Omg, why would you want to know where you are at all times in a game like this?? Part of the sense of dread, the atmosphere, is trying to keep track of where your going with the map and the compass. Wondering if you're where you think you are or if you've gone off track. It's such a fundamental element to the psychological horror of the game
It's definitely a convenience I think the player should have in most games, but in Kholat? Idk. It's creepy most of the time, the feeling of being lost, but at the cost of being frustrated. You can swing it both ways. I personally would prefer the system in game. Also I find it impressive how the scariest thing in this game are the fog and the wolves for me. Those wolves don't even appear in game but my first time though they horrified me. Their distorted howls... Make me shudder.
Well I agree it contributes to the feeling of being unsafe, but the problem is the leveldesign doesn't do a good job of telling you where you are. To be fair, you can easily recognize the important locations, but when the majority of environment is endless passages all looking the same, it makes it a nuisance to figure out where you are. The compass did not help with that either. Compass was only good for something like "alright I wanna go to a place far to the west but I have no clue where I am right now so let's just go as far west as west goes, and then try to find it from there".
I like the supernatural Lovecraft theme, which is eldritch horror. Also, this is a good example of how to do walking sims (Dear Esther, I'm looking at you) Also to address your point on the map system, if you were there in real life your map isn't going to say "You're here" you wouldn't know where you were.
+enderrevolution2 Intuiting where you are was, I thought, pretty much the only gameplay mechanic there was apart from "Look for pages" and "Don't get caught by the Fire Slenderguy."
I really enjoyed the map system. It forces you to look around and actually keep track of where you are. This, for me, increases the immersion immensely. In other games, especially with a mini-map, I tend to rush to the next check point while only looking at marker on the map. The map itself could have displayed the environment more clearly though. It's easier to navigate with a map in the real world than in the game. The compass helped to mitigate this problem, though. What annoyed me was the lack of a jump button. So many artificial obstacles ... Plus, it's one of the games in which you can only run for a few meters until your character is too tired which makes it a little tedious. I would've preferred a better save system but ultimately it didn't annoy me that much.
l've listened to so many people comparing this game to Dear Esther ,let me put things clear for those who are confused 1) Dear Esther is NOT a game but an interactive novel ,Kholat on the other hand is a game since u have things to do that will determine either success or defeat 2) Kholat's gameplay mechanics are basically borrowed from Slender the arrival ,find "x" number of pages/notes/diaries at different lanmarks scattered trhoughout the map 3) Kholat is not designed as a walking simulator but as a stalker type survival horror (like Slender or Daylight)
Just an additional note this game has 3 endings depending on what extra notes you found around the map. This game is very expiration heavy so if you are planning to play this game please roam alot don't just go to the coordinates provided on the map. There are rocks and trees marked with coordinates in the game to let you know where you are.
Thanks for your review. The tank controls of the first resident evil games gives them a great challenge and everybody says its the real way to play those games. We can't complain about a map that doesn't tells you were you are, as this is the main way Kholat challenges the player. Get lost (which contributes to the fear) and find your way again by reading the map by yourself its the main focus of its gameplay. Also, if you are in the hunt of the notes (even all the ones that are outside the main story) you have A LOT of checkpoints as the game saves every time you get one and shows you where you are in that moment. Love the game. Short, but very well made.
It's pretty much like Kona, looks like a nice experience but kinda sucks, Kona graphics were awful and the game/story was dissapointing. Maybe buy it when it costs 5 bucks.
just to let everyone know you can pick this game up right now for $1 on humble bundle sounds like a good deal to me! Its why I'm here to see if the game is any good. Great Review BTW!
Playing as an investigator is something not a ton of games do, but given how many exploration and "walking simulator" games have been coming out recently, and how richly detailed their worlds are, I think it's a no-brainer. More detective modes!
Idiotech you are very helpful I'm a big horror game guy and this helped me decide I'm gonna get it and I will subscribe to you oh and is it really that hard to get around the map?
Good job, I agree completely about the super natural and wanting a more reasonable approach. I too would have loved to be an investigator following the path, collecting clues, and figuring it out as best we can. We could use the real story and real clues they found. I would have also been fine with being one of the hikers before the incident started, or perhaps you play the killer. Which honestly if it wasn't an animal then it had to be one of them by default. Perhaps radiation poisoning, perhaps a secret government building producing radiation that they stumble upon and the government is trying to cover up and you discover the conspiracy. I just don't like the explanation that "God" did it when asking questions. Aliens or the super natural are the new worlds "God".
Idiotech The story is actually a lot deeper than the Dyatlov Pass incident, that ends up being somewhat of a decoy. It's really an immersive horror story all its own. It does end up making surprising sense in the end (not giving it away though as that would definitely spoil the game).
***** Ha, but if you admit someone can actually say it then doesn't that mean your initial statement that "no one can say" is wrong? any score other than 0-0 would seem to disprove your theory.
My favorite horror title of all time right now is still Outlast and it's Whistleblower DLC. That game scared the hell out of me, and kept me hooked all the way through. How does this game compare?
Good review! The map- and save-system totally broke the game for me.. At least they could do a more detailed map where you would be able to spot things in the environment that would be doodled in the map.. Took me a while to figure out that the flashlight should NOT be used on (invisible) enemies - a lot of sudden deaths.. MAN! Really good atmosphere though! WILL PERSONALLY NOT RECOMMEND (at full price) (: !
I agree, the save system isn't good and the map is a little hard to read. However, they did say the following in the survival guide: "Lighting your way with a flashlight [F] you become more visible", i.e., don't use it when enemies are around.
Im all for trying to run around and find shit without a good compass or any at all, however, im 25, i have a full time job, a girlfriend and going to night classes. It pisses me off when im wasting hours trying to find the next piece of intel to be honest
Well, the case was pretty strange. There was no real explanation for the things that happened to those hikers, many people just think it was aliens. Really unnatural things happened to