Разработчик: Stormlord Games
Описание
Think you have what it takes to reveal the secrets hidden in the shadows of Atherton Manor?
Game Features:
- Story-Driven gameplay: CURSE features a deep story, filled with rich characters and more than a few twists and turns.
- Icon Driven point and click gameplay within a 3D world: The Player navigates within the environment by clicking on interactive Icons. The player can also look around the environment in an immersive 3D setting.
- Ghost Chase: The denizens of Atherton Manor don't take kindly to visitors and will attack you if provoked. Use the ultraviolet feature on your flashlight to damage the ghosts when they attack.
- UV Flashlight: You are equipped with a high-tech flashlight capable of disintegrating entities that would do you harm - also use your flashlight to peer into the mansion's shadowy corners, hallways, and rooms.
What to Expect:
CURSE is a narrative-focused experience. Expect to read lots of notes and dialogue. This game is intended for those who enjoy a fun, spooky, tale that provides a more 'on rails' experience.
Linear Gameplay: CURSE is a linear experience with some light branching that gives players some determination of events. The game is linear at a high level to tell a cohesive story.
Ghost Chase: The ghost chase feature is tense. It's supposed to be tense. The ghosts will arrive at random points within the Manor to attack you. Did we mention that the lights go out when they attack?
Point and Click Navigation: CURSE does NOT allow free movement. We intend to create an experience more like a theme park ride where we control aspects of what you see and don't see. If you give in to this type of storytelling, you should have a rollicking good time. If you prefer actively moving through the game space, CURSE may not be for you.
Jump Scares: Although the game does not rely on jump scares to entertain the player, it does include more than a few.
Horror Elements: The horror of CURSE is geared towards a PG-13 vibe than R or MA ratings. We strive for atmosphere over gore and graphic violence. However, there are adult themes and blood within the game.
Sound Good?
If the above descriptions interest you, then welcome to Atherton Manor!
CURSE provides 2-4 hours of gameplay in most cases. To collect all the achievements, you must play it a few times to experience the branching elements and optional difficulty settings.
Поддерживаемые языки: english
Системные требования
Windows
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS *: Windows 7+ 64bit
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 6 GB available space
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS *: Windows 7+ 64bit
- Memory: 6 GB RAM
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 6 GB available space
Mac
- OS: 10.11+ 64bit
- Memory: 2 GB RAM
- Storage: 2 GB available space
- OS: 10.11+ 64bit
- Memory: 6 GB RAM
- Storage: 2 GB available space
Linux
- OS: Standard 64bit
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Storage: 5 GB available space
- OS: Standard 64bit
- Memory: 6 GB RAM
- Storage: 5 GB available space
Отзывы пользователей
Maybe it's just me and or my PC, but the instructions read the UV Boost is supposed to dispel Mary and the UV Boost works when the Flashlight is on and you hold the right mouse button. I found the UV Boost worked maybe 5% of the time and so when I was attacked by Mary in the Dinning room I could not stop Mary; the UV Boost would not activate no matter how many times I held the right mouse button, except for 2x and it did absolutely nothing to Mary. So I cannot recommend this game with such a serious bug affecting my ability to move further on within the game. I also did not particularly care for the linear nature of the game and the inability to be mobile. The game is stationary in the sense that the game moves you, you don't move within the game. If someone can tell me I'm not using the UV Boost correctly and that is why I cannot stop Mary, please do, and I will revise my review.
This game is a classic. I play it at least once a year, I remember a few years ago for Halloween they put Haunted Mansion wallpaper on the walls and jack-o-lanterns everywhere. It seems more linear now than when I last played it, but a great plot and a bit of action involving your flashlight. All in all, a good game with good replay value. Rating: 7/10
I have not Played the New updated version, Bought this long time ago and thought it was great and forgot to review.
This is a point and click game but the Haunted Scares are great, The atmosphere was solid and its a great Halloween Game.
