Fear The Spotlight review: Blumhouse’s debut horror game is full of heart

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You've decidedly heard of Blumhouse. The accumulation institution is known for making immoderate of nan champion scary movies retired there, and astir recently, has turned its attraction to nan world of nan best scary games. Admittedly that's a big, bold move arsenic each eyes will beryllium connected them to make judge their scary imagination translates conscionable arsenic good erstwhile it's interactive, distant from nan large screen.

I'm happy to study they're starting connected a precocious statement pinch nan communicative scary crippled Fear nan Spotlight, a short title developed by Cosy Game Pals. When a séance goes horribly incorrect (honestly, erstwhile will group learn?), nan subordinate characteristic Vivian must navigate an abandoned schoolhouse to find retired what happened to her friend. The setup, while simple, invites nan subordinate to unravel a acheronian enigma while trying to flight pinch their ain life. It combines that eerie precocious schoolhouse mounting seen successful immoderate slasher movies pinch plentifulness of interactivity for gamers. Unlike nan The Dark Pictures Anthology, this isn't an interactive movie, and you person plentifulness of opportunities to spell disconnected and explore.

Big Buffy Energy

Aesthetically, it's difficult for maine to not comparison this to nan 90s supernatural TV deed Buffy nan Vampire Slayer. This is simply a immense compliment, of course, because Buffy is iconic and this really seems to embody immoderate of nan worldly I loved astir that show. Clueless precocious schoolers messing pinch nan occult, a cool characteristic and her nerdy champion friend, that grainy VHS overlay throughout, an eerie precocious schoolhouse mounting pinch plentifulness of secrets buried. The full consciousness of it is really fun, I loved nan retro style and nan small nods to nan genre. Fear nan Spotlight seems to person been made pinch a batch of emotion for nan scary genre and its fans, and that shines passim nan game.

The schoolhouse is moreover called Sunnyside High, and Buffy's is called Sunnydale. Look, I'm conscionable saying these developers person fantabulous sensation and I've clocked it. The developers person teased this is simply a awesome entry-level crippled for those wanting to effort retired horror, and while I agree, there's plentifulness for long-time fans of nan genre to emotion too.

We besides request to talk astir nan Silent Hill vibes. The spotlight that follows you is reminiscent of Pyramid Head himself, and they tin look astatine immoderate time. If you're clever astir it, you tin foretell erstwhile these scenes will hap based connected nan number of conveniently placed furnishings to hide behind, but I decidedly sewage shocked a fewer times erstwhile I was going astir my business and they conscionable appeared. The suspense is disconnected nan charts throughout, and you request to beryllium arsenic stealthy arsenic possible. That wasn't awesome for maine erstwhile my gaming style is very overmuch maine moving successful and attacking things arsenic accelerated arsenic possible, but hey, it's bully to effort thing new!

Hide and (hopefully not) Seek

Fear nan Spotlight is a stealth-heavy game. You person to navigate nan abandoned halls of nan schoolhouse avoiding nan spotlight character, who tin show up retired of nowhere. You request to salary attraction and beryllium speedy connected your feet, hiding wherever you tin and getting your timings conscionable right. You person 2 opportunities; they tin drawback you once, and past they'll driblet you, but if you're caught again, nan crippled resets to your past saved checkpoint. Thankfully nan checkpoints are beautiful predominant truthful you won't extremity up backmost astatine nan very opening aliases beryllium punished excessively severely.

Frustration tin group successful erstwhile you person to debar threats while besides moving backmost and distant doing fetch quests because location are plentifulness of puzzles to lick passim nan game. I personally sewage stuck connected 1 peculiar 1 for astir 15 minutes earlier realizing nan solution was painfully obvious, truthful it's nan benignant of crippled wherever you tin get successful your caput a bit. Or possibly I'm conscionable stupid, I'll fto you beryllium nan judge of that. Technically, it's easy to navigate, nan controls are soft and nan puzzles activity arsenic they should... erstwhile you've actually figured them out, that is.

If you emotion logic puzzles and changeless tension, you will very apt person a awesome clip pinch Fear nan Spotlight because it's intolerable to relax astatine immoderate point. There's this changeless vigilance throughout, it sucks you successful and I recovered myself really worried astir Amy's wellbeing.

It's a very immersive acquisition throughout. The subordinate character's breathing tin go erratic, truthful you request to beryllium mindful of this. You tin find inhalers hidden astir nan schoolhouse which boost your wellness and stops nan surface from blurring reddish astatine nan sides, and your characteristic from freaking out. Inhalers are a very useful instrumentality particularly nearing nan extremity of nan crippled erstwhile things get much difficult, truthful it mightiness beryllium wise to usage them strategically. You are wholly unarmed, speech from a fewer devices that tin thief you crawl done vents and repair things, truthful your only action is to hide.

The unstable breathing teamed pinch nan vibrations from nan controller I utilized dialed nan tensions up, truthful I would urge giving that operation a spell moreover if you are playing connected a PC. The crippled is designed successful specified a measurement that you genuinely consciousness a portion of it, and this is 1 of Fear nan Spotlight's top successes.

Accessibility

There is simply a scope of subtitling options successful Fear nan Spotlight. Though nan only spoken connection is English, you tin find galore different languages successful nan show settings.

As good arsenic allowing players to usage a controller aliases rodent and keyboard, nan show tin beryllium tinkered pinch too. While Fear nan Spotlight does person a grainy, retro feel, you tin move that up successful nan Graphics menu. The crippled gives you nan action to alteration nan framework rate, and V-Sync, arsenic good arsenic show variations specified arsenic TV Filter and Ambient Camera Wobble. I played pinch a maximum TV Filter to make it much atmospheric, but I tin spot why group would for illustration to move that down arsenic it tin get a small distracting.

 Should I play Fear nan Spotlight?

 Play it if…

Don't play it if...

 How we tested Fear nan Spotlight

I tested Fear nan Spotlight for astir six hours and vanished nan main game. Once you person completed nan story, you unlock a concealed prize level which I person not yet tested astatine nan clip of this review.

I played nan crippled utilizing a Lenovo Legion 5-15ACH6H Gaming Laptop pinch Beats Flex wireless headphones and a PS5 DualSense Wireless Controller. I besides did further testing pinch nan laptop’s built-in keyboard and Steelseries Aerox 9 Wireless Gaming Mouse, to cheque that nan crippled ran smoothly successful some modes.