murderer It starts with a very simple premise: I'm alone in a new place, I've lost my bag, and I'm in a rusty old hallway with flickering lights and a hunched, menacing figure named Mr. Crawling. I run away, only to encounter Mr. Hood, a Grim Reaper-esque specter. Luckily, Mr Hood is much nicer than his colleague and we take part in a little impromptu language lesson. He teaches me some basic words like “I” and “you” before I find myself in the next hallway.
Regarding the gameplay, murderer It's super simple. I click on the paths I want to explore, hoping I don't get murdered. I am no Leon S. Kennedy or even a James Sunderland; If I approach a nasty monster in the dark, they'll probably kill me and send me back to the last checkpoint. I also have to make a solid attempt to communicate where I can. Only through dialogue, context clues, and trust can I begin to understand the blunt, crude language of this new world.
Every time I'm exposed to a new word, I can open my log and jot down a guess as to what it means. That record is saved and the next time a phrase appears in the dialogue, my English note will appear above it. At one point, I approached a red-lit door and Mr. Crawling hissed a short phrase. Thanks to my hard linguistic studies, I knew exactly what he said: “I shouldn't open the door.” Thanks for the advice, friend. That is a brutal murder that I must avoid!
You may notice that Mr. Crawling started out as an antagonist, but became something of a protective figure. murderer It plays on visual novel tropes of handsome, monstrous men, but the language barrier makes things more complex and intriguing. Some of these strange figures are patient and take the time to teach the protagonist some key vocabulary words. Others are impatient; If I smile at the wrong point in the conversation or refuse to follow advice, it can be a death sentence.
Ultimately, this is a stress-free horror game, which I appreciate: it's scary, but in a relaxed way. Each shock-or-death sequence resets to an earlier stage of exploration, and I can stop regularly to review my conversation log and see if I can figure out other vocabulary phrases. It's a very interesting trick that I've never seen in a horror game before and adds a whole new dimension to the exploration that I really enjoyed. All the sexy monster boys are just a creepy bonus.
murderer released on Steam on November 1st and is available for $15.99.