Anyone who like Horror will enjoy this little Gem. I hope Devs add a Halloween Option for the Halloween content, this was great. Great Job Developer.
"CURSE was altogether a fun and immersive experience for those looking for a game that checks all the boxes of 'creepy haunted mansion' vibes, however outside of that somewhat narrow viewpoint the game doesn't offer much else."
I bought CURSE on sale because it looked like a fun, somewhat mindless "haunted house" esque ride and viewing it from that lens I wasn't disappointed. Trying to get anything more out of it, however, proved thin. CURSE is a point-and-click adventure that incorporates a mechanic of "running away" from a handful of spooky ghouls.
This mechanic seemed really cool in the trailer, and while it still 'works' overall as you go through the game's roughly 3-to-4 hour playthrough, it boils down to little more than happening to select the right path out of the room you are in to evade the approaching ghosts to then turn around and fry the ghost with your flashlight or be caught and GG game over restart the checkpoint and try to (by chance??) pick the right path.
Wanting much more out of CURSE than what I just described might be asking a bit much of it. I don't mind streamlined (read: dumbed-down) mechanics of oldschool "Adventure" / Point-N-Click games being presented in a somewhat linear fashion but can I at least be forced to solve one puzzle outside of 'find the key / read the note in the room' ????
For instance, upon entering MANY rooms throughout the game, all you have available to do is to click on the next ONE path available to "go to next room" If all I can do is the one and only option, forcing me to 'click play' comes off as just padding the experience. Why even give the player the illusion of choice in doing that?
The game had one puzzle I found especially tedious. Finding a key in the room I was in, to then unlock a storage box... which had tucked away inside of it yet another key to unlock a 2nd storage box in the very same room I had just unlocked the first storage box in. If that sentence sounds redundant or like "Russian Doll" logic, imagine spending 10 minutes in-game to accomplish the task.
There are a handful of other options you can choose to make or not during the game's brief dialog sequences but this is a largely linear experience. For instance, in an earlier section of the game where the player uses a ouija board, you are given the option to either tell the board "Goodbye" or just leave the area. If you choose to just leave, you will then be maimed and be forced to redo the sequence to pick the correct option of the two.
CURSE was altogether a fun and immersive experience for those looking for a game that checks all the boxes of 'creepy haunted mansion' vibes, however outside of that somewhat narrow viewpoint the game doesn't offer much else. I went into it expecting it to be a straightforward, "keep-your-arms-in-the-ride-at-all-times" haunted house experience, and I definitely received that but those hoping its stripped-down point-n-click or unique 'combat' mechanics will be engaging, challenging, or exciting may find the game to be too linear and one-dimensional.
Overall: 7.6 / 10
The Good
Atmosphere
Does a good job of creating a haunted / spooky mansion vibe
Audio Design
Creepy ass stomping footsteps of approaching ghosts
Game seemed to be just the right length, if not maybe slightlyyy long
Graphics ain't bad
The Bad
Graphics ain't great - the ghost models upclose all doing the same silly attack animation breaks the spookehness
Notes upon notes upon notes
Padded? 'Go to next room' only option in MANY rooms
Puzzle mechanics seem a bit shite. Open a box to get a key to open a box to get a key. nahhhh
I kinda just wanted it to be over by the last encounter.
"End boss" seems like bs. Which way do you go? I gave up on the last encounter.
So that you do not scroll past it, there is a demo available on this page, just click Download Demo. This is a pretty interesting game, it is definitely worth your time.
Another potentially decent horror game ruined by idiotic monster encounters that force you to replay game segments over and over. This time it's even worse because you have extremely limited movement. So it's just a guessing game, what the developer wants me to do, because all other options are unavailable. Terrible.
I have a love/hate relationship with this game so my review is a sideways thumb.
I love the atmosphere and the story. I hate that the 99% of it is being locked onto a rail. Quoth Sammy Davis Jr: I've gotta be me, I've gotta be free. Being stuck on a rail drove me so batty that I bailed on this game after about 30 minutes in 2016.
