[h1]Sum-Up[/h1]
[h3]In-depth analysis further down.[/h3]
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[th]🟩 [b]Pros[/b][/th]
[th]🟥 [b]Cons[/b][/th]
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[td]
- The Backrooms’ atmosphere is well-recreated: each level gives an eerie sense of impending doom, while scary moments are plentiful and intense.
- Puzzles are diverse and challenging enough for the most part; they don’t become stale as the levels progress.
- Gameplay variety between exploration, lore, puzzles and platforming is good enough to keep interest up throughout the experience.
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[td]
- Above-average quantity of bugs and technical issues that hinder the experience and may even lead to progress loss due to unwarranted deaths.
- The experience is very linear, without interesting side areas, secrets or optional encounters to discover. This detracts from the Backrooms’ mystery factor.
- The character’s walking speed is very slow; when paired with the labyrinthine, disorienting layout of the Backrooms, it makes getting anywhere a slog.
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[th]🟨 [b]Bugs & Issues[/b][/th]
[th]🔧 [b]Specs[/b][/th]
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[td]
- In some cases, you will take damage because of bugs, especially while climbing.
- Complete lack of graphical options, no FPS Lock / Vsync either.
- Sometimes the UI may get stuck, forcing you to close and reopen the game to fix.
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[td]
- 3900X
- 2080Ti
- 32GB RAM
- SSD
- 1440p
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[table]
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[td][b]Content & Replay Value:[/b][/td]
[td]I played around 6 hours and visited most levels (had two left to clear), however I couldn’t complete the game due to a technical issue that randomly wiped my saves (this is now fixed). The entire content is linear, and there’s no reason to replay unless you want to try Liminal Mode (free roam, no hints) for the sake of it.[/td]
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[td][b]Is it worth buying?[/b][/td]
[td]The price of 14,79€ is fair for this amount of content, however I’d suggest to anyone, except fans of the Backrooms, to wait for a sale regardless.[/td]
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[td][h3]Verdict: Decent[/h3]
[url=https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2548409603]Rating Chart Here[/url][/td]
[td]A passable take on the Backrooms universe with a focus on puzzles. It has good atmosphere and interesting gameplay, however technical issues and pacing problems drag it back considerably.[/td]
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[quote]Follow our Curator page, [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/41449676/]Summit Reviews[/url], to see more high-quality reviews regularly.[/quote]
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2954267955
[h1]In-Depth[/h1]
[h3]Setting & Writing[/h3]
The eerie phenomenon known as ‘noclipping’ strikes countless people without warning - at least in the Backrooms lore. After traversing a seemingly solid surface, these unlucky ones find themselves in the Backrooms, as opposed to the Frontrooms (our world). This liminal (extra-dimensional) space is composed of hundreds of levels (here you’ll explore only a handful of them), each containing dangerous anomalies, lethal creatures and mysteries unfathomable to the human mind, that bend or break every scientific law. You are one of them, and your mission is simple: survive this new and mysterious world - with or without the aid of a mysterious stranger.
The game uses a low-res VHS filter for its visuals, rightly so as the original Backrooms Footage that started everything was indeed taken with such a medium. This artistic decision improves the atmosphere, making everything unclear in a good way, expanding upon the sense of dread and bleakness these same-y, desolate locales already give out on their own. Sound design improves upon this factor, with cryptic sounds, anxiety-inducing growls and more than a few ‘jump-scares’ in an otherwise disturbingly calm setting without a soul in sight. Lore fragments both in visual and written form are scattered in each level, directing your path forward and giving you a way of interpreting what happened, or how that particular level’s ‘rules’ work. The writing quality isn’t great nor terrible, a sufficient average.
[h3]Exploration & Platforming[/h3]
You’ll explore the Backrooms exclusively on foot, and slowly at that. Even if you continuously sprint, it will take a while to go anywhere, and given the extension of some levels, not to mention their disorienting geometry, expect to roam and get lost a lot. On one side the slow pace makes the experience more atmospheric surely, on the other, it makes it dull, especially when you have to backtrack or re-do a section because you died. Saving is performed at fixed points in the shape of blue spheres, as many times as you want. Save often, because bugs are not uncommon and may get you stuck, kill you or otherwise make something ‘not work as intended’, but a reload usually does the job. Your camera and flashlight have limited battery and can be used to see in the dark, while painkillers restore health and are sparingly found in key locations.
Your diary will indicate the next step to take, and also documents found laying around will help - unless you play Liminal Mode, which is free-roam, no hand-holding. In some instances you’ll have to overcome precision movement challenges like jumping between disappearing platforms, navigating a maze of traps, or finding switches while underwater with limited oxygen to name a few. These sections are a good diversion from the usual puzzle-solving, and give a dangerous twist to the pacing.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2954267912
[h3]Puzzles[/h3]
The enigmas you’ll face will usually have components and hints scattered throughout whole levels, with the hints of your mysterious friend guiding you to the next, providing precise instructions on how to proceed - but still, you’ll have some work to do when it comes down to locating and solving the puzzles themselves, as no precise locations are provided, and there’s no map, of course. They mainly consist in deciphering a code or logical sequence, finding and activating a series of buttons through a maze, and figuring out the correct order of various switches or platforms. Once all the trials are completed, you’ll find a dimensional portal throwing you into the next level - which is kind of a pity really, as no-clipping (traditional means to move between levels) would’ve been cooler and more lore-friendly than these ‘portals’.
[h3]Lore & Side Content[/h3]
Aside from the story-related documents, you’ll find more clues in each level that may shed some light on the events. They range from other documents to visual references you can interpret in various ways - although none of the levels is particularly high in detail, and most props or rooms will be just that, empty filler without a particular meaning, exceptions do apply.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2954268042
