The noise did not stop while I was typing. At least once I made the mistake of pausing the game to take notes for this review while a quiet scratching sound was playing. What really got to me, though, was the soundscape. Caroline’s face is also very expressive and watching her react to the horrors of Winterlake is surprisingly compelling. This might be why most classic Resident Evil games had a more zoomed-out POV than Tormented Souls usually does. The environmental design and storytelling are very good, especially when they’re dark, though having Caroline’s shadow cast on most of the screen can get irritating. The game is fully voiced, but the acting can be very stilted and the script is downright wooden at times, which does damage the horror a bit. The graphics are serviceable, especially when they’re conveying some genuinely unsettling imagery, and the sound design is quite good until the voice-acting comes into the equation. Enemies also take full advantage of the camera angles, encouraging you to keep your distance, which is a good idea anyway. More than once, I accidentally jump scared myself by walking into a new area with a new camera angle. The game’s main appeal is its retro fixed camera angles, which definitely add a lot to the game’s mood. Either way, this particular story beat strikes me as rather tone-deaf, especially in light of the mass graves found in Canada recently. As always when this particular horror trope surfaces, I’m not sure if this is a taciturn admission of guilt for the cultural genocide that started sweeping across the Americas hundreds of years ago or simply writers being unimaginative. And there’s an Indigenous burial ground involved because of course there is. Caroline focusing more on finding those girls than saving herself is just confusing. James Sunderland refusing to leave Silent Hill was creepy and tragic because it hammered in that he had nothing left to live for. Gradually, she begins to explore the mansion, searching not for a way out but for answers, which made me genuinely question her mental health. The lighter plays an incredibly important role here, as it’s how you can light candles, though you can also find ways to turn on the electricity to certain rooms. You can’t interact with objects or attack your enemies in the dark, which adds a whole new level of tension to the early parts of the game. In comparison, the puzzles are quite well-crafted and probably won’t stump you for more than a few minutes, especially if you’re familiar with old-school survival horror in the vein of classic Resident Evil. Speaking of which, it can be really hard to tell what objects you can and can’t interact with. That said, moving around with a keyboard can be very slow, especially if you’re trying not to miss any objects you can interact with. The game’s tank controls would definitely shine better with a controller, but I managed to progress with a mouse and keyboard. If you’re a naturally jumpy person like I am, take care going forward. In fact, the first time you see a monster is a jump scare, complete with a scare chord. There aren’t a ton of jump scares in the game, but there are enough. However, if tank controls are a deal-breaker, then this isn’t the game for you. The same goes for jump scares. If you’ve got a fondness for classic survival horror, you’ll probably enjoy Tormented Souls.
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