The 18th Attic - Paranormal Anomaly Hunting Game

Glad I didn't buy at full price. Was doing story mode and could not move forward since it wouldn't let me identify the anomaly, which was very obvious. Had zero desire to restart from 1.

Well made and fun horror game to spend some time on. One of the best spot-the-difference horror games I've played. My only gripe is that it's very buggy. In Story-Mode, there is a glitch where the screen fades and a roach crawls along your face for about 10 minutes before i got it to go away. Chase mode doesn't count for achievements and sometimes the mannequin doesn't spawn in.

The core gameplay falls within the anomaly genre, which means you need a sharp eye to spot even the smallest differences. The main idea behind these games is that you begin in a "default" version of a location, and every new loop is either exactly the same or contains a single anomaly. Because of that, it's important to memorize the first version of the location as well as you can since your progress depends on how quickly you notice changes. Although the game starts on the ground floor, this only happens once because the attic becomes your main looping area. It's filled with plenty of memorable objects, including boxes on shelves, various items scattered across tables and the floor, a wooden doll, a mannequin, a painting, and several other unique decorations that make it easier to recognize when something is different. Instead of simply choosing between two exits, the game introduces a camera mechanic that lets you photograph anomalies. If you capture the correct spot, you'll receive a confirmation message along with a small piece of the story connected to that object before safely moving on to the next loop. Of course, some loops are entirely safe and don’t contain an anomaly, so you simply keep moving. Taking a picture of something that isn't an anomaly will cost you one of your limited camera charges, while correctly photographing an anomaly doesn't consume one. This can become a real problem since charges are limited, although you can occasionally find more while exploring. If you attempt to move on without photographing an existing anomaly, a creature will jump scare you and deal physical damage. To recover, you'll need medicine bottles, which are also scattered throughout the environment. Besides keeping an eye on your health, you'll also need to manage your sanity. It drops whenever you photograph an anomaly that triggers a jump scare or when you encounter especially disturbing events, such as objects suddenly flying toward you or crashing to the floor. Fortunately, you can restore some of it by petting your cat. It only recovers part of your sanity each time, but since the cat appears on every floor, you can usually get back to full after a few successful loops. Unlike many other anomaly games where every mistake sends you all the way back to the beginning, this one makes progression much less frustrating by focusing on its story. Even if you make the wrong choice, you'll still move forward, though you'll take some damage in return. Only when your health reaches zero are you sent back to the most recent checkpoint. This is another welcome quality of life feature because the game saves after you've found a certain number of anomalies. Even better, the anomalies aren't randomized. A loop will always have the same anomaly, making it much easier to learn from your mistakes and remember what you missed during your previous attempt. For example, loop 36 will always have the typewriter anomaly. There's also a Chase mode that sends an entity after you, forcing you to move through the rooms more quickly. Even then, the anomaly locations remain mostly the same, with only a few changes. No matter which mode you choose, your goal is to reach floor 55. It doesn't take very long because most anomalies are fairly obvious. Most of the changes involve missing objects or noticeable alterations to existing ones, and since you'll revisit the same floor many times, you'll naturally become familiar with everything. However, there are some tricky ones, like a missing tiny match from a newspaper, or a radio that’s already turned on. But at the end of the day, I really liked the overall approach because it keeps you moving and making progress without becoming overly tedious.

Macht wirklich richtig Spass, cool gemacht, top!

Super cool for an Anomaly game, very atmospheric. Havent finished yet but I am certain to. enjoy the game .

was good and all not scary more puzzle but gg game

Decent short horror but I feel maybe the build up for the story wasn't quite long enough. I don't feel like I got to know the characters too much and honestly I wish the cat moved around a little or did some other actions. Definitely worth a playthrough though! Great jump scares :)