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THE EVIL WITHIN (PS4)Publisher: Bethesda Softworks.
Developer: Tango Gameworks. Released: October 2014. Genre: Survival Horror. Other versions: PS3; XONE; X360; PC. Posted 27th October 2015. By Shane Battams © 2015 |
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With the decline of Resident Evil and Silent Hill, many thought survival horror had bit its last chunk out of scared gamers. But 2014 saw an exciting re-emergence of the once stale genre, with terrifying games like Outlast, Alien Isolation and P.T. causing gamers to wince everywhere. Among a stacked horror line-up was The Evil Within, a brand new project from Shinji Mikami, the creator of Resident Evil. It sought to stand out with brutal gameplay, a disturbing atmosphere and psychological uncertainty. And while it starts off incredibly strong, and remains fairly solid, technical issues and an increasingly frustrating difficulty makes it disappointing in parts.
The Evil Within seems to start off as a dark, gritty cop drama. Detective Sebastian Castellanos, along with his partners Joseph and Kidman, is investigating a gruesome murder at a mental institute when, after being knocked unconscious, Sebastian wakes up in a disturbing, nightmarish hellhole which he must escape by finding his partners. But it is going to be far from easy, as disgusting monsters aim to kill him before that can happen. The story benefits from its haunting atmosphere and sick imagery, constantly leaving you unsettled. The rest of the story is pretty forgettable though, as Sebastian is a rather dull hero, and the other characters lack enough development to be worth caring for. As a result, it becomes more about which horrific set piece you’ll see next rather than whether the characters are going to survive.
The Evil Within seems to start off as a dark, gritty cop drama. Detective Sebastian Castellanos, along with his partners Joseph and Kidman, is investigating a gruesome murder at a mental institute when, after being knocked unconscious, Sebastian wakes up in a disturbing, nightmarish hellhole which he must escape by finding his partners. But it is going to be far from easy, as disgusting monsters aim to kill him before that can happen. The story benefits from its haunting atmosphere and sick imagery, constantly leaving you unsettled. The rest of the story is pretty forgettable though, as Sebastian is a rather dull hero, and the other characters lack enough development to be worth caring for. As a result, it becomes more about which horrific set piece you’ll see next rather than whether the characters are going to survive.
Pft. November weather.
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Come on, no need to sit on the fence with this one. Baha...sorry.
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You certainly can’t say that The Evil Within is original, but for the most part it takes the modern-Resident Evil mechanics and keeps them working. Taking place in a third-person perspective, you guide Sebastian through 15 chapters as you partake in combat encounters, stealth segments and more traditional puzzle moments. The shooting benefits from a bit more smoothness than your typical survival-horror, meaning it isn’t quite as clunky. But it certainly doesn’t lack challenge, as sparse amounts of ammo, plentiful enemies and tight environments make it challenging even on normal difficulty, and certainly harder than your average game.
At first, The Evil Within seems like pure bliss. It’s scary, leaving you unsettled and even causing some scream-inducing terror at a couple of points. You feel like this is how modern survival horror should be, with infrequent combat but forceful encounters that leave you feeling vulnerable. It’s not until later in the game when things start to sink. Instead of being scary, the game becomes more frustrating. Certain sequences will punish you with insta-death, yet give zero indication on how to pass said segment. Puzzles become trial-and-error affairs, combat encounters are insane to the point that you physically can’t have enough ammo to survive and action set-pieces take over instead of tense survival horror. Bosses, which can feel clever at first – particularly encounters with The Keeper – devolve into frustration. The final boss signifies this most, ending the game on a flat action scene.
It’s a shame, because The Evil Within benefits from Mikami’s twisted concepts. The enemies are gruesome and ugly, and their aggressive and inconsistent behaviour can make them unnerving. The whole game seeps with dark, nightmarish atmosphere, and it often becomes hard to tell what reality in this warped world is. The opening chapters take place in dark, often dilapidated locales like an insane asylum, pitch black woods and a mansion. But again, this becomes replaced by open areas of the outside city, fully lit in daylight and feeling more like a poor action film than a tense horror game. It’s almost as if The Evil Within’s vision becomes clouded as the game goes on.
