Undertale

Apologies for lack of content recently, I had a birthday.  But just because I'm not updating much doesn't mean I'm not gaming and one of the games I beat quite recently was Undertale, a strange little indie RPG for PC.

The story of Undertale starts with a war between monsters and humans that ends with a human victory.  In the aftermath the humans sealed away the monsters under the earth except they left an opening to the underground in the top of a mountain.  A small child who was wandering around falls into this gap in the seal and this is where the game begins, it is then up to you as the player to help this child find a way out.

The game is very linear but it makes up for it's lack of exploration with some really strong writing and characterization.  While it's not perfect and sometimes relies on memes and other internet stupidity you will probably find yourself getting quite engrossed in the Underground and the game provides an interesting cast who you can actually become quite attached to.

Game play is a rather strange mix of RPG and bullet hell shooter.  When you get into combat choosing the attack command will bring up a Mario RPG style timing thingy that dictates how much damage you do.  When you get attacked the text box turns into a field where the enemy shoots bullets at you and you have to use the arrow keys to move a little heart around and not get hit.  There are boss battles which mix up the combat a bit by locking your movement in certain ways and combat is actually quite infrequent so it never really has a chance to get stale.  You can also win fights by talking your enemy down but in the one play through that I did I never bothered to try that method of winning a fight

The game isn't very long but this is probably due to the nature of the endings.  There are a number of routes and ways you can play this game and doing each one yields a different ending.  The ending that you get changes certain things about your next play through which gives the game some degree of replay value however at time of writing I've not gone past a single full play through.  Other strong points for this title include a really strong soundtrack and some really well thought out set pieces that either punch you in the soul or make you laugh out loud.

If I had anything to complain about it would be the aforementioned internet meme references and the overly easy nature of all the puzzles.  Every puzzle is obvious and unchallenging which in some moments is because the story calls for it but other times where I feel like I'm just being treated like a fucking moron. I've heard people complain about the graphics because it's all retro but there's nothing inherently bad with that.  If I was to make a game I'd probably use pixel graphics because I can't draw anything else for shit and I think the game would have lost some of its charm if it looked any other way.

I've heard some people compare it to Earthbound but I'm not seeing it.  There's a couple of nods to it here and there so you can tell the developer got some degree of inspiration but there's nods to other games in there like Final Fantasy 6 but I don't see anyone going crazy for that reference.  To be brutally honest I was getting more of a Yumi Nikki vibe from the game, obviously totally different but something about the art style and atmosphere of the game gave me that feeling.

Either way, Undertale is a pretty good game that's worth checking out.  Love it or hate it, it's hard to deny that that it's an interesting title that's worth at least a little bit of time and attention.  It's inexpensive on Steam so if the idea of this game does interest you then it wont kill you to at least give it a go.  I could easily see this game not being for everyone but for those willing to take a chance you're in for a good time.

Into The Gloom

Into the Gloom is a strange little horror game I picked up on Steam for about £2.  It's indie developed and it has pixel graphics but don't let that put you off because we have something that's actually half decent on our hands.

Story wise you play as a first unnamed protagonist who wakes up in a hospital completely alone.  As you walk around you find blood smears and eventually a dead body that has been hung to the ceiling.  It's up to you to escape from the hospital and get away from whatever it may be that stalks you in the darkness.

(Minor Spoilers Ahead)

After your first play through you find out that you are a young man who is stuck in a coma and you are wandering around the inside of his conscience.  Being found and killed by the strange figure at the end of the game gets you the bad ending which involves a highly depressing sequence about how you bankrupt your family and everyone forgets you.

(End Spoilers)

Game play in Into The Gloom is fairly simple.  You have to wander around, find items and solve puzzles.  There isn't much in terms of combat but that's because there aren't really any enemies.  Over time you find notes that help with puzzles and give you more insight into the story.  The puzzles in Into The Gloom are actually pretty good since they seem really obtuse and stupid at first but once you realise what's going on then they are deceptively simple.

I've only played up to the first ending at time of writing but as you make runs of the game it "unlocks" more notes for you to find which in turn unlocks more puzzles for you to piece the mystery together.  The game is quite short but there are 5 or 6 different endings for you to find so it may take you a little longer to get everything than first thought.

Horror-wise, the game isn't all that scary (at least to me) but you can tell that some genuine effort has been made to lay on atmosphere rather than relying on cheapo jump scares for lets play bait.  There are a few jump scares but the ones I encountered in my first run weren't all that common and one of them did get me pretty good without being too over the top.  Maybe for someone a bit more sensitive the atmosphere of Into the Gloom may take hold but if you're a big fan of horror games then it may fall a bit flat.

All that said, for the price tag I'd say it's absolutely worth a shot.  It's a very simple game that you can enjoy in a short, lazy evening and once beaten there is a good bit of replay value to be had in order to get the extra endings.  Put it this way, if you had a  choice between Into the Gloom and The Evil Within, I'd say go for this one.  You'll save a shit ton of money and be a hell of a lot less disappointed.