Indie Game Review: Reveal the Deep

The game which I am reviewing today is a smaller known title that some of you may have missed, called Reveal the Deep. This is an indie horror/exploration style game which uses 2D/pixelated graphics over the traditional ones that most games use today. It was made and produced by Scottish game developer Lazy Monday Games, and released on Steam for the PC as well as the android platform. The version which I'm talking about and reviewing here is the one for Steam. 

Let me start out by stating that Reveal the Deep is genuinely an anxiety inducing horror game, at least for me. It has terrifying moments scattered about, and between those and the dark, claustrophobic setting you'll definitely feel freaked out from time to time. The game takes place on the ocean floor with the player being in the shoes of a deep sea diver. You'll be exploring the creepy, shipwrecked remains of a ship called the S.S. Euridice which has been sunken at the bottom of the ocean for quite some time. 

Now, I should really say that this game is exceptionally dark and creeping. You only really can see a few feet in front of you as you move around thanks to your diving helmet light, so most of the time you only get a limited view of the area you're in. At times however, you'll have to turn off your light because certain areas have a different view with it turned off. This can make some sections of the game pretty unnerving, to say the very least, even with the pixelated graphics. You'll also definitely feel that most of the game is desolate and lifeless, not only because of the environment you're in, but thanks to the great sound design. 

Speaking of that, something which really helps to keep things feeling uneasy and nerve wracking as you playthrough the game is the sound design. The environment you're in is after all a sunken ship. You can expect to hear some heavy creaking and groaning from the hull of the ship as you move about, and mixing that in with the dark and low level sea ambiance makes for a great backdrop to the game as you start your exploration. 

This game also have some puzzles thrown in so it's not just a walking horror simulator. Now, I should say that this isn't going to be the greatest puzzler of all time or anything. But, some of the puzzles are pretty intriguing with using your light to solve them. Most involve having to manipulate the environment, like moving a crate to a certain spot and things like that. The more interesting ones involve turning off your light to make your way through previously closed off passageways and find hints to what has happened to the crew and ship. So, for anyone who wants a tough puzzle game to play this probably isn't for you, but the puzzles are still quite enjoyable. 

Despite the wonderfully gloomy and tense atmosphere which you get, the story itself is quite short. I find on average that you can beat this game within 3-4 hours at most, but it's at least a very entertaining 3-4 hours. And, what more can you expect at the price point of $1 on Steam, or $1.49 on the android platform. As you progress through the game, the story itself delves into Lovecraftian style horror, which I personally am a big fan of. 

You'll start finding diary entries left by the crew which describe that before they became shipwrecked, they were transporting some sort of bizarre cargo of artifacts which were left behind by a dead civilization from long ago. This creepy, unusual cargo happens to be alive, and will begin hunting you through the dark corridors as you play through the ship. This dark presence remains unseen for the most part, until later in the game that is. 

The creatures you encounter in the game definitely stick with the Lovecraft style of being afraid of the unknown and the horrors which our mind can't interpret. Most of what you encounter is some kind of black slime with tentacles and a set of glowing eyes. The first time you encounter one it won't even actively attack you, that is unless you provoke it of your own choice. 

As awesome as this game is, it does have some issues however. I think one that is somewhat tedious and annoying is that you'll have to do a fair share of backtracking. This is made more annoying by the fact that your character is just slightly faster than a turtle. This is due usually to the controls being clunky and not responding properly when trying to make jumps. I don't know if this is any better on the android version or not, but it's nothing gamebreaking on the PC and you'll be able to get past everything eventually. 

Beyond that, the only other thing which I think could be considered an issue is that the game lacks a compass or a map of some sort. At times, I really felt like I was lost while I was playing because it can get to be difficult to get your bearings on where you are exactly in the ship. At times you might even feel like you've come to a dead end, until you realize you need to alter something to move on. I feel like a slightly better sense of direction could have helped the game a bit, but again, it's nothing gamebreaking. 

To sum everything up, if you're into horror games (especially the Lovecraftian kind of horror), then I would definitely say this game is for you. It has a short story and playtime, but will make for one hell of an enjoyable evening. It's short and sweet, but well worth the money and entertainment you get. The excellent sound design, creeping pace and dark gloomy setting is done beautifully, and as far as a debut game goes I think the developer did an excellent job on this. 

Thanks for checking out my review! Hope you've enjoyed it, and I hope maybe some of you have found a cool little indie game to check out because of it!