Posted on: June 19, 2020

CookieMunster73

Games: 141 Reviews: 3

A Short, but Sweet Indie Horror Game.

This is going down as one of my favorite horror games ever. I usually don't enjoy these "coward simulators" as another reviewer put, but this one speaks to me. As the title says it is a short game. It only took me 3 hours to beat and I can see someone taking at most 6 hours. The story of outlast is mostly left in hidden documents around the asylum that you can collect and the silent protagonist writes down notes when the camcorder sees something of interest. However this in no way affects you experience if you decide not to go for them. You'll just be clued out of some stories. The gameplay is broken down into either exploring, being chased or solving a puzzle to progress. There are parts of the game that allows you to look around your area unimpeded by enemies, allowing you take in the sites and sounds. Then there are chase sequences of you running from the variants and trying to escape them. Finally there are small open-ended areas where you will have to find items or turn valves to proceed through to the next level, usually being chased by a variant during this. Now this game has no combat system, your choices are to run, hide or die. The only tool you have on you is a camera equipped with night vision, allowing you to pier into the darkness. However this drains your battery and there is a limited supply scattered around the asylum., so use it sparingly. The graphics, sound effects and music are top notch. They will seamlessly immerse you into the world of Outlast. Exploring Mount Massive was a total joy to do when the game is as good looking as this, however there is this weird grain effect on the screen. I tried removing, but it didn't work. It doesnt really affect the gameplay, it just looks weird at some points, but by no means something to make you stop playing. This is a must buy game for any fans of Horror. The game goes for $20 normally and $3 on sale. It is well worth buying at that price and is a must snatch when it's on sale.

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Posted on: December 18, 2023

XVX777

Verified owner

Games: 1217 Reviews: 6

Found the heck out of that footage

I don't know what's up with all these incorrectly negative reviews, this game is wonderful, charming and a scrumptious bona fide modern horror classic. The gameplay is simple, stealth, avoiding enemies, finding your way through. Where it shines is the singularly disturbing and thick atmosphere, with an interesting horror concept/story underneath for us to discover. It's been a favorite of mine for a long time. Unfortunately, the GOG version doesn't include the achievements which feature some fun bonus challenges, but that didn't hinder my enjoyment too much, anyway. Also loved the DLC, Whistleblower, giving me another viewpoint from which to explore the location and featuring a new, even more disturbing main enemy. Also worth it at this point, IMO. If you're into horror at all, you should grab it, it's a fun ride.

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Posted on: July 17, 2018

BetoBob

Verified owner

Games: 32 Reviews: 2

Didn't do it for me / feels silly

(mild early-game spoilers) At the beginning of the game, the main character (a reporter) enters an asylum he is investigating through some scaffolding. He immediately sees (and records with his camcorder) a bunch of blood on the floor of the room he enters, walks into a hall with blood smeared on the walls, hears a door slam shut, and enters a kitchen with intestines on the counter and a vent dripping in blood. So my first thought is to backtrack to the window I came in, and leave with the evidence I recorded. I mean blood and wreaked furniture should be pretty damning evidence to collect. But despite the window I entered still being open, my character refuses to exit through the window. So I'm forced to stupidly go through the bloody vent to progress despite it being kind of a red flag for, you know, a psycho murderer on the other end. So I kept playing, but my first impression is that this character is some sort of masochist who wants whatever bloody thing is on the other side of that vent. And from this point the game just gets silly. There are jump scares galore. The asylum patients look like Batman villains with deformed bodies, who like to throw you around a bit but won't kill you right away for some reason. There's an impaled dude that gives like 3 minute exposition dump. It all feels so silly. And it doesn't do anything remarkable game-play wise either. It's the usual "find a key to do this", "turn a lever to open this", "collect batteries for yo flashlight", "read this letter for exposition dump", etc. It all feels very cliche. It's a shame because the game has a promising concept and pretty solid graphics / audio to boot (for an Indie developer). But the inconsistent world and larger focus on Halloween house scare tactics makes Outlast feel more like streamer bait than a deep psychological horror experience.

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Posted on: April 7, 2020

BulletsOfCuddles

Verified owner

Games: 549 Reviews: 24

Really good

Loved this game, played on the sofa with my girlfriend and it was a pretty unique experience. Yeah, it goes full speed on jump scares, but... they'll freak you out, no matter what. The DLC is worth buying, it may be a little repetitive compared to the main game, but if bought on a sale, it's worth it. Also, it's story interesects nicely with the main game and you get to know what happens AFTER the main story. If you like first person horror games, just buy it.

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Posted on: June 22, 2020

decorus_veritas

Verified owner

Games: 143 Reviews: 64

Simple concept, scary game

The scariest game I've yet played. Highly recommended for anyone who likes to experience terror in the dark. This game is exhilarating and tense throughout, rarely giving you a breather before sending you off into another dark corridor with some demented variant. It's not a perfect game, by far. The level design is very plain and linear, and it has annoying design features like no toggle button for crouch, not placing notes and documents at the top of your notebook list, etc. More significantly, the game does not allow for any creativity in how you evade monsters. There's really only one way to do so in a given monster chase, so you either do it, or not. The player cannot really experiment with different hiding options beyond those provided in the game (beds and lockers). The game is still fun, I just wish that the hiding feature, the main point of the game, was more open-ended. Nonetheless, these shortfalls do not compromise the game's central motif. There are few things scarier than pushing around in the dark, looking through a grainy camcorder, in a fantastically freakish haunted asylum. The textures and atmosphere are so good; it's clear how much effort the team put into creating a compelling mood and immersive sound selection. The mnusic is chilling, the voice acting is strong, and this game will have you sweaing bullets. Play it in the dark, play it with headphones, and most of all, don't read walkthroughs. Just let the game's surprises come to you. Visually arresting, Outlast is definitely an essential addition to the great titles of PC horror lore.

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