The Vanishing of Ethan Carter

I don't like walking simulators but The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is an exception. One of the best atmospheres I experienced in a video game.

Despite the claim that this gam it will not hold your hand, this game is impossible to fail and I was not allowed to find any joy in figuring out the puzzles or the story. And this was pretty much the feeling I got throughout the game. At no point did I feel like I really ever exited the tutorial. Going from point to point without being left to my thoughts or speculations. The game also very quickly foreshadowed its ending to the point where the twist was not all that unexpected. All in all this game felt like a proof of concept that did what it told me it would not. A brief dip into an interesting idea, but that's all.

When I first heard about this game and its tagline of being a "narrative experience that does not hold your hand" I was intrigued, but also very skeptical. I don't like to put too much faith in any game regardless of how cool the concept seems, especially one made by a brand new studio as their very first production. After beating the game however I can safely say that I very much enjoyed this product and it mostly stays true to what it sells itself as. First off, as you can probably gather from watching the trailer, the graphics are absolutely stunning. Red Creek Valley truly feels like a living, breathing place from just the first few moments within it, which is somewhat odd sounding given that the game is almost completely devoid of any characters whatsoever. Although many are probably going to overlook it, I'd also like to say that the sound design and score of this game are incredible, and both are perfectly understated and punctuated in every necessary moment. The story is that of Paul Prospero, a detective with the ability to see the dead which he uses at length to solve crimes. A young fan of his, Ethan Carter, writes to him, asking Paul for help in the wake of a grisly murder, and Paul shows up to find Ethan missing (hence the title). The plot basically dissolves down into a series of puzzles ranging in complexity from extremely simple to mildly challenging. Ultimately the puzzles themselves are not what is so engaging as is what you discover by solving them. I found it to be a very unique and well done narrative but many may complain about the ending, which I understand even if I don't agree with. The voice acting is okay. Paul Prospero's actor does quite well as the aged, grizzled, detective, but the others, particularly Ethan Carter, are lackluster. They aren't groan-worthy at least. Ultimately, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a very good game, and I recommend it to anyone interested in a unique story set in a beautifully rendered world.

First off, excellent game. The atmosphere was immersive and the music was perfect at every moment. A handful of scary jumpy moments, but nothing to keep you awake at night. Mostly just serene, yet eerie, surroundings. The voice acting was great, and the story was deep and honestly left me speechless for a while. The ONLY draw-back is the length of the game. I can't recommend paying full price. Get it on sale if you can. It took somewhere between 3-5 hours for me, I didn't really count. Fairly linear story progression, though you have the freedom to go where you want. Do not go into this game expecting extremely difficult puzzles or anything. The most difficult puzzles were minuscule compared to something like the Myst Series. But, each puzzle makes perfect sense in it's placement and part of the story line. As a whole, I loved the experience of the game. I got it on sale, and I feel it was money very well spent.

It's not often you find video games that have literary aspirations, but "Ethan Carter" attempts to tell a short "weird tale" in the tradition of Lovecraft, Blackwood, Dunsany, Bierce and their ilk. If you were a fan of "Dear Esther," this takes that conceit to the next level. The graphics are utterly stunning -- that is the first thing that you will notice, and the feature that keeps the player so engrossed in the game all the way through. There is a "Making Of" extra included with the game, as well as a few videos on the developers' website that explain how much effort went in to creating such an authentic-feeling world. The game mechanics centre on a detective's investigation in to the missing titular child. Along your journey to finding Ethan, you uncover various murders which are solved with the aid of your psychic/spiritually-sensitive powers. The puzzles don't require too much thought once you figure out some of the quirks of locating important items. Your character is never in any real jeopardy, aside from one memorable section of the game, and even then you are able to respawn where you left off. The game's story is really what sets it aside from other games. Yes, we've had Lovecraftian games before, but this is a really unique, original story and world that the developers have built. There are nods to their forebears at certain points, but many of the conceits are wholly their own. It really feels like being immersed in a work of short fiction from the early 20th century and, even though it has a contemporary setting, there are many great set-pieces in the tropes of its fiction: the abandoned mine, a ritual murder in a cemetery, a malevolent "sleeper" from beyond, and a family with buried secrets. For all its originality and technical excellence, "Ethan Carter" is a short play and not one for the casual gamer, thanks to its lack of a save feature (it's checkpoints only). Nonetheless, it leaves me really excited to see what The Astronauts do next.