Injection π23 - No Name, No Number (PS4)

Do you miss that old school Silent Hill fix? That psychological horror that makes you question your sanity while delivering pulse pounding puzzle solving investigations involving pop-ins from the paranormal? Well, Abramelin's "Injection π23" might just fill that void of wanting. Might being the keyword. Taking inspiration from games like Silent Hill, and Slenderman this indie nightmare, in all of it's sensory overloading glory, drags the gamer kicking and screaming back down retro gaming's memory lane where a certain disturbed individual finds himself in a world filled with macabre mystery. While utilizing tools found in the various haunting landscapes, and finding clues among the gore plastered scenery you'll need to mind your health, stamina, and noise making as you unlock rooms, and locations that hide various key items meant to get you to the end of hellish world you find yourself in. A goal that will either free you from the madness therein, or make you realize the futility in your running of errands.

Injection π23, as it is called, starts off with a stern warning about it not being meant for people who suffer from sensitivity to flashy visuals. A warning that is definitely warranted, especially during the intro sequence that is filled with both obscured subtitles, and trance-like imagery peppering the screen like some sort of bad acid trip. If you manage to focus on the subtitle text though, and read through it in your preferred language you'll be clued into the fact that this particular survival-horror game is that of a psychological experience. The initial protagonist banters poetically on about getting lost in the darkness, and not being able to tell what is real and what is not lending further credence to the psychological nature of story being told. This narration is then abruptly ditched for a sort of side story involving a younger man in a hoodie who ends up being hit by a bus after chasing his dog Joy out into the street. As far as the hooded protagonist goes he awakes in a nightmarish world modeled after a real world Spanish location with rooms labeled "23", and scattered notes pertaining to sacrificial cult activity strewn about all helter-skelter within the environments. Including details about thousands of unexplained deaths, nuns selling children for ritual sacrifice, and actual grisly scenes of murder laid out in such a fashion as to breathe life into the underlying cult narrative.

When you first come to in this nightmare realm, or afterlife, you'll be given a quick onscreen tutorial detailing how to navigate menus as well as what visual cues can be taken from your exploration going forward. Like a lot of the older survival-horror games you'll be using a flashlight, limited use weapons, and items to both survive, and make progress in the puzzle solving sense. In one of your menus you'll find that you can examine collected items, use said items, and even craft new items via a combination system. It is also in this menu where you'll gain access to the informative notes, and clips that will aid you in some of the game's increasingly difficult puzzles. For those looking to traverse the world easier there is even a map with noted areas of interest marked with related icons.

When it comes down to what sets "Injection π23" apart from most survival horror games though it is in the introduction of color coded alert features that you can take advantage of as you make your way from start to finish. Pressing the touchpad, for example, will switch between color coded health, tool, and interaction notifiers in-game. This will also change the color of your controller light accordingly. Green for health, blue for tools, and red for interactions. Making finding things easier. Along with this new mechanic comes the interactive mic feature where when prompted you can hook up your mic, and speak to trigger certain things. Supposedly so anyways. It seems this voice feature is hindered by a lack of proper speech recognition. Regardless of it's flaws including the occasional text translation mistake, and PSN trophy issues that other reviewers have noted the game manages to take environmental interactions to a whole new level, and in doing so makes the game less bland than it would be otherwise. These new interactive features also help to fast track finding things. Ultimately making the exploration less frustrating in the process. Outside of stamina bar management.

In the way of frights you will find the occasional jump scares ranging from gory lesser creatures as well as encounters with grotesque beings of larger stature that must be avoided to get to key areas that house more important features meant for progress. It is here that the game's icon warning system will clue you into whether the creature has noticed you, or if it is locked on for the hunt. Avoiding an early demise at the hands of these horrid things is done by either stealth crouch walking, crouching behind objects, walking slowly, or running away. Jumping is also an option in some areas, but not all. For those enemies that must be killed you'll find weapons later on into your playthrough for sending them back from whence they came. Weapons like guns though are limited use items, and must be used sparingly. When it comes to flashlight play, which is also a crucial component of exploration, you'll find that the right thumbstick is the designated go to control for that function. As with games like Slenderman though you can run out of power if you keep it lit for too long. Thankfully though it will recharge when turned off so long as you do not fully drain the batteries. The flashlight is handy in darker areas, and also in the interactive sense in some instances.

For those of you looking for extended replay value the game does feature multiple difficulty settings as well as some unlockable modes. At first you'll need to play through the story mode on normal though. After that "Extras", and "Transmedia" menu options will become available for selection. Each mode containing their own secretive content for those willing to see the game through to the end at least once.

The Verdict ...

I liked what Abramelin Games was going for. I really do. The visual style was intriguing in such a way as to draw you in. Scare-wise it was mildly haunting with a soundtrack about as equally as foreboding. To be honest the scares weren't all that scary at times, and were mostly attributed to things popping into view suddenly or showing themselves briefly, and then disappearing as if they'd never been there. Despite the lack of exciting scares the game still looks the part. It's darkness, and otherworldly appeal is definitely appealing. In a way it seems a lot like indie horror, which it obviously is, but more so along the lines of a college project or a lower budget horror film type of experience. Something that I admire a lot as a horror fan. That being said I did find that some things in the game shine while others leave me wishing it was something more. There's no getting around that. I did like the camera angle options outside of the third person POV with the old Resident Evil style tank controls, for example. I personally went with the third person freestyle camera angle which wasn't bad at all, and did take note of the inclusion of a first person perspective. It was a nice option allowing players to experience the game as they see fit. As far as downsides go shared complaints among other reviewers about subtitle translation, and the broken PSN trophies are valid, and do warrant concern.

As far as my recommendation goes I can't discount the flaws, and even though I do find the game interesting enough, It did fail to strike that scary vibe that the developer tried to incorporate. It had the proper atmosphere, and looks at times, but it could have been so much scarier. It is my suggestion, according to my assessment, that you only buy this game if you are looking for something in the horror-survival genre that is interesting enough to fiddle with. This game is not perfect, and the scares aren't really all that frightening as I've said, but there is something about it that has me thinking this developer could make something better with a bigger budget. I'd like to see a game like this with better graphics, better controls, better level design, and better scares.