The visuals and the artwork are absolutely stunning. You're a paranormal investigator collecting clues and following a proverbial trail of breadcrumbs to learn how the Atherton Manor earned its nickname 'Blood Manor'.
I really enjoyed the story and appreciated all of the journals even if they seemed to somehow have been written at the moment of death for some of the people.Another reviewer mentioned that it was as if they were still writing as they were being killed and I agree.
Point and click horror really isn't my thing, but this was packed with some decent spoops. Maybe if I was much younger I would have enjoyed this more. I couldn't play things like alone in the dark or resident evil then because they had too much action and were way too scary. This game would have been just my speed.
All of that being said, this game still packs a pretty spooky punch. While being annoyed with the 'on the rails' feeling, I found that there were moments that would catch me off guard-- and it pleased me greatly.
So why do I keep complaining about being on the rails? Because I'm an explorer, my sweet darlings. I'm a curious cat in a gold cap and I gotta see and touch all the things. Or sometimes, I like to look at things more than once and this game didn't allow for that much if at all.
It was a bit of a missed opportunity in at one aspect. Here is this magnificently storied manor with a dark and creepy past but I can't wander around it freely? Set me freeeeee, Willy!
And this may sound harsh, but I felt like I was being spoonfed most of the scares. Nah, man, let me go find them on my own. <3 <3
At one point in the game there is a toy chest that you can inspect. The game told me to look inside and that made me feel like the game was insulting my intelligence a little as a horror fan. Horror game? Check. Creepy kids room? Checkity check. Old as f*** toy chest that is giggling? CHECK!! Oh, you bet your bananas any self-respecting horror gamer is NOT going to need prompting to investigate. Trust.
So what's my deal? Do I recommend this or not??
You know what? Sure. F*** it. It's $5 and not a bad game if you can get past not being allowed to explore. I thought the ending (both of them) was alright.
If I could change anything about this game I would take it off the rails to allow more freedom to explore the beautiful rooms while not being handhold as much. Or at least make the movement quicker. This game would have been much shorter if it didn't take 30 seconds to move 10 steps.
Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Curse will definitely help you get through these trying times if you're looking for something that isn't too scary with a lot of story and great visuals. :)
Nice little horror point and click adventure.
The movement is a bit tedious and the combat can be super easy or frustrating. This game has some good scares and decent graphics and sound for a Unity game.
Going into this game I thought oh cool, be in the shoes of a paranormal investigator and look around the mansion etc...I mean the whole manual at the start talks about looking everywhere and how running is sometimes the answer....
Pros:
- story continues after first ghost
- interesting notes and effects when examining some things
-Graphically pleasing
Cons:
-Linear movement (You can't move on your own except in attack sequences, it all feels on a track)
-Nothing to look at except to progress the story
- Ghosts themselves are meh at best
-Misleading 'Game Guide'
As a note on the notes, I found it hilarious how many people who had written notes so close to death that it was like they'd asked the killer to just wait a sec while they finished up.
Not sure I'll bother finishing it, maybe someday. Really sucks because the set up here is pretty interesting and there's a lot of potential.
Pro tip on running: If you can run (If its a good idea and doesn't result in immediate death) Find a good place to defend yourself with the flashlight. Running will never be enough alone and your flashlight is only really needed for those sequences.
Underrated point-and-click horror game. I'm not sure that it's worth buying at full price, as it is relatively simple and short, but it's not a bad game for just a few bucks. Don't mistake it for an exploration or puzzle game; you're on rails the whole time, and it's only point-and-click in the sense that you click on the rooms you want to move, and items you want to interact with. The main focus of the game is on the horror elements, and ghost fights (which are quite tense).
Expect the last few "levels" to be frustrating as all hell, though, and not in a "so hard it's rewarding to beat" way. More in a "I'm about to uninstall this" way.
