Clive Barker's Undying

I remember when I was so young (about 11-12 years old) playing this game for the first time, I was SO scared that when the first fight came I just alt-f4 it! then I found out my older brother played and quit at the same spot! and then father got to fight the prowlers and keep on moving through the manor, you won't regret getting this game! I had so many nightmares because of it, and after 10 years it still haunts me from time to time.

I have been waiting for this game to come to the GOG library! What an amazing addition. True classic horror with many creepy and surprising moments. One of many games that remain embedded in my memory. Thank you GOG!

Even if this game looks like outdated technically, but it still give me chills. Atmosphere, music and sound design are still gorgeous: hungry howling of monsters; ringing melody of revolver, loaded with silver bullets; insane laughter of reanimated and charged skulls; swing of Scythe, sweet as slaughter. And voice murmuring behind your ear: "Look". For me "Undying" was the first introduction to Clive Barker's stories and just a very scary game of late childhood. Years later me and my friends gone through the game several times, always finding some new easter eggs, weapon\spell tricks, etc. "Undying" is iconic mystical thriller full off little hints but not revealing it's secrets directly. This idea connecting whole story and gameplay as well. I played this title several times, always finding something new even still 15 years after first time seeing Undying. And I still can't hold myself from playing it yet another 15 minutes, just like before xD Be the way, this game also defined my love to horror-FPS games. And it still holding the first place in my personal rankings not only as horror, but also among all my favorite titles.

When Undying it came out it won tons of awards, but mostly the "Best Game Nobody Played" variety. Had more people played it it would be remembered like BioShock as this game was an early pioneer of the dual wield weapon in one hand, magic in the other. How does it stack up today? Let's go over it The Good: The story line and characters remain as scary as they were back when the game was released. The gameplay is rock solid as you have to conserve your limited supply of ammo not deplete your mana. Combine this with enemies moving around in ways that make them difficult to hit and every fight has some challenge. There is strategy in which spells you use, level up, mindful of their limitations. The voice acting and sound remain solid Weapons often have multiple ammo types or can be combined with spells to offer additional ways to slay enemies. Playtime is solid with 6-10 hours being typical Every enemy has a unique way of killing you so you you might decide to die periodically just to see how the enemies kill you. Has a huge number of console commands and cheat codes you can use for goofing off The Bad: For the most part the downsides are just the result of age and changes in game design. Compared to modern games the maps and levels are spartan, little interaction with the environment, etc. Same with character and enemy appearance There's no option for using controllers Most people will need to adjust the controls from the default. "Reload" isn't named reload and is awkwardly placed The large numbers of spells and weapons quickly becomes difficult to manage without pulling up the circular menus (remap the keys so they are convenient) The only real problem is the difficulty curve. Easy mode is a bit too easy and Normal is way too hard, so pick your poison (I have the most fun on easy) In conclusion, this is a hidden gem from the early 2000s. At the price on GOG you should definitely give it a try.

If Undying were the story, atmosphere, some puzzles, and maybe a select handful of interesting (boss) fights along the way, this game would be a 'greatest of all time' game. However, after playing about 4 hours, I'm bored to tears with how slow the pacing is. The weapons are generally pretty awkward, as is the first combat spell you get. Buffing the spells doesn't seem to do much as far as I can tell, either. So, really, not much going on level design-wise (again, the atmosphere is great - just empty), nothing particularly good shooting-wise, and nothing satisfying going on progression-wise. A really large missed opportunity for people that aren't living with nostalgia goggles on.