The increasingly popular indie horror title from Stormind Games, known as Remothered: Tormented Fathers, has a currently available Early Access version on Steam and I got the chance to make my way through this section of the game. It has been an intense game of chasing and hiding that feels like playing a great blend of Resident Evil horror and Hello Neighbor hide-and-seek puzzle solving.
Gameplay
Taking control of Dr. Rosemary Reed, a curious women who wants to know the truth behind what Mr. Richard Felton is hiding inside of his house. You quickly find yourself sneaking through the house in hopes of uncovering dark secrets hidden behind various, often disgusting, puzzles.
As you are an unwelcomed guest inside the home, you are best to move slowly so that you are not heard. If you run, Mr. Felton will hear your footsteps and begin looking for you. He will not stop hunting you down until after you hide inside of a cabinet, under a couch, or simply crouched behind some cover. Basically, the more noise you make the longer he will give chase.
If he does manage to get close enough, he slashes at you. I didn't die from the slashes, but they weaken Reed and cause her to move slower. This gives him the chance to grab you which, if you have a weapon, you can escape by button mashing as indicated. Careful now, there is a quick change that you have to adjust to within a second or you will die! The same rules apply when The Red Nun makes her appearance.
While you are inside the house, you will come across various areas and objects with a puzzle symbol on them. This means that you need to find a puzzle item, that could be lying anywhere within the house, in order to continue to make progress through the story. These could range from obvious to curious, but the main thing is to try not to over think where to look. I found myself running right by the essential items thanks to over thinking more times than I would like to say.
Graphics and Sounds
The game has a mix of sounds that depend on what is going on in the moment. When you are searching the house and unheard, you just hear footsteps and mutterings from Mr. Felton as he goes about his night within his home, but once you are caught the chase music begins. The music, including the ones used in the cutscenes, are always very fitting for the moment and successfully bring the feeling of dark intensity to fill the mood.
Visually, the game looks well done all around. While Mr. Felton isn't undead or anything gross of that nature, his mental state is shown outright in his outfit choice, crazed look, and constant aggression. The times that you do come face to face with a dead body, the detail is pretty gruesome yet fitting for the stories that go along with them. My favorite part of the graphics within Remothered would have to be The Red Nun. Her mere presence is unnerving and her weapon is an interesting look sword.
Conclusion
The story has me intrigued and I am looking forward to escaping the manor while uncovering the truth around the Felton's daughter, Celeste (or Jennifer, as she likes to call herself). There were some tweaks obviously needed for the AI stalking moments so that it has a better set up for how it walks about while looking for me. It was a lot of fun and a rather challenging game that I suggest to all horror puzzle gamers. Lets just hope that the story turns out to be as fascinating as its built up to be so far!