Very good game. If you like spooky old houses and digging up secrets that lead to your demise, go for it. The game has been updated for Halloween 2023 and the improvements make it even better. Don't let the critics fool you. It's good.
This game turned out to be an odd one for me. I've rarely played one that navigated quite like this, and it genuinely has it's creepy moments. Also, fairly intriguing story - someone did some very good writing on this. It's a bit clunky, but enjoyable! Well worth the price, and very good for what I'm sure is a first-ever game.
This is another game that really proves Steam should add a "Neutral" recommendation option.
Its not bad, some of the encounters are handled very well, but the pacing needs a kick start. The game looks great, no complaints on graphics or art. It almost feel like the Devs wanted to make a modernized version of the old Point and Click Horror Games like "Scratches" and "Dracula: The Resurrection". If that is the case, then they succeeded, to a point. However, the "Return to the Start of the Room" mechanic every time you begin to investigate a room gets very old, very quick, and really pads the play time out with just scene after scene of your character walking to a shelf, then back to the entrance, walk to a bookcase, then back to the entrance etc etc.
Is it all bad? Not at all. Somethings are handled very well, the story is also kind of fun, and so far feels like it may be worth at least one solid play-threw. The detail used on the manor is very nice, makes me wish the game offered more freedom of movement, if for any other reason then to take in more of the little details. TBH I can think of worse Horror games to spend $7 on.
PROS:
-The Story is Nice (Lots of Pop References, primarily Ghostbusters)
-Nice Visuals
-Good Sound Quality
-Unique use of Flashlight Mechanic (Though Not the First game to suggest Flashlights can harm entities)
CONS:
-Very Little Control of Exploration
-Investigating takes a long Time due to always returning to the Start of the Room you Enter
-The Encounters seem kind of Luck Based
-Slow game play (Slow does Not = Tension)
Ok. So I personally don't like the game but thats only because I don't like point and click games that much. With that said, it still scared the shit out of me. I will recommend the game because its bot a bad game, its just not for me.
Heres my LETS PLAY
https://youtu.be/xYbUJH9uJz0
This game really surpised me. Why? Well.... you're just going to have to read this review!
Let me start by saying this game is a point and click game. If you thought this was a free exploration game it's not, but shouldnt keep you from buying and playing. Overall, this game was impressive and unlike many horror indie games, nailed the horror atmosphere. The music, sounds, and design will give you that errie feeling horror junkies crave and being an indie developler the graphics were impreessive!
The story was awesome. Being the paranormal investigator you are, it's your job to seek out clues to various rumors about the haunted mansion you've read about and breifed on by your employer. You have abilities that set you a part from normal investigators that come in handy as you inspect items throughout your journey. For the record, the begining does start out slow but builds up so be patient. After awhile the jump scares are cheesy but they do get better. Throughout the mansion you find lots of clues that actually mean something... unlike many games use for filler which gets annoying. Articles, notes, keys, and your investigative powers really matter in the game and help drive the story. Some parts do get cheesy... I won't lie. Certain scares are passable as you keep clicking away and could be better. The game makes up for this with the handy flashlight your employer gives to fend off ghosts and I died lots of times not timing things right when they start to attack. The scariest parts of the game was from that alone which was awesome...the click and play aspect of the game really shines here.
Graphically the game was pretty good being an indie title at this price point. The details from the lighting, to the spiders and rats, and animations were really good! The soundtrack to the game was great but the audio in the game was off and should be updated because even with my volume all the way up, I couldnt hear some of the noises or sounds as much which I think has to do with the game...not so much your sound system. (remeber to turn up your volume guys...pending the developer issues a patch) Other than that, the sounds and music really helped drive this game throughout.
Overall you guys... this wasnt a bad game and I loved the story. I was impressed and I finished the game in about 3 hours. This was one of the better horror games ive played and I look forward to what this developer makes in the future.
