A very pleasant surprise awaited me this afternoon. I had not expected it to arrive in less than two weeks and I feel lucky to join you already!
My very first impression was from reading the manual and looking at the box and media - that's what I especially like about older games; they came with so much extra. The DVD cases (or direct downloads) nowadays don't have the same feel to them. It's better for the environment I suppose, but... Anyway, rambling.
First, my reactions to the manual. I hope I'm not going to be long-winded again.
The manual felt excessively friendly, almost patronizing. It assures you that you can't end up in a timed puzzle without any way to escape. If you should fail, you can try again or even ask for the solution. Everything felt "softer" than I'd expect from a horror game. This is probably a strange reaction - and definitely not criticism! - but we're supposed to be discussing, right?
Then I started playing, and what a joy it is to play. I can't think of anything bad to say so far, and you people have listed all the positive things so...
Just one last thing. Intense Degree says it's reminiscent of Shivers, and I agree, but I immediately thought of Phantasmagoria when playing. Shivers was a slide-show, whereas this almost looks fully 3d-rendered with all its walking animations. And that parallel is probably why I reacted to the "hand-holding" with the timed puzzles. Phantasmagoria (and Shivers, for that matter) could definitely put you in a tight spot without any means to escape, and that increased the tension for me. "Great, I'm stuck, time is ticking and will I even be able to get out of here?" Granted, it also increased frustration.
I am totally sold so far. Wished it were Wednesday already!
