Review of Saturnalia, an Italian horror movie set in Sardinia

In Roman times I Saturnia It lasted about seven days and saw the social order temporarily overthrown with pileo-wearing slaves, as well as being characterized by great banquets, exchange of gifts, demonstrations, and a general atmosphere that we would call carnival today. that is, the hat of the freedmen, by acting like free men at the tables of their masters, they could obtain the right to express themselves as they wished. Despite the seemingly comfortable climate, it was essentially a religious holiday that celebrated the arrival of winter (which took place during the winter solstice between December 17 and 23) and dispelled many of the fears of the people of the time. , there is much to provide a special greeting among the participants: “I am Saturnalia”. Seneca speaks of a city that “sweats” during the holiday period, complaining about the debauchery of tradition (after the first day’s religious rites, the Romans seem to have had a lot of fun between sensual parties and wild, cheerful and aggressive events), and in the pre-event periods many made an effort to organize it rather than work. the fact that it was spent. It seems that Saturnalia was born to celebrate the god Saturn, and his happy kingdom is now weakened, the god who brings abundance to the crops without the need to sweat in the fields, who appears during the party in the form of a red mask, entrusted to a “prince”, that is, to one of the revelers chosen for this occasion. The exchange of gifts served to appease him and the other underworld gods (Pluto and Proserpina) who were thought to wander among humans in those days.

what does all this have to do with Saturnia review? You may be wondering. Obviously, our aim is not to write a page on a piece of ancient Roman culture, but to give as many references as possible to understand the works of Rome. Holy Causeinterwoven with great historical wisdom, myth and social vision, transporting us to a deep and mysterious Sardinia where ancient rituals mingle with modern themes such as labor exploitation and the struggle against patriarchy, as well as other more classical themes related to family and interpersonal relationships. relationships.

Mysterious Sardinia

It is no coincidence that Saturnalia took place on December 21, 1989. We are in the fictitious village of Gravoi, which was procedurally generated at the start of the game, but where many are recognizable. real placesIglesias Museum of Mining Art, Su Nuraxi di Barumini (an archaeological site protected by UNESCO), Porto Flavia and Serravalle Castle just to name a few. Pietro Righi Riva and his family seemed to want to consolidate much of Sardinia’s geography in one place, probably thanks to their involvement in regional politics.

In reality, the entire game shows a very careful search for local culture, can be heard in the soundtrack, consists of songs composed of music. Sardinian traditionand it can be seen in even the smallest architectures of Gravoi. Even the interiors of the houses reflect this deep truth-like desire between objects and the construction of environments, which is not surprising given the variability of the map. There are also period references, such as a man who lives like steel, or some election posters, including one by Bettino Craxi (perhaps a quote from Thief: The Dark Project?). But what does Saturnalia tell?

We’re in the middle of the winter solstice, and the feast of Saint Lucia is about to take place in the village of Gravoi, which includes, in addition to Catholic religious rites, a Barbagia carnival-style parade (remember? Mamoiada masked mammoths?). Here stories of different characters: a pregnant girl who wants to leave the village with her child, a boy who returns after years of fighting drugs, a photojournalist looking for his father who disappeared years ago, and a girl with family problems. Gravoi is a real labyrinth it hides more than meets the eye.

On the night of the party, strange beings actually start appearing and disturbing things happen. The only way to survive seems to be to escape or dig deep and stop an ancient ritual, but not before solving the many mysteries surrounding the country and its inhabitants. All this turns into a third-person investigative survival horror, where you must avoid being killed by wandering the country solving puzzles and the beings that populate it, appear from time to time and actively seek out the character led by him. The player makes some really scary noises.

game structure

a Saturnian game structure very interesting. While, as mentioned earlier, it has a survival horror spirit, the player finds himself in front of a sort of sandbox adventure where he can decide from time to time, through a kind of spontaneous selection directly within the game, which characters to ride and what goals to achieve. By turning the Gravoi and visiting various locations, you will find documents and objects that unlock missions associated with individual characters or the entire group, such as finding some vehicles or lighting the lights of the large mine located below the city. There is some urgency and no obligation as to which one you will encounter in the end, before and after, so you are free to go a little where you want and discover the clues you need to solve the various mysteries in your preferred order. . . . Cleverly, the game sort of collects all the discoveries made. conceptual map It is available at any time where you can see all the links between the tips. The discovery of Gravoi also helps a little: characters can remember the direction of their destination by observing maps scattered around the country.

survival horror

of course there is creature The classic immortal tracker whose sole purpose is to skin us. It is inevitable to encounter it while navigating the game environments. The characters have no way of defending themselves, so they can only run away as long as they at least hold the stamina bar, maybe by hiding in a closet, confessional, or somewhere with enough space, or they can get distracted by being distracted. Use fireworks to get attention and then sneak in the opposite direction. If you want, you can also use the included instant camera’s flash to briefly blind them, which you can purchase nationwide negatives for.

Remember that a killed character cannot come back to life, so the adventure isn’t sure to end in every game. If all characters die, a new Gravoi spawns and the game starts over. The creature makes exploration particularly tense considering the particular graphic style of Saturnalia, which applies the exploration technique. cross cover to 3D graphics. Visually, the game consists of very clear colors, almost splashes of color that distort the texture of black and white, dense purple fogs and dark areas that can only be overcome with matches, sometimes partially the only light source available. close view. The overall effect is not only pleasant, because it manages to create a wonderful atmosphere, but also gives the game a strong stylistic personality, amplified by the use of techniques that are not very popular in the world of video games these days, such as rotoscope. animations (you know Prince of Persia?).

An experience to do

Overall, Saturnalia works and manages to excite until the very end, primarily thanks to its clear structure that makes the story repeatable several times without making it seem heavy or too repetitive. Some mechanics, such as the ability to lower yourself when approaching walls, seem a bit sketchy, which doesn’t always work as they should, but overall we loved it for being able to deliver an original story connected to local traditions. , but also universal, it solves one of the problems of its previous title, Wheels of Aurelia. Sacred Cause, It was very “Italian” in its content, so much so that it was difficult for those who did not know a little about Italian history (including Italians) to understand. Let’s also mention that the game will be gifted by the Epic Games Store for a week. So it can be played on PC without spending anything. In short, you have absolutely no reason not to try it.