The Medium

Another game with a great atmosphere that is ruined by bad gameplay. Having to run from an instakill enemy with only trial and error, and then having to here "it all ends with me" over and over again is simply annoying.

I love games with lots of narrative, and the issue with "The Medium" is that the plot is beyond boring and predictable, the characters are unrelatable, and that ending .... gosh that ending is disgusting. The game mechanics are also quite boring (just some quick actions, and some super easy "puzzles"), but I generally don't care if the plot is good ... the problem with this game is that it focuses on the plot, and the plot is terrible. Graphics and sound design in general are great, despite the performance issues in some scenes, but I can't give them 2 stars just because the game looks pretty.

- Doesn't overstimulate you with monster encounters - has just the right amount. - The way quest areas are locked out from the rest of the map is preventing you from getting lost and searching aimlessly. It helps with steadily progressing with your story-line and prevents you from getting stuck. This should become the new industry standard for puzzle solving adventure games. - I will never forget my first Split World moment which simply blew my socks off and left me stunned and excited. Really a one of a kind experience.

The most horrory part of this game is the fear of stumbling into an invisible obstacle while the Maw is chasing you and then discover that the last autosave was made a couple of minutes ago, and now you have to repeat the not so puzzling puzzles all over again. The characters motivations are not fully developed, it seems like this is a puzzle that the developers weren't able to solve.

A flawed game but with an engaging story that, in my case, struck me especially during the final act. You play as a woman that just lost her adoptive father. The time as come to make the last goodbye to him. Strange (and creepy) visions will occurs to you, and by following trails and clues you will learn more about yourself and your past. The gameplay is one of those that some call "walking simulator". You walk, interact with object, read, speak your way through the story with a twist thought. You can access to an alternative dimension, a creepy copy of the world. During those phase the screen is split in two and you see your character in both world doing the exact same movement and gesture. Using this duality in the level design, riddle are to be solved. A mechanic that distinguish this game from the other of the genre. Visually stunning, the artistic direction is great and the voice acting is on point. Be warned this isn't an horror game with screamer, and bloody stuff. This is more a game of atmosphere doing thing softly, between light and shadow, with a neat sound design and a good music. In order to keep the immersion, the game is very "cinematic" with a simple gameplay that will not be to everyone liking. A ten hours adventure the price is however too high, i recommend you to give it a try when it's on sale.