![]() I hate spiders, and the most consistent way to freak me out in a game is to have a giant spider make an appearance, but Tormentum largely wasted the opportunity. Instead, the game simply shows the spider's legs which, while ominous, simply didn't frighten me. There were plenty of moments where the developers could have dialed up the fright, but even when it seemed I might come face to face with a giant man-eating spider, the moment of terror never truly came to pass. ![]() The game does a good job of retaining an element of creepiness throughout, but I was hard-pressed to find anything genuinely scary to get my blood really pumping. The few torture scenes are disturbing but not really scary, the atmosphere impressively macabre but unlikely to inspire nerve-wracking tension, and the few truly startling moments in the game are worthy of a mild twitch but nothing more. The menacing atmosphere maintains a sense that evil is always present, but it only ever lurks at the edge of detection. That sense of sterility extends to the general tone of the game. It gave me the sensation of viewing an interconnected series of paintings, and indeed, that's essentially what you get in Tormentum, creating a bit of emotional distance from what's happening onscreen. They’re a nice touch, but seeing these animations in action reveals their repetitive nature, most taking no more than a second or two to complete before looping back to start again. Other minor movements include things like rats scurrying along the floor and the repetitive slicing of a sword through an unfortunate victim of torture. As outlandish as some of these elements are, they feel completely believable in the context of the surreal world in which they're placed.Īnimation is limited for the most part to what's necessary or functional, such as a large machine vibrating to life or a monster rearing its head when provoked. Areas such as an old mine, an ancient tomb, and even a farm with a living, ghastly scarecrow that's lost its ability to frighten birds provide some variety to the creepy settings. Players begin their journey in a castle full of passages and rooms, but eventually the game moves outdoors, where occasional bouts of fire and brimstone rain down on a desolate, inhospitable landscape. Locations are varied as well, and fit in with the hellish, decrepit environment. If the goal was to create a macabre yet visually sumptuous game, the developers have succeeded wildly here. When combined with Beksinski's signature influences, such flourishes make for a daring combination of styles that surprised me greatly because it works so well. Egyptian themes and even the slightest hint of Art Nouveau make brief appearances at certain points along the way. This is certainly not another Dark Seed, even with Giger's influence, but that's not a bad thing by any means. Giger's influence is less obvious at first glance, though certainly evident in several monsters – one of which is clearly an homage to the Necromorph – and a few room designs, though even the most Gigeresque works in the game are tinged with Beksinski's flowing, organic style. Beksinski's influence is actually the more obvious inspiration throughout Tormentum, such as when a face or nude female figure appears in the twisting forms of a wall or a massive cathedral whose ribbed, organic facade seems to grow out of the very ground beneath it. Both Giger and Beksinski are known for their unique macabre styles: Giger for bold and disturbing "biomechanical" art, featuring nightmarish integration of humanoid and animal forms with machines, and Beksinski for dreamlike works in which creatures and architecture seem to emerge from intricate, flowing structures that resemble bent twigs or bone. Graphically, Tormentum's influences are worn proudly on its blood-soaked sleeves. Though easy puzzles, a lack of adequate characterization, and an absence of scares may drive some players away, those who simply want to gorge themselves on beautifully dark scenery will want to stick around for the few hours it takes to breeze through what the game has to offer. After a successful crowdfunding campaign, Polish indie OhNoo! Studio's horror-themed adventure Tormentum: Dark Sorrow presents a game inspired by Giger and Poland's own surrealist painter Zdzislaw Beksinski. ![]() Twenty years later, though the artist himself passed away in 2014, Giger’s legacy in the genre lives on. Giger made his debut in the video game world with the Dark Seed series, which featured his signature dark, morbid artwork and a terrifying story. Although most often associated with the movie Alien for his design work on the Necromorph monster, in the early 1990s Swiss surreal artist H.
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