The Evil Within
The first five games from the Resident Evil series - the ones that were still full-fledged horror games, and did not turn into shooters with linear shooting of numerous zombies - were directed by one person, Shinji Mikami. Then, for some reason, he fell out with the publishing company and went "free float".
But it did not “drift” around the market for long. Soon Shinji Mikami joined the Bethesda Softworks studio - and under their leadership, he began a new project. The game was named The Evil Within and became a return to its origins: it turned into a full-fledged psychological horror that can really scare.
Don't expect anything good from psychiatric hospitals
A visit to a psychiatric hospital can scare and leave indelible impressions even in reality, and there is no need to mention computer games (especially in the horror genre). This is why The Evil Within starts with a visit to the boarding school for the mentally ill.
The main character of the game, detective Sebastian Castellanos, arrives at the Mayak psychiatric hospital on a seemingly banal and familiar call. But on the spot, they discover a bloody massacre - all the staff and patients were killed, and with particular cruelty. Only one doctor survived, who in every possible way denies his involvement in what is happening and blames a certain Ruvik for everything.
Fortunately, the psychiatric system was equipped with a video surveillance system. And Sebastian Castellanos is looking at the footage from the cameras. They show the killer in a hoodie, however, it will not work to arrest him - he gets to the detective first. As a result, Sebastian gets hit on the head and then wakes up in a dark basement.
The loan begins absolutely terrible events, which by no means can be reality. The mental hospital is flooded with maniacs and monsters, revived corpses roam the streets, and the plot becomes more and more phantasmagoric by the minute.
What Scares The Evil Within
So, The Evil Within is a classic horror game in which all possible methods and techniques are used to make the player creep and light gray hair. First, a gloomy, viscous atmosphere of hopelessness and hopelessness is whipped up. Then - monsters appear. And then the plot develops with such pleasant sudden turns and ambiguous decisions. In general, there is something to be afraid of.
The Evil Within is undeniably commendable for its monster design. Here, the developers' imagination played out to the fullest, so that among the opponents you can find not only the banal living dead. The Guardian is a humanoid creature, only instead of a head he is covered with barbed wire now. The shadow looks like a woman covered in a bloody robe, but instead of a head she has a spotlight. Amalgam Alpha is a monster whose appearance is an ode to schizophrenic hallucinations: the intertwining of limbs, chains, mechanisms and flesh. The reborn Laura is a woman with four clawed arms and long black hair.
What's especially nice is that each monster has a completely logical and understandable origin. It is explained by the plot and the story, and you can rejoice in the imagination and diligence of the writers. Local bosses are not just monsters, they are the offspring of a sick mind, into whose delusions and fears you plunge in the process of passing. This is both delightful and terrifying, and after the end credits of The Evil Within, there remains a timid joy that you seem to be normal, and not some kind of nutcase.
How To Play The Evil Within
In general, The Evil Within is the most classic survival horror, in which the key aspect is done precisely on the first word. Everything here is directed against the player. The world is inhospitable and constantly changing, characters are dangerous and unfriendly, bosses ... well, everything is as it should be.
And against all these horrors of a sick mind is the only protagonist - with a limited supply of cartridges, matches and other weapons. Fire here is the main instrument of labor in the fight against monsters. But bullets also help. However, all this is extremely small, so you have to constantly think and reflect, and also fear for your life.
Like the first Resident Evil, The Evil Within is extremely player-unfriendly. Most monsters are able to "overwhelm" from the first touch, the saves are scattered in several pieces per location, and the intellect of the opponents is sufficiently developed so that they show cunning and attack at the most inopportune moment, without waiting at their spawn point.
Bosses should be discussed separately. The fact is that each of them has features that force them to constantly change tactics. For example, some are invulnerable to shots, others are constantly respawning, and still others are required to constantly retreat (and this is quite explained by the gameplay).
