As a kid there have been many horror stories of Boogeymen that come after you when you are bad, but as we go into our adult that still lingers a bit. What would happen if the horrors that you are told become more than just a reality, but actually warp it. Mold the world right around you into one that is made for the things that bump in the night, what would you do then? I know my butt would be in the fastest car I could break into and drive as far away as possible, but that is just my logic. Happy Halloween gamers and welcome to this review of The Evil Within which is out for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC.
There is nothing like going out on an emergency call with two of your partners only to find out that once you get there the whole scene is one bloody mess. The worst of it all is that all the cops on the scene are missing or dead and only the three of you go in without any proper back up. In that I am assuming that I am officially a badass ready to take on anything that comes my way or so you think. It all came down to one scared out of his wits Doctor babbling and then checking the security cameras seeing some “person” dodging bullets through teleportation while cleaning three beat cops in the process. This is where a whole text of nope goes through my brain and it is time to exit, but of course that thing notices you watching which proceeds to teleport to your location to take you out. Nothing like blunt head trauma and hanging upside in what appears to be a meat locker with some super deformed sloth character from the “Goonies” to make you understand that you screwed up bad!
The escape plan is clear and running from a psycho with a chainsaw is a great way to get a few quick scares and understand that you are no longer in control, but after that initial escape it just gets worse. The whole city starts to transform and you in an Ambulance with a few survivors are trying to flee the city as best as possible until you fall into a big field to wake up knowing that your escape failed. You are in control of veteran detective Sebastian Castellanos and now your adventure through hell begins with you cleaning one of your comrades who has turned into what I am trying to understand is an undead entity. That is where the scares stop sadly.
The Evil Within had me at fear at first, but then takes a weird turn into “oh man” city as you see the game for what it is. You need to use tactics to get through certain areas as in stealth and puzzle solving at times. This game makes you slow down a lot where as you have to pay attention to your surroundings as there are many traps laid out the field. Now I lost my fear of the game when I encountered my first real threat where a field of these things were feasting and I had to sneak by, but I stealth killed one of them which made them all notice me. I thought I was done for until I had them all running in a circle with me taking my time turning around and beating them to death with my gun. So a horror game became a Benny Hill comedy feast within 30 minutes of playing. Now switching between difficulties didn’t improve much because the enemy still stays polite by waiting for me at times to do things to prepare. When you can take the time to time your enemies before they go berserk, that is a problem for me.
I found it funny being a veteran cop and not having any real combat training outside of a wide swing and a kick when the enemy is down. However in the cut-scene this dude is freaking Jackie Chan doing double Drop kicks and what not, so that made me ask, “Why the Hell can’t I do that?” Now I know that is a survivor horror game, but as I played others with soldier characters or cops. Sebastian is one of the weakest characters I’ve ever played with even with the upgrades through your journey.
Now do not get me wrong there is a good game somewhere here, but I didn’t totally see it. This does feel like an initial rip of Resident Evil 4, but less exciting to me at least. In the end the Evil Within had some sketchy controls, predictable plot and not so challenging situations except for that water monster that became more of a pain in the butt vs. a challenge. There are times where the enemy is very pilot no matter the difficulty you are set on in waiting for you to assess the situation before they go in for a kill. What really gets to me is the ammo items that give off the impression of a full box and only giving you two or three bullets. Okay I raise my hands on that being something of nitpicking, but it was annoying. The burning of the bodies was not a bad idea, but left me wondering do I need to do that to all the bodies or just the ones that look suspicious and I have not killed? Don’t even get me started on the boss fights that felt so dry and quick, I kind of felt sad.
As for a horror game I was very disappointed that I didn’t have a full on horrific experience, but the gore was appreciated. In that I give The Evil Within a 2.5 out of 5 and after getting passed the 10th chapter, I was playing with one hand while wondering around looking for more green goop. Sigh, I felt kind of lied to and the hype didn’t help it much and plus the context was just all dry. I would recommend playing Alien: Isolation for a better survivor horror experience. If still curious, please download it because you can end it quickly, unless you are a trophy defender.
I thank you all for checking out my review and please enjoy the video below of my first run of chapter one. Stay frosty gamers!
