Review for Infliction. Game for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch,
It was a beautiful house: large rooms, large windows, and a garden in which Sally, the dog, could run around freely. The classic American family lived there: husband, wife and two children. From the outside, everything is perfect. From inside, a disaster: alcoholism, domestic violence, cot death, murder. We players, needless to say, will live the story from the inside, impersonating the unfortunate - but will it really be like this? - householder, Gary. All this with facts already happened, so as well as with our conscience we will also have to deal with the spirits who haunt this (not so much) beautiful house.
Exorcism for dummies
Infliction: Extended Cut is, at least apparently, yet another clone of PT, the playable teaser created by Kojima for the never developed Silent Hills. The gameplay and the main antagonist spectrum actually take full inspiration from that experience, expanding the context. But we will talk about this later, because now we must start from the main characteristic that makes a psychological horror such: the story.
Except for a few small additions such as the difficult New Game Plus mode and the ability to watch some cut scenes, Infliction: Extended Cut for console is basically the same version of Infliction packaged by Caustic Reality and already available for PC players, and from the point of view of the plot this is certainly not bad: as you delve into the folds of the macabre story you will discover more and more details - some of which are mandatory for the continuation of the plot, others are optional but exquisitely useful to complete the grim scenario the story - getting to know the protagonist and members of his family. In the scarce three hours that it will take you to finish the adventure you will realize how a seemingly normal family can actually hide terrible secrets. This awareness will perhaps make the bloody fate towards which you lead your avatar more acceptable, but it certainly won't make the experience any less frightening.
And so what initially will seem the simplest of narratives, with the banal search for a plane ticket to allow Sarah, her painter wife, to take the plane flight that awaits her, will soon turn into a waking nightmare. in which we will witness the murder of the woman, who in no time at all will turn into an infesting demonic presence to be exorcised in three apparently simple steps. In the course of the adventure proposed by Infliction: Extended Cut we will have to take possession of a relic of the victim, a photo of him and a personal effect, to burn them and free the spirit by scattering the ashes. Nothing simpler ... or maybe not, why the plot of Infliction: Extended Cut will soon slam all the inner demons of the protagonist in our faces and, with them, the numerous doors of the house that, at every step, will close or open towards alternative realities, breaking through the fourth dimension and making us live a story constantly poised between the 60s and 1999, the year in which the reality of the game is set.
A good horror experience is measured by the goodness of the story and, in the case of Infliction: Extended Cut, as you may have understood, we really have nothing to complain.
The house is alive
We have seen many horror titles that play with our weak psyche and with high-sounding names: Silent Hill, The Evil Within and Layers Of Fear are excellent examples of games that terrify the player by displacing him and making him lose contact with the represented reality that is you know, even if in itself it should obviously be surreal, it always makes you cringe when you modify it in a diametrically opposite way to what we would expect.
This is how exploration becomes the fulcrum (as well as essentially the only possible action, since the game does not even allow you to run) of the gameplay of Infliction: Extended Cut, which if not supported by the excellent atmosphere would be reduced to a simple walking simulator with very limiting features. It actually makes you smile as the inventory is always practically empty, without the possibility of carrying weapons, medicines or objects to combine together to solve the puzzles. The latter are indeed present, but relatively simple compared to what might initially seem from the context, full of freely explorable elements. Here is the first negative aspect of the experience: during your wanderings you can collect and examine an incredible amount of collectibles, but after observing the 3D model you will simply find yourself putting the object back in its place. and to continue on your way. You will leave behind hammers, axes, potential weapons and juicy collectibles like videotapes inspired by the horror of the past. Not that these objects help against demonic presences, but we would certainly have appreciated some enigma more related to the research and use of the numerous objects with which it is possible to interact.
The use of the Polaroid: through the camera, which will be collected in the first part of the game, it will be possible to photograph various points of interest to discover secret passages, find clues and reveal the resolution of some puzzles. In addition, the camera will be a valid ally against the ghost of our ex-wife: a well-aimed flash shot will be enough to drive away the presence for the short period of time necessary to escape. Oh yes, because in Infliction you (almost) never attack, but in front of enemies you run away and hide. Being seen means going to certain death and finding yourself starting over from the last of the various checkpoints that save the game automatically, scattered by the developers for the levels in a generous but at the same time not very comfortable way.