At first, The Evil Within seems like pure bliss. It’s scary, leaving you unsettled and even causing some scream-inducing terror at a couple of points. You feel like this is how modern survival horror should be, with infrequent combat but forceful encounters that leave you feeling vulnerable. It’s not until later in the game when things start to sink. Instead of being scary, the game becomes more frustrating. Certain sequences will punish you with insta-death, yet give zero indication on how to pass said segment. Puzzles become trial-and-error affairs, combat encounters are insane to the point that you physically can’t have enough ammo to survive and action set-pieces take over instead of tense survival horror. Bosses, which can feel clever at first – particularly encounters with The Keeper – devolve into frustration. The final boss signifies this most, ending the game on a flat action scene.
It’s a shame, because The Evil Within benefits from Mikami’s twisted concepts. The enemies are gruesome and ugly, and their aggressive and inconsistent behaviour can make them unnerving. The whole game seeps with dark, nightmarish atmosphere, and it often becomes hard to tell what reality in this warped world is. The opening chapters take place in dark, often dilapidated locales like an insane asylum, pitch black woods and a mansion. But again, this becomes replaced by open areas of the outside city, fully lit in daylight and feeling more like a poor action film than a tense horror game. It’s almost as if The Evil Within’s vision becomes clouded as the game goes on.
You just can't get the cleaners these days...
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"Silent Hill? No, definitely never worked there. Sorry."
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For horror purists, The Evil Within at least packs a decent amount of replay value. My first playthrough took around 16 hours. Subsequent playthroughs naturally reduce in length, but there’s some fun to be had with New Game+, which allows you to carry an upgraded Sebastian through the game again. You can upgrade Sebastian’s weapons, ammo capacity and certain stats, like sprint or melee, using Green Gel which is picked up from dead enemies and hidden caches. There’s also a bevy of collectibles throughout the game, such as documents which shed light on the whole situation, keys which unlock lockers that contain ammo and the like, and personal documents which share some details on Sebastian. Finally, for the true horror buff out there, Akumu difficulty challenges you to beat the entire game on Nightmare while dying after one hit. Good luck.
While The Evil Within certainly benefits from a twisted art style, the technical performance often leaves a lot to be desired. Sure, environments benefit from great lighting and characters look pretty good, particularly during cutscenes. But some of the best moments – such as a tense encounter laced with thick fog – are undermined by a choppy frame rate which can dip to single digits in tense situations. It leaves the game feeling unpolished, worsened by infrequent crashes. The audio is better though, with tense music and terrifying monster sounds. The voice acting isn’t so hot though, as stiff voice acting and odd dialogue leave you feeling detached.
In the end, The Evil Within feels like a missed opportunity. Despite a dark atmosphere and some genuine scares, Tango Gameworks are unable to keep their momentum. Tense encounters dissolve into frustrating hurdles, the disturbing art style changes into a bland disaster movie and the story never comes together in a satisfying manner. Top that with a sketchy technical performance, and it leaves The Evil Within at a disadvantage. But, for the sheer terror you feel towards the start and for other moments of odd brilliance, purists of the genre will still probably enjoy it. Anyone else, though, will find the barriers of entry too high.
While The Evil Within certainly benefits from a twisted art style, the technical performance often leaves a lot to be desired. Sure, environments benefit from great lighting and characters look pretty good, particularly during cutscenes. But some of the best moments – such as a tense encounter laced with thick fog – are undermined by a choppy frame rate which can dip to single digits in tense situations. It leaves the game feeling unpolished, worsened by infrequent crashes. The audio is better though, with tense music and terrifying monster sounds. The voice acting isn’t so hot though, as stiff voice acting and odd dialogue leave you feeling detached.
In the end, The Evil Within feels like a missed opportunity. Despite a dark atmosphere and some genuine scares, Tango Gameworks are unable to keep their momentum. Tense encounters dissolve into frustrating hurdles, the disturbing art style changes into a bland disaster movie and the story never comes together in a satisfying manner. Top that with a sketchy technical performance, and it leaves The Evil Within at a disadvantage. But, for the sheer terror you feel towards the start and for other moments of odd brilliance, purists of the genre will still probably enjoy it. Anyone else, though, will find the barriers of entry too high.