SPOOK SAUCE:
mildI can't recommend or not recommend this game. I'm pretty neutral, as much as I'm annoyed with some parts.
You play as a "professional" (can you get a steady job in that???) ghost hunter in a spoopy house.
Another "professional" ghost hunter group has already been there.
Spoiler Alert: They're FREAKIN dead.
Pumpkins EVERYWHERE. It's Halloween. Even spoopier.
♡ The Good ♡
- The story actually got me interested, regardless of cliches. (Oh hey, there's reading!)
- Atmosphere is pretty alright.
- There are some jumpscares, but they're pretty harmless.
- The automatic saving is helpful in most cases.
✘ The Bad ✘
- It's very hard to maneuver when using a mouse. Not sure about controller...
- Sometimes you do not see things right away. Can be super dark. Why is that an issue?
- Your flashlight has a battery!!!!!! (Not sure what happens when it runs out.)
- I'm assuming you die. Because I die, regardless. (Some choices will cause this!!!)
- You move pretty slow, zero freedom to explore. Click where it wants you to go. (But that could also be a plus, because you can't really get lost or confused.)
- Okay, but who even actually has that wallpaper design in their house? With the little eyes? You can't convince me ghosts put that up themselves JUST for Halloween.
Sigh, okay. I concede. It may be time for all of us smarmy-arsed reviewer types to put our tails between our legs, because somebody just managed to make a genuinely impressive game using Unity Personal Edition.
Sure, they needed to reduce the otherwise "real-time" move mechanics to pointing-and-clicking, but that kinda thing is just "resourceful" in my book. First rule of being indie: don't try to take on the big boys. You ain't gonna make Bioshock: Infinite 2 on a free engine with a staff of less than ten people, boys and girls. Those kinds of production values are BOUGHT, plain and simple.
So how do you compensate for that? Innovation. And while Curse evidently isn't the most jaw-droppingly original game ever made, it certainly does a commendable job of turning its potential shortcomings into assets. That's clever game-making, kids.
So the first people I'm going to recommend this game to is anyone else - especially you lazy fucking Europeans - who are contemplating making a game with a small team on crap-all money. This game will do a great job of teaching you all how to make humble pie, while still retaining enough flavour to produce an agreeably tasty little treat.
One group I definitely WOULDN'T recommend this to are the anti-linearity brigade, 'cause, yup, it's pretty darned linear. There are moments where you have a bit of agency as to what order you investigate things in, but beyond that, the tightly-constructed plot pretty much leads you where it wants you to go, and decides in what order you open what door or investigate which piece of furniture. It's up to the individual to decide how much such a storytelling device peeves you. Me, I'm fine with it as long as there's good enough reason for it, and as long as I'm still taken on a journey. This game mostly succeeds on both of those counts, in my opinion. You may not agree.
Oh, and those people who don't like to READ: I'd be tempted to warn you people, too, if it wasn't for the fact that you can actually ignore the longer texts and opt for the short "summary" which the game offers (which you've gotta click through anyway, in order to progress through the game). In other words, those of us who DO like to read can take our sweet time, and the rest of you can just skim past all those "boring" bits. So best of both worlds right there. (Oh, and to the aforementioned Euro indie game developers: this game could also teach you a thing or two about how to WRITE NOTES in a competent and entertaining manner. In English, no less...)
Which brings us to two of the biggest questions you're all liable to ask, namely: can an ostensibly point-and-click game be SCARY? And is there any "action" to speak of, or is it entirely free of danger and/or time pressure?
Answer to the first question: yes, it's pretty scary. Not persistently terrifying, perhaps, but certainly spooky. Oodles of atmosphere, and some perfectly effective jump-scares. Oh, and some real-time do-or-die bits as well. Which brings us to our second question...