In reality, there is a way to attack the antagonists, but these are cumbersome and not very applicable actions during the most frenetic phases of gameplay. The first possible move is to hide, and here the first big problem of the game: although the tutorial says that it is possible to crouch behind furniture to avoid being seen, several times we have happened to be mercilessly massacred by the antagonists even if we were apparently hidden in the shadows, or even behind a table. Secondly, several times during our runs we encountered an annoying problem related to hiding (under the tables or under the beds): as long as we were hiding the enemy could not reach us, but he did not even go away, with the consequence that after a few long minute of waiting we found ourselves forced to get out of the shelter making us automatically slaughter as soon as we put our heads out.
Last action possible, the attack with the light: for most of the time you will find yourself wandering with only the light of a flashlight to illuminate your path. In some particular rooms, however, it will also be possible to turn on the lights by pressing the respective switches. But be careful: if the spectrum passes close to a lit light it will not suffer any effect, on the contrary it will cause the bulb to burst making it unusable; if, on the other hand, you will be able to turn on the light bulb at the exact moment in which the spectrum is found under it, he will be surprised and will dissolve in atrocious suffering, giving you a few enchanting minutes of thoughtless exploration before returning to hunt you.
For the sake of review we admit that we have tried and succeeded in the enterprise, which we point out, however, to be so impervious that most players will try to avoid the specter by hiding or proceeding by attempts: most of the times, in fact, the first person view prevents the exact position of the enemy from being perceived, with the result of finding him on him in a few seconds and dying without even knowing if there was an escape route. This flaw pushes to opt for a trial and error approach which, in the space of a few attempts, allows you to overcome the various sections by memorizing the places where the enemy can appear randomly and to overcome the level unscathed by proceeding quickly towards the goal without messing around in the 'exploration. A pity, because a greater attention to the mechanics would have benefited the immersion in the excellent atmosphere of the game, which in this way instead risks being frustrating at times and to lose the desire to explore every corner of the beautiful settings.
A light, a shadow, a spectrum
The nightmare of Infliction: Extended Cut is driven by the never too much appreciated Unreal Engine which, once again, does its dirty job bringing a terrifying riot of light and shadow to the console. The constant twilight and some graphic expedients that hide the imperfect optimization are perfect for taking the player by surprise in the passages to the Layers of Fear, in which the house changes shape and size, catapulting the protagonist now through a mirror, now in a painting, now in other places in the past: this is how the miracle of Infliction takes place which, despite the obvious limitations on the gameplay side, always manages to jump on the chair when you open the bedroom door and find yourself in a 60s sanatorium, you are immediately taken by the disheartening certainty that the goal you thought was just around the corner is now who knows how far away.
We have already talked about the limited possibilities of interaction with the scenario. Here we cannot avoid reporting a non-exceptional level of detail as regards the animations and polygonal models of the monsters, especially of the spectrum of Sarah: if on the one hand, the Mortal Kombat-style finishers with which the entity will make us are appreciable irremediably in pieces, often during the short adventure, it is impossible not to notice - especially when you are hidden waiting for (perhaps) to move away - a barely discreet graphic realization, which certainly does not do justice to the terrifying Lisa of PT, to whom this incarnation ghostly is clearly inspired.
On the other hand, the sound effects are interesting: the almost total absence of music, replaced by radio interference, television programs that start suddenly, heartbreaking screams and thoughts, voices from the past that echo in the protagonist's head along with his solitary steps, are the ideal accompaniment. to help generate that horror atmosphere that we like so much.
Infliction: Extended Cut could have been much more, there's no arguing about that. At the same time, it turns out to be a fun horror experience lasting a little longer than a movie with an excellent atmosphere and a plot with some innovative ideas. Too bad that the graphic realization of the main antagonist and the obvious lack of gameplay optimization ruin the adventure by forcing us to lower the rating of this review by a few points. If, while waiting for the next big horror, you have a free evening to play around with some sort of extended version of PT, this is the game for you. If you are expecting more than that, just pass it by.
► Infliction is an Adventure-indie game developed by Caustic Reality and published by Blowfish Studios for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch,
