Darkwood

I really enjoyed the visual style of this game. It really went a long way to making this a scary game. I think it was the audio that really sells it though. That ambient audio just fills you with a sense of never ending dread. No idea what was going on with the story as it was just really weird, which I think adds to the horror even more. However, I really hate crafting. I hate crafting in every game I have ever played and I think it really drags this game down. I must have missed that crafting was a part of this game in the game's description (that or I assumed it wouldn't be very prominent). I wish I could fully enjoy this game. Maybe if there was a no-crafting mode. I don't want to knock my score down too far, though, because it does so much right. Check the game out if you enjoy horror and crafting. Unfortunately, it wasn't for me.

Review based on 50+ hours of play, got all endings. My opinion - it is The best representation of the indie horror genre, despite the top-down view the storytelling is amazing in richness and atmosphere. And the narration in its depth can easily compete with AAA projects. The gameplay is strict, with an abundance of mechanics, crafting and survival. With a huge pinch of viscous, atmospheric horror, as if dark souls met with silent hill and amnesia. Perfect entertainment for a few dark evenings, highly recommended.

Survival horror is far past it's heyday, with a lot of games from established AAA franchises just being endlessly remade or given sequels. Indie survival horror has become popular as youtube fodder, but 90% of them are just walking simulators with jumpscares. Darkwood is VERY unique gameplay-wise, with a very immersive world that is very unsettling. Also gives a whole new meaning to the "survival" aspect. An almost perfect game, but where the game loses a star is due to two things: 1) Even when you get used to the combat controls, it seems somewhat sluggish and unfair, especially considering how quickly you can get killed. 2) The "true" ending is a bit of a cop-out. That aside, this game has plenty of replay value, so I can see myself coming back to it quite a bit.

Darkwood markets itself as a survival horror experience first with crafting on the side. In reality, the opposite is true. Sure, there's a lot of horror game tropes here: the rigid movement and combat system (which are both fine,) the item management, the scarcity of resources. But these are only in service to the Minecraft-on-drugs night sequences when you're forced go to your base, barricade the windows and doors, and set traps for the zombies. The biggest disappointment I had was when I realized that the non-combat night sequences from the first hideout were never coming back. Doors opening on their own; the lights turning off; poisonous grubs appearing out of nowhere. Less is more when it comes to combat in survival horror. And the atmosphere is so stupendous in this game, it's a real shame they force you into combat every damn night (EVERY night, after the first house), just to destroy the tension. Despite what the army of epeen measurers will say, this game is pathetically easy. Why the contradiction? Because you can die without consequence on normal. Nights don't seem so scary when all you stand to lose is $150 you don't have. This is even truer in the daytime (when you don't risk anything,) meaning the best way to explore is with the regular plank with nails. Get a few hits in, die, run back to your corpse, rinse and repeat until all the enemies are dead. I have so many resources, there's no more room. "Play on hard," you might say. No: I want a balanced game from the ground-up, not an arbitrary '3 lives and then start over' life system like this is Atari. This gameplay loop is the problem. I don't have any desire to boot the game up and go to chapter 2. Not because I'm scared, but because I don't want to slog through ten more hours of this. If crafting games are more your style, you might enjoy it. But the tragedy is that the story, graphics, sound, and tone are all so good, with few exceptions. And you're stuck with the base building and melee combat.

Seriously one of the best games I ever played and quite probably contender for best horror game I played. Don't let the graphics fool you. This is an unbelievably spooky game to play late at night especially if you're anywhere near a forest. Just get it. It's shockingly good.