[Game Review] DISTRAINT: Deluxe Edition

ahmadmanga (65)in #retrogaming • 6 years ago

A psychological horror game about losing oneself, about the greed and guilt of working in questionable fields. The "price" to pay to live in a luxury at the expense of other people.

Distraint: Deluxe Edition

Distraint is a 2D psychological horror game, it uses pixel art and to create a creepy atmosphere. And simple of puzzles to make a challenging game.

Most of the game won't make sense, but I think it's intentional as the main character is overwhelmed with guilt that he doesn't know what's the real and what not. While the events in the game aren't that violent there's a lot of blood... the cartoony art style makes it less horrific.

You Can Get It On Steam

I'm reviewing the Deluxe Edition only... the Standard edition had more creepy art and dark atomsphere so if you're into horror you might want to play that. You can choose between both versions at the start if you get the Deluxe version on steam.

Story

You play as "Price" a man whose job is to seize the properties of people... He knows he ruins the life of people who he gets out of their homes, but how can he stop? if he didn't get the promotions he dreams about he'd be the one out of home soon...

The story is all about struggling with the guilt....To please his superiors and get a promotion he has to take the properties of three people... Through the game he tries to make the process as smooth as possible, and tries to help the people he had to make homeless.

But the more properties he seizes, the more Price starts making less sense of his surroundings...

My favorite character is the old lady Mrs. Goodwin...

She is the first character price meets in the game, she's kind and forgiving and didn't blame Price for what he's doing... Price guilt made him see her shadow wherever he went, and he started visiting her after he took her home.

His relationship with her is what led him to make his final decision late in the game.

Gameplay

The game plays as a side-view adventure game, where you collect items and use them to solve puzzles. The game uses the lights/shadows and well-timed sound track to enhance the creepy feelings in the player.

The game play while is too different, it reminds me of Silent Hill... where you as the player create the horror for yourself, anticipating the next jump scare while it may be too far off.

The puzzles are challenging for people who don't play a lot of puzzle games but won't be for those who do... one puzzle in particular needs quick response from the player, and I spent many minutes trying to time my presses right.

People Who I Recommend This Game To

I'd tell you to play this game if you're fan of psychological horror and you like simple puzzles... If you're fan of creepy games or don't mind them. If you want a simple story with twist but not too unpredictable ones.... If you like pixel art games that try to innovate a little (while it uses pixel art, it uses advanced shaders so it's not really retro-based).

Since I'm not really a fan of horror games (but a fan of many Psychological ones) this game was just right for me... it's not the type that makes you "pale in fear" but instead "ask yourself". People who're looking for that will find enjoyment in this game.

I don't recommend it for people with weak heart, or faint at the sight of the blood... I don't recommend for people who can't stand depression or want an ending where no one dies. And finally I don't recommend it to people who judge games from their visuals.

This isn't a game that does everything right, it also tries to be more scary than it should... But it all makes sense considering the main character's guilt. The game is also a bit short (less than 2 hours if you know what you're doing.)... which isn't a problem considering its price.