Yes, there is real-time action. Every now and then a nasty ghostie comes for you, and you have to destroy them with a concentrated burst of flashlight (why hello there, Mr Alan Wake)! It's no great shakes as action game mechanics go, and regrettably provides the game with some unnecessary "cheap deaths", but provides enough real-time tension to ensure that you'll have your flashlight at the ever-ready for these admirably tense occasions. Minus these moments, this would essentially be a mere "walking simulator", and I know how much you philistines hate THOSE.
Oh the whole, Curse reminded me of a cross between Layers of Fear, a limited-agency interactive novel, and the flawed-yet-interesting point-and-click "classic" Scratches. Don't get me wrong: if I were to compile a list of my all-time Top Forty horror games, this wouldn't even come close to making the grade. If, on the other hand, I was to compile a list of the Top Ten horror games released on Steam in the past year, I'd fancy its chances.
Is the price a bit steep? Yes. Probably. But Steam sales are a dime a dozen, so just wait for one of those if you're still unsure. If you only play three horror games a decade, DON'T make this one of them. But if, like myself, you play at least a dozen each and every year, this is probably one worth checking out.
Verdict: 8/10.
UPDATE: Since I wrote this review, I see the devs have been wise and dropped the price. Seven bucks? Sold!
FURTHER UPDATE: The devs have dropped the price again, to three dollars U.S. this time! No time like the present...
As a 30 year old chick I ABSO-FRIGGIN-LUTELY liked this game.....It was awesome!!!! Keeps you at the edge of your seat the entire time and keeps you interested. As i progressed farther thru the game the less i wanted the end to come. Big Thumbs Up....I really liked it . I Would like to find similiar games, Great Job Devs!!!!!!!
An excellent, scary, and fun ghost hunting game for once with hardness levels you can pick at the beginning! This is not your typical "point and click" adventure. Combining more a mondern style of point and click with first person action scenes throughout, this game surpasses many first person ghost games that are twice as expensive. You find yourself, a psychic ghost hunter, investigating the infamous Atherton Manor. Once there, you cannot leave and have no choice but to discover the secret to the hauntings that definitely can, and will, hurt you. The graphics are excellently creepy; dark enough to give that scary atmosphere with colors like red and dark umber saturating the scenes, but light enough that you can see what the heck is happening..most of the time ;). Every fear I have so far has been addressed, lol, from large spiders to darkness to ...well, won't give away too much; I don't want to ruin the great jump scares. This is not a game for people who do not like to read. Full of notes from a past ghost hunt gone bad in the 1980's (Gnarly dude!), you find yourself following their bread crumbs to the source of evil in the manor. There are also wondferful little additions that true horror movie lovers might recognize from classic horror films such as a recorded message left by Mr. Atherton via a victrola that plays itself when you enter his dark abode, similar to the same event in the classic movie "Hellhouse" from a Richard Matheson award winning book of the same name.This game ROCKS!
A 10/10 game for playability, graphics, storyline, atmosphere, and originallity. Absolutely was delighted with this and hope Stormgod Studios makes more!
Just in time for Halloween, it's Curse. A point and click adventure you should buy, but for the length, price, and rage inducing, I can't say yes. I feel like saying no isn't right either, but it's not a yes.
The sad thing is, Curse has a lot going for it. While the story is slightly cliched, it starts off strong and it's actually kind of pretty. It's going to remind you of a lot of nostalgic games you played as a kid. It's not too easy, it has a slow creepy and WOW THAT'S DISTURBING WHO CAME UP WITH THIS! factor, and an approach that I do actually like.
I really wish there was an "on the fence" feature because that's what I really am for this game. On the fence.
Really. I should be praising it. There's a minor combat system in a point and click game! But it's actually difficult even on easy mode and severely spanks you for not getting it right the first time, then forces you to replay that slow action that led up to the combat over and over again until you pick route one, two, or three and get lucky to shine the flashlight on the ghost. It's pure luck and if you guess wrong or lift your finger off the spacebar too slowly/quickly, you're dead and it's START AGAIN FROM MUNDANE AND SLOW ACTION. This has led to at least four extra hours of playing time and no, that's not an angry exaggeration. I really wanted to enjoy that because combat, even if minor, in a point and click is pretty awesome and while it's not perfect, that's a pretty nice try. Just punishing me so severely for not getting it right feels like a kick to my stomach. When you get lucky enough to zap the ghost, they are disabled in a brilliant display of green fire and you feel pretty great about yourself.
