Sanitarium

I liked Sanitarium and it's a pretty good game worth getting especially at the price GOG puts it at over the steam copy. Now there are a couple of annoyance I had with the game such as the puzzles get weaker after the halfway point and some of them are kind of cheap with the difficulty of not solving being that you just didn't have all the info needed to solve it, and in some chapters you have really brain dead puzzles such as get key to open lock to get something to open another lock but that only happens a few times. Also the maps in each chapter seem to get progressively smaller and smaller as you play on which is disappointing because exploration was one of the games interesting aspects. Now the story and voicing acting is great and the dialogue sometimes comes off really funny when they were read but the story is indeed the best part of the game. While I did think the puzzles aren't amazing they are adequate and not to the point you'd really need a walkthrough for it. Overall Sanitarium is still worth playing and experiencing through so get your copy today or if you're too cheap to get good game(shame on you) then you can always watch wiz hitman's duo commentary on the entire game on youtube.

Twenty-five years ago, Sanitarium was an amazing game. Unprecedented atmosphere of horror and confusion, detailed graphics, fully voiced dialogues. For years, I cherished memories of the first chapter in the game - the patients' scribbles, the fire alarm, the guy determinedly banging his head against the wall amidst the surrounding chaos. Back then, I couldn't finish playing it to the end. A quarter of a century later, I got the chance to play it again. Has it aged like fine wine? Or has it turned into vinegar? Unfortunately, a bit of both. While the story continues to be interesting, it's no longer something unique - in fact, without giving away too much, it turns out to be something we've seen dozens of times in movies, books, and games. The atmosphere is still good, at the beginning. Probably, the creators of Sanitarium were pressed for tight deadlines, as each subsequent chapter is less polished, shorter, and... well, familiar. The graphics, though visibly aged, still hold up decently. Of course, on an ultra-wide monitor, you'll enjoy pixels the size of cats, but otherwise, it carries some aesthetic pleasure. The voice acting is strange. There are artists who do brilliantly, but most of them voice secondary NPCs. The main characters sound extremely artificial and devoid of emotion. The puzzles, because puzzles are the main thing in a game of this type, are excellent. They make you think, make an effort to find the answer, without being insanely difficult or illogical. The pathfinding is terrible. In other words, Sanitarium is a classic in the genre, and it's worth playing even in 2024. Just don't expect too much.

First time I tried this game, was back in the late 90:s .. 20some years old.. playing the demo on my old dear Win95 comp. (Cyrix 686..@120mhz). Anywho.. As I said I only got the demo but I was hooked and wanted to play even more. A friend of mine had the full game (..warez at that time where common). But I didn´t get it to work properly. Back to 2009.. Almost 11 years later.. I enjoy the full version of the game, for the first time. Yes, so the graphics are a bit outdated..and the point n´click interface abit odd. But still, this IS a old classic.. from the days when Gabriel Knight ruled the computer world togehter with Twinsen (of LBA) and Dos 6.22 and/or together with Win95. Kicked some butts ;) So.. Go ahead , buy the game and enjoy this classic!!

I played this through at leat 4 times, with and without friends and I think it is one of the most fascinating adventure games I know. The artwork is very atmospheric, the music is wonderful and the dialogue is very well written. Go try it, and recommend it!

A fascinating adventure built as a psychological thriller. It's a game that tried to do almost everything in a new way. It misses a bit (when it comes to the controls for example) but it manage to surprise you and challenge you in interesting ways. An unforgettable experience.