As time creeps ever onward, hope is dwindling for Susan and Angelo as they search for their missing daughter, Agata. After fourteen months of dead leads, the parents receive an anonymous recording beckoning them to the abandoned Ashmann Villa. What awaits them though is anything but salvation, as a dark secret festers within the wicked halls. Following the wails of her daughter’s voice, Susan descends deeper into the danger.
Beginning with visual impressions, the game looks pretty decent. The environments are fairly detailed and varied, from soggy bathhouses to dusty libraries and everything in between. There are a few blemishes here and there, namely with some animations and character models, but overall I was satisfied with the level of graphical fidelity on show here.
As I explored the villa, I was able to get a brief glimpse into some of the gameplay features and witness some of the opening narrative sequences. In traditional survival horror fashion, there are plenty of keys and other items to find that will let you unlock new areas, while others are used for more consumable actions like healing or creating a noisy distraction. There were also some puzzles to solve as I went through the first few rooms in the villa, and, while they were on the easier side, I’m looking forward to seeing how else they can be creatively implemented into the story.
You aren’t alone as you explore though, with a handful of enemies being present in the preview build. These are members of the insidious convent, and will insidiously stalk you throughout the halls. I appreciated how dangerous these enemies felt, as they don’t give up easily. Even if you sprint through multiple rooms, they will relentlessly track you down, meaning you’ll have to get creative about finding a hiding spot. You can also fight back if you have a weapon, but these will only stun them, so I found myself saving my implements for when I was cornered with no other options. I’m excited to see what else is lurking in the full game, and I hope that the rest of the enemies are just as engaging.
While not fully present in the preview, there was also the introduction of some Hypnosis powers, which are other-worldly skills that let you peel back the veil of reality in different ways. Using these techniques, I was able to read the memories of objects to learn more about the history of the villa and the people who resided within it. From what I could tell, this was just scratching the surface of these powers, and I’m intrigued to learn more about how these will shape the gameplay in the full release.
There wasn’t too much revealed in terms of the narrative, so I can’t say how much this game will connect to others in the series. Regardless of it being the third game, however, this can still be jumped into without any prior knowledge of the lore. From what I can tell, there will likely be some payoff for fans of the franchise, but this will still be a story that can stand on its own. Despite a little bit of roughness to the edges, I’m still looking forward to diving into the darkness when the full game releases later this year.
