When you think of survival horror, chances are you think of zombies, monsters, ghosts, and other fantastical, supernatural creatures. Conscript tries something a bit different. Set during World War I, you’re faced with something more feasible and realistic than any of the aforementioned beasties: the horror of war. Yes, the enemies here are your fellow man; soldiers enlisted to fight in The Battle of Verdun, one of the most brutal and well-known conflicts of the 'Great War'.
We must admit to fearing the worst after experiencing Conscript's opening moments. The prologue throws you right into the heat of battle: gunfire rattles in the distance, explosions cut off passageways, and enemies rush at you in groups of two or three. For what is meant to be a top-down survival horror game, it all felt rather chaotic and antithetical to the slow, methodical gameplay and combat. Thankfully, things cool off a bit once you see the title screen and the main game kicks off.
However, something that might put off a few folks is that, in our opinion at least, Conscript isn’t the least bit scary. Like, at all. It certainly tries: the ambient music is creepy, the environments are dark and dirty, and soldiers can be spotted either writhing in agony or clutching their heads in utter despair. It’s all very atmospheric, but when your enemies are just humans stalking corridors, swinging their clubs about, or slowly aiming down the sights of a rifle, it’s tough to feel any sense of threat having faced untold, eldritch hellspawn for decades. Add to this the fact that you can frequently just sprint by them without their noticing your presence, and you can effectively wipe away the ‘horror’ from ‘survival horror’ with this one.
Despite this, the more we played, the more enamoured we became with everything else. Conscript feels like a love letter to classic Resident Evil in so many ways. You’ve got locked doors, intriguing puzzles, inventory management, cosy save rooms, and even a merchant setting up shop at various locations. Cigarettes act as a form of currency here, and you can also collect gun parts to upgrade your weaponry. There’s a comforting familiarity to it, and it makes us wonder what an actual Resident Evil game would be like were it to be set during the First World War. So while it's not scary, it's got everything else that folks who love classic survival horror yearn for.
In terms of presentation, the pixel-art visuals do a fine job of conveying small details and atmosphere; the character design in particular is exquisite, and we love seeing the bespoke reload animations and the subtle breath emanating from your mouth. Unfortunately, the load times are pretty lengthy as a result; it’s not so bad once you’re in the game and transitioning from one area to another, but the initial load from the main menu is a killer. It also stutters occasionally, and severely, when entering a new area. It’s only for a brief moment, but it’s long enough to make you wonder whether the game itself has crashed entirely.
A mixed bag, then, but certainly not unenjoyable.
Comments 15
A little disappointed in this as I assumed there would be a clear horror element, something similar to Amnesia The Bunker
I know this sounds a bit odd, but a survival horror game lacking in scares honestly isn't that big of a dealbreaker for me whatsoever as, with the genre, its less about the visually scary stuff you come across and more the anxiety that comes with managing your resources and from what I've seen of Conscript from both its trailers and this review, it seems to handle that aspect just as well as the RE games that inspired it while utilising its pretty unique setting very well. Definitely putting it on the wishlist for future reference!
This game sounds intriguing, and I will definitely give it a try.
Even without having played, I have to wonder about the game not being "scary" purely because it involves people, not monsters/zombies. The Battle of Verdun was one of the most horrifying experiences in history, and it utterly shattered many of the people that experienced it. I read the Price of Glory in college, a history book about Verdun, and it gave me nightmares. Are you saying the game doesn't capture that? Or are you saying war is not scary, only monsters?
The review seems to be in line with my own experience playing the demo (Steam Deck). It borrows the mechanics from survival horror games, so that explains why it's marketed as such. War is horror, of course, but they are not exploiting that angle, just using WW1 as a setting.
"Sound idea for war is the true horror" video game. Execution (if you pardon the horrible pun) isn't there. So probably not a purchase. Cheers for the review
Funnily enough it not being that scary makes it more likely for me to play it and while I obviously hope the technical issues can and will be solved I might eventually try it regardless. Thanks for the review!
Sorry but I dont see the Ode to Classic Resident Evil, It's not random camera angles, there are no dogs jumping through windows. erm..
I’m okay with not being scared. Video games and films tend to not scare me. I get scared by stuff irl: you know… stepping on a 4 sided-die, venereal diseases.. stuff like that.
I don’t really care for the early resident evil games, but still, Oliie’s review has me intrigued.
I like the theme, top-down perspective, theme, and pixel art.
The load times though… pretty freakin scary. I’d barter mountains of cigarettes to be rid of those.
I’ll be waiting for a sale but will be trying this out at some point.
A good read and thanks, Ollie!
Funny enough I only became interested in this game when I found out there were no zombies or any supernatural elements because initially I thought it was gonna be a WW1 with zombies or monsters and was like "meh"
But when I found out it was only based around the actual horrors of WW1 I tried the demo on steam and was very impressed so I'll be picking this up for sure.
Well, to be honest, I didn't think RE1, 2, 3, or Code Veronica X were scary either, back in the day. Not even the infamous dog scene in RE1 (my sister felt otherwise). Never played any other RE game, though.
I was looking forward to this since it just looks like something totally different. Not the best review and score, but I'll still pick it up just to try something different and not yet another jrpg and metroidvania game.
Is Resident Evil scary? Serious question. I don’t remember ever feeling scared. Sure I feel the low ammo tension with a zombie round the corner but that’s manageable and a challenge. Dogs jumping through windows? Bring it on
I can't resist a ww1 yarn so I'm gonna dive in. I hope the story is good.
@SirWalrus That's how you do constructive criticism, kids. The reviews will be different now.
WW1 setting clearly marketed and this writer puts “not scary” as a downside. It’s survival horror as in the mechanics and what encompasses that genre
Not everything has to be zombies ffs.
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