Again, if you got lucky enough to zap them.
Then there's a bit of a disappointment that we have two "main baddies" to banish. There's a pretty interesting storyline and after you conquer the one in the first half, the one in the second half hardly matches up to the first one. Admittedly, a lot of video games suffer from this. The point is to hook you because you're probably going to stop playing after you get so far in the first half. It starts of amazingly strong and the storyline does keep you clicking around going "BUT WHAT NEXT? TELL ME. TELL ME!" It's not a let down at all that things aren't what they seem in the "Blood Manor". It's more that you're honestly wishing there was more to it and there just isn't as much there as you hoped. Especially since the regular price of the game (even if I got it on sale) makes me think I'm getting a little more. I was hoping for more than two (three-ish) ghosts. If this house is that haunted, I was hoping to make contact with more than just what I made contact with. There's a lot more hinted in story that happens and I was just hoping to see a little more.
Curse also has this ugly illusion of choice. Sometimes you get to investigate on your own...but only what the game illuminates for you to investigate. You get the option to not 'read' certain items and this will keep you from being attacked by the ghosts in the house, but that's not really a choice. Truthfully, the biggest choice I got to make in the game was left or right. And then everything else was YOU MUST CHECK EVERYTHING ONE BY ONE AND ONLY WHAT WE SAY YOU CAN LOOK AT. It felt very, very painful to do that. You can't even make your character go backwards to double check something. It's ridiculous.
There is the minor issue with the options. I can't mess with my mouse options, which is all over the place in this game. Listen, my mouse isn't this sensitive on my regular screen. How come I'm metaphorically sneezing here and it's going bonkers? You need to give me some more options here other than fullscreen/windowed and to change the dimensions. You really need to do a little more here for me. I can't be the only one swearing when a game does this.
There's also an odd imbalance to the "jumpscares" from the first and second half of the game. Second half has some silly skeletons under a sheet that made me giggle and yell spoopy while the first half of the game made me feel very upset and emotionally attached to a ghost trying to rip my face off. The pacing just seems weird. It's almost like someone played half way, got offended, and then they decided to done it down with a silly crawling ghost and "spoopy scary skeletons" and "standard covenant with Satan". It's fine, it's just a horror trope and one many are tired of. While I don't care, it's something people are going to hone in on and start shredding to bits...
Let's look at some strong points here. Say we try to look at Curse as a haunted house simulator without too much key collecting. Mission accomplished if so. You've got a decent sized house to explore, get a few scares, have things peer at you from outside, and then move on to the next room. Not bad. We've got a virtual ouija board without the threat of inviting demons and great aunt Ethel to come haunt us. Awesome. We have pop culture references to classic Ghost Busters and even a slug at Five Nights at Freddy's. The game also seems to be self aware at general paranormal silliness. There's a lot to like here. The character design also is rather nice when it comes to Mary and Eve. You know...when they aren't dripping blood, throwing scissors, or punching you... Oh and the music is lovely. It matches the feelings of the investigation into the manor. From tense violins to sad music while investigating a child's toybox, you'll notice the music is really nice...
It's just all of those nice points are hard to remember when I'm dying and I have to replay parts over and over again while I'm watching a ghost punch me in the face and hearing the little gagging death noises. It really harshes my vibe. There goes my enjoyment just because of my stupid frustration. That wasn't all that got my goat, so to say...
