Resident Evil meets Outlast
By Paul Hunter
2024 has been another great year for horror games, whether that's the remake of Alone in the Dark, the PS1-era Crow Country or the indie darling Still Wakes the Deep. The latest survival horror game to release is Pneumata, created by solo developer Antonio Alvarado and published by Perp Games, available this month on PS5, Xbox Series S|X and PC.
The game places you in the shoes of David, a detective investigating the mysterious disappearance of his wife Jamie. As you delve into the eerie town of Clover Hill, the story unfolds through exploration, puzzle-solving, and the collection of items that help you piece together the mystery.
Pneumata draws inspiration from iconic horror franchises like Resident Evil and Outlast, blending elements from both to create a unique experience. You will navigate through dark village environments, gathering supplies to help you fend off terrifying enemies. The game’s atmosphere does a great job of evoking fear and suspense, making every moment feel tense and unpredictable.
Let's explore Pneumata’s story, gameplay, and presentation to see if this should be your next horror game experience!
Pneumata presents an intriguing story that draws you into a world filled with mystery and horror. As former detective David, you set out to the town of Clover Hill to investigate the strange death of your wife. In a neat twist, the story takes place in modern times, as well as within mysterious VHS tapes that suck you into their world.
Much like in Resident and Outlast, you'll trek takes you a familiar locales like a village infested with creatures, a creepy church, an asylum full of ravenous inmates and a cave filled with secrets waiting to be discovered. Piecing together clues that reveal the dark history of Clover Hill is one of the game's strongest points, as it encourages you to think critically about the notes and memos you gather.
The game begins in a windy village, seemingly abandoned at first, but clearly lurking with dangers as you progress. You'll then make your way through various locations like an apartment complex, medical facility, lighthouse, and so on. I'm particularly impressed with the game's atmosphere, as it's thick with tension, and with supplies being so scarce every moment feels suspenseful.
As touched upon, Pneumata's gameplay combines exploration, puzzle-solving, and survival horror elements. It does a great job blending gameplay styles, for example, there are times when you need to kill deadly bosses using guns and exploding barrels, while in other moments you may be completely defenceless and need to use stealth to sneak past enemies.
Pneutmata takes the most inspiration from Resident Evil, including elements like managing your inventory, combining items to make them more effective, gathering keys and keycards to unlock new areas, and finding collectible notes that slowly unravel what's happening in this strange town.
While I thoroughly enjoyed the overall presentation of Pneumata, the gameplay unfortunately is lacking in a few key areas, such as its braindead AI, janky movement and occasional bugs including a couple of full crashes. If you're able to look past some of these faults, you'll find a horror game that pulls you in with its engaging atmosphere and compelling story.
Pneumata's presentation is somewhat of a mixed bag, with some areas looking nice and screenshot-worthy, while other areas lack polish and can detract from the overall experience.
I had similar conflicting thoughts about the lighting, with some areas like the lightning effect near the lighthouse looking great, while in other spots the lighting is too dark, making it difficult to see important details. On the bright side, the environments are quite varied, and with around a six-hour playthrough, you're constantly jumping to new zones with their own unique atmospheres.
Pneumata effectively uses sound design to create a sense of dread. Dark environments force you to rely on audio clues to survive, including unsettling breathing noises from enemies, heightening the tension as you explore. Tons of great environmental sounds further create tension, such as distant whispers, door creaks and unusual noises that will make you wonder what horrors are around the next corner.
Unfortunately, the voice acting is another lowlight, as the performances can feel flat and lack the emotional depth needed to connect with the characters. This is particularly noticeable during key cutscenes in the story, where stronger voice acting could have elevated the moments.
Final Score: 6.5/10 - Okay
Developer: Deadbolt Interactive
Publisher: Perp Games
Genre: Horror, First-Person Shooter
Modes: Single-player
ESRB Rating: M (Mature)
A key was provided by the publisher.
By Paul Hunter
2024 has been another great year for horror games, whether that's the remake of Alone in the Dark, the PS1-era Crow Country or the indie darling Still Wakes the Deep. The latest survival horror game to release is Pneumata, created by solo developer Antonio Alvarado and published by Perp Games, available this month on PS5, Xbox Series S|X and PC.
