying to take them out comes with a risk. I quickly learned, though, that I could grab the grate off a vent and use my tentacle to hurl it at an enemy while keeping the bulk of my mass hidden in cover.
While I’m generally optimistic for the game, I did encounter minor frustrations during the demo. The world, so far, doesn’t seem memorable enough to warrant the demo’s complete lack of a map. This is especially true once you’ve dispatched all the enemies that might help you differentiate bloody hallway from bloody hallway. Given that Metroid-style games are built around the loop of hitting a brick wall, gaining an upgrade then returning to the brick wall and busting through it, I would love to see Phobia add a map before Carrion’s 2020 release.
That said, even without a map, I can’t wait to become the monster.
Carrion is out 2020 on PC, Xbox One, and PS4.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I miss seeing rats. No, not in real life, but in the upcoming Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy. The series had distinguished itself from other games by focusing on the Black Death era, while using diseases as thematic and gameplay markers.
Instead of using the cover of darkness to get a jump on enemies and devouring them with my supernatural control over rats, I’m jumping right in broad daylight with a sword and knife to cut open their throats. There’s a noticeable shift in setting and tone as Resonance seems to be a sunnier adventure. I played two hours of the game, and I’m interested to see how it’ll connect to the first two games.
Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy follows a younger version of the smuggling pirate Sophia, whom our prior protagonists, Amicia and Hugo, met in A Plague Tale: Requiem. Set 15 years earlier, Sophia has been cursed with terrifying visions, and after escaping from her home, she reaches the island of Crete, which may have the key to ending her curse.
Resonance thankfully still has some horror-tinged aspects, namely through Sophia’s visions. Often seeped in red, these visions are sudden and ominous, showing her what looks like some sort of connection to the Macula, a supernatural curse prominently featured in the series that allows users to control rats.
During my time with the preview, I played chapters 5 and 6, where Sophia is accompanied by her friend Leni. While I’m unsure of her origins or when she joined, I’m curious as to how she’ll develop as the game progresses. Resonance is much more focused on combat, and Sophia’s repertoire of moves includes slashes, blocks, dodges, and parries. It’s nothing revolutionary, but the action feels smooth, almost like Batman: Arkham. Sophia even has a few finishers that add cinematic flourish.
One thing you’ll have to look out for is her HP bar. I was only able to sustain about three hits before dying, and in order to replenish any HP, you’ll need to kill an enemy. So you can’t go in there all reckless. You have to properly read enemy attacks if you want to survive. Leni can’t be controlled directly, but she’ll often be helpful and keep at least one enemy busy as she fights on her own.
Additionally, Resonance emphasizes Greek culture this time around, giving its setting a different identity from the other Plague Tale games. Sophia also has visions revolving around the Greek legend of Theseus and the Minotaur, allowing her to peer into the past. I even played as Theseus at certain points with a similar moveset to Sophia, as he also cuts down other gladiators. There’s a bit of a dual timeline mechanic here, as seeing things through Theseus’s eyes during cutscenes gives her insight on how to progress through the dilapidated dungeons on Crete.
Puzzles are also a big focus of Resonance. During my preview, Sophia had a mysterious device that would emit three different colored lights, and I’d have to line them up properly on switches in order to open up doors to get further in. You’re rewarded for some light exploration as well. I took a side detour to another light-focused puzzle, and when I solved it, I found a chest containing the Sica, a sword for Sophia. This one contained the Focus Rush skill, where killing an enemy further increases her Focus Gauge.
Eventually, Sophia and Leni get separated, and the former is forced to navigate the temple’s underground alone. However, a giant tubular monster hides in the depths, waiting to attack. This is where the game’s stealth elements come into play. Similar to the first two games, light is a safe haven. Whenever Sophia runs, she emits a trail of blue aura, and the monster is attracted to that. So you’re basically trying to rush from one light source to the next. Additionally, Sophia can use her grappling hook to swing across large gaps, giving the traversal a sort of Uncharted-like feel to it.
After successfully getting out from underground, Sophia lets out a sigh of relief, but now realizes that she has to find Leni before it’s too late. My demo cuts there.
Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy is a prequel to the first two games, but manages to separate itself by focusing on action and the shift to Greek culture rather than a stealthy adventure through France. The gameplay and puzzle-solving aren’t exactly reinventing the wheel, but all of its mechanics feel incredibly polished.
I’m absolutely enamored with the A Plague Tale’s world. I’m excited to see how Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy expands its lore and fleshes out Sophia’s character since her introduction in the previous game. This might be the perfect swashbuckling adventure to close out the summer when it launches on August 27 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.
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