There's also a few game crashing bugs present. If you try to switch your difficulty after dying to a ghost and restarting your game, that ghosts will not show up except for cutscenes. You cannot play the phonograph in the hall and you cannot progress. If you want to switch difficulties after dying, please exit your game. If you die to a ghost and want to fiddle with options in between, just don't do it and wait until you have a ghost-free moment to do that. You will seemingly bug out your game and need to restart everything. I encountered these bugs more than once.
As standard with my reviews, here's your health hazards. Flashing lightning and other bright lights are not appropriate to those suffering from seizures or those sensitive to quick changes of light. While I suffer from severe migraines and this did not trigger a migraine, this is certainly migraine territory gaming. Game with caution.
Listen, it's not a horrible game and I don't regret it, but I nearly threw my laptop and I'm very tired of doing that. Think about this game long and hard. This is certainly something to get if you really like point and click while feeding your nostalgia monkey on your back. The jumpscares really aren't gonna do it for you if you're a horror diehard. They're not that good and not that convincing. It's a middling game that I really can't find strong feelings for or against.
I'm going to write a long paragraph about this game. As much as I've played thus far, this Unity-based game is quite unique. You get to play the role of a ghost hunter sorta like the ones on tv, except you don't see with nightvision goggles and aren't searching for spirit orbs. You are blessed/cursed with the ability of psychometry at your disposal and you also get to have (take a deep breath) .....a flashlight! You point and click where it allows you to; to nativigate around the haunted estate with a macabre history. You also point and click to investigate clues/notes or to pick up keys or cursed items when allowed to. You have a basic inventory system that allows you to utilize those keys or items when you're prompted to do so. But (this is the downside), you don't get to do any free exploration and this I have to say, makes this game feel like it on rails. However, What makes this game FUN is that you'll feel that the manifestations or malevolent paranormal entities could try to appear and also try to kill you at ANY time. You never know what's going to happen next in terms of WHEN these haunting manifestations will occur as you are playing. Although this game has sequentialized jumpscares, you'll get to use that SPECIAL flashlight or yours to defend yourself whenever you are attacked, so you aren't completely helpless like most other indie games with jumpscares. I've encountered many (oH 5h1t! Oh 5h1t!) instances where I had to quickly turn my flashlight weapon on at a moments notice. The cool part is that if you get killed you have the option to pick-up right about where you were just before you became the ghost's 81tcH. Additionally, during the flight or fight encounters with these evil spirits, the paranormal entities do not attack from the same location twice so you're randomly being brutalized. The devs did a great job of creating a tense atmos-FEAR in regards to that. The music is creepy. The creeks of doors and drawers opening on their own, the random scatch noises, and the echoing whispers, voices, and giggling sounds of the spirits are astounding. The story is also fascinating in that you uncover in the beginning that a paranormal investigation team had been dispatched to the same estate in the recent past but their disappearance became an unsolved mystery. You're tasked at trying to solve the unsolve mystery of their disappearance while trying to excorcise the estate at the same time. That's just awesome right there. Try this game out when the free demo gets released. If you enjoy it like I do, then BUY the game.
I have not yet finished this game, but I am 2-3 hours into it.
Curse is an immersive horror game where navigation is done by point and click. That said, this game is strictly modernized. The graphics are amazing, the animation is silky smooth and the audio is chilling to the bone.
There is a lot of text and story to this game, so if you enjoy reading while residing in rich horror atmosphere, then you are going to love this game. It can also be mentioned that there is an introduction part which gives you some backstory and prepares you for the task at hand.
As someone usually not a fan of traditional point and click games, so far I am really enjoying this experience. You quickly forget the fact that this is point and click, and you just enjoy trying to stay alive while figuring out what even is going on!
If you want to have a look at what it looks like, then I have just uploaded me playing it to YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhMzMHCkG6w&feature=youtu.be
For horror lovers, I can definitely recommend this game.
Дополнительная информация
| Разработчик | Stormlord Games |
| Платформы | Windows |
| Ограничение возраста | Нет |
| Дата релиза | 31.01.2025 |
| Отзывы пользователей | 70% положительных (40) |