The game places you in the shoes of David, a detective investigating the mysterious disappearance of his wife Jamie. As you delve into the eerie town of Clover Hill, the story unfolds through exploration, puzzle-solving, and the collection of items that help you piece together the mystery.
Pneumata draws inspiration from iconic horror franchises like Resident Evil and Outlast, blending elements from both to create a unique experience. You will navigate through dark village environments, gathering supplies to help you fend off terrifying enemies. The game’s atmosphere does a great job of evoking fear and suspense, making every moment feel tense and unpredictable.
Let's explore Pneumata’s story, gameplay, and presentation to see if this should be your next horror game experience!
Pneumata presents an intriguing story that draws you into a world filled with mystery and horror. As former detective David, you set out to the town of Clover Hill to investigate the strange death of your wife. In a neat twist, the story takes place in modern times, as well as within mysterious VHS tapes that suck you into their world.
Much like in Resident and Outlast, you'll trek takes you a familiar locales like a village infested with creatures, a creepy church, an asylum full of ravenous inmates and a cave filled with secrets waiting to be discovered. Piecing together clues that reveal the dark history of Clover Hill is one of the game's strongest points, as it encourages you to think critically about the notes and memos you gather.
The game begins in a windy village, seemingly abandoned at first, but clearly lurking with dangers as you progress. You'll then make your way through various locations like an apartment complex, medical facility, lighthouse, and so on. I'm particularly impressed with the game's atmosphere, as it's thick with tension, and with supplies being so scarce every moment feels suspenseful.
As touched upon, Pneumata's gameplay combines exploration, puzzle-solving, and survival horror elements. It does a great job blending gameplay styles, for example, there are times when you need to kill deadly bosses using guns and exploding barrels, while in other moments you may be completely defenceless and need to use stealth to sneak past enemies.
Pneutmata takes the most inspiration from Resident Evil, including elements like managing your inventory, combining items to make them more effective, gathering keys and keycards to unlock new areas, and finding collectible notes that slowly unravel what's happening in this strange town.
While I thoroughly enjoyed the overall presentation of Pneumata, the gameplay unfortunately is lacking in a few key areas, such as its braindead AI, janky movement and occasional bugs including a couple of full crashes. If you're able to look past some of these faults, you'll find a horror game that pulls you in with its engaging atmosphere and compelling story.
Pneumata's presentation is somewhat of a mixed bag, with some areas looking nice and screenshot-worthy, while other areas lack polish and can detract from the overall experience.
I had similar conflicting thoughts about the lighting, with some areas like the lightning effect near the lighthouse looking great, while in other spots the lighting is too dark, making it difficult to see important details. On the bright side, the environments are quite varied, and with around a six-hour playthrough, you're constantly jumping to new zones with their own unique atmospheres.
Pneumata effectively uses sound design to create a sense of dread. Dark environments force you to rely on audio clues to survive, including unsettling breathing noises from enemies, heightening the tension as you explore. Tons of great environmental sounds further create tension, such as distant whispers, door creaks and unusual noises that will make you wonder what horrors are around the next corner.
Unfortunately, the voice acting is another lowlight, as the performances can feel flat and lack the emotional depth needed to connect with the characters. This is particularly noticeable during key cutscenes in the story, where stronger voice acting could have elevated the moments.
The Verdict
Pneumata is a survival horror game that offers a unique blend of exploration and tension, inspired by classics like Resident Evil and Outlast. It's certainly an impressive feat being created by a single person, but it does result in a lack of polish like we're used to in the AA and AAA space. Animations are a bit stiff, and the dumb AI can lead to frustrating combat moments. The good news is that despite these shortcomings, the excellent atmosphere and compelling story were reason enough to see this game all the way to its dramatic conclusion.Final Score: 6.5/10 - Okay
Pneumata details
Platform: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PCDeveloper: Deadbolt Interactive
Publisher: Perp Games
Genre: Horror, First-Person Shooter
Modes: Single-player
ESRB Rating: M (Mature)
A key was provided by the publisher.