Signalis, a retrospective 2D survival horror review

Dissatisfaction with the present produces a well-known result, namely, looking into the past, seeking what is perceived as the original meaning of things: an ideal purity free from history becomes the essence of life. To present. Of course, obsession with the past can produce gruesome, colossal distortions at times, but in some cases, looking back seems like the only way to move forward and realize something desirable that was thought to be irreversibly lost.

In recent years, the indie video game scene has looked to the history of the media not only as a matter of nostalgia, but also to reinvent gaming forms that have left the market, as well as to free itself from its dictatorship. producing. The triple-A industry has become inaccessible and suffocating for smaller teams due to the individual developers’ desire to express themselves, so it’s not infrequently that it’s more accessible and in a sense the return of human technologies and visual styles can be managed without having to invest. over tens of millions of dollars. Rose engine development studio tried just such a process, as we will see below. Signal inspectionSurvival horror similar to Resident Evil and the first PlayStation, but going all the way back to Project Firestart.

Gameplay

elster, hero of Signalis, a Replica, a humanoid working android who awakens from cryostasis in a drifting spaceship and decides to infiltrate a gigantic government structure built on a distant and very cold planet in search of his partner and the meaning of his dreams. In the days before his arrival, something terrible happened, and the androids who were supposed to protect civilians have now become their persecutors. This place looks like a ruin although not completely abandoned. There are survivors, actually very few, but they are all looking for a way to escape. But our goal is different: Going to the birthplace of evil in a horror adventure (they brought it up) that strongly recalls the work of Stanley Kubrick, Hideaki Anno and David Lynch, whose story and style were the main inspirations for the developers. so we didn’t have to work hard to find them).

The base consists of several different environments: rooms and corridors that must be explored in search of key objects, weapons, ammunition and healing items. Here are documents that help us understand the context in which the adventure was born and help us understand the role of the totalitarian regime of Eusan, a galactic dictatorship that controls the entire solar system. The action is framed from above, the rooms separated by mechanical doors. this levels Basically, they are mazes that must be explored from top to bottom and classic puzzles must be solved, combining objects or carefully reading documents in search of clues. For example, on one of the floors of the base, scattered around the level, studying pipes, working with strange machines, etc. We will need to find five access keys. As you can tell, in terms of adventure elements, we’re more on the side of a Resident Evil or Silent Hill than a modern survival horror game where you go on autopilot.

In the first levels, you rarely encounter some of them as you go deeper into the base. hostile creatures, from insane androids to monstrous beings with strong Lovecraftian references. With the classic idea of ​​limiting the number of ammunition available, Signalis offers a variety of means against them, from pistols to rifles, so that every living thing cannot be killed indiscriminately. Indeed, as we’ll see, it’s often better to avoid fighting using the simple stealth system built into the game or running wild past enemies. Self-fighting is a matter of holding down the key to aim the gun and firing when the crosshair appears over the enemy. It’s nothing too complicated to be honest, but it’s clear that Signalis wasn’t aiming to be a marksman and was trying to focus on exploration and atmosphere in every way possible.

For this purpose, short first-person sequences are also included in the game, which are usually linked to certain environments or intermediate sequences that you do not fight but need to solve puzzles in, such as finding a certain frequency, etc. Interacting with Elster’s radio or a seemingly non-functional dashboard. In principle, the gameplay of Signalis works and is also interesting, especially if you appreciate a certain genre of survival horror. The story told is less predictable than it initially seems and is cleverly told by the short filmed sequences and the aforementioned documents. Unfortunately, some choices made by the developers undermine the experience a bit, creating paradoxical situations.

problems

this problems Signalis’ story is largely about his desire to emulate the survival horror classics. In terms of puzzles, if the game works, the option to manage inventory like Resident Evil, so having very limited space forces you to go back and forth between insufficient crates you can store. extreme things. As a result, we tend to carry key items whenever possible, which only pile up ammunition and healing items into collection points, the use of which is linked to game progress (unfortunately it’s not possible to leave excess items exposed). ground or replace). It may also seem positive that you tend to fight less this way, but the truth is, given the weakness of stealth mechanics, it often becomes preferable to run around very slowly and not too reactively to avoid enemies. .

in this wayatmosphere partly punishable, partly because the person has become very skilled at overtaking in the race and therefore the sense of impending danger disappears, and partly because of the inconvenience of having to walk several times over previously visited areas that you want to explore more deeply just to get to a certain place (or inevitably of war). The object or ammunition you need to clear the areas. All will continue to adhere to an item management system that survival horror classics handle far better than rose engine gameplay. By this we don’t mean to say that Signalis is a bad game, we just want to highlight how the rigidity of his retrospective has been counterproductive for certain aspects of the game, keeping it from losing some power and taking flight. to achieve perfection that is at your fingertips.

atmosphere of the 90s

from perspective technical and stylistic instead there is little to complain about: Signalis perfectly mixes 2D mechanics and 3D graphics, following a very popular trend in the indie scene in recent years; What does it aim to achieve in terms of atmosphere? The incomplete definition of the characters and some objects in the scene, combined with the dim light that floods the rooms and the scarce light sources that often stretch the shadows excessively, creates a feeling of deep anguish. Penetrating a dying body is the perfect setting for the story being told. Even episodes that are pure 3D in first-person create a similar effect and, despite their brevity, are even more strongly 90s reminiscent. The excellent soundtrack, which is never intrusive and often consists of dark and very slow atmospheric music of few voices, blends perfectly with the scenery, making it the perfect setting to help you immerse yourself in the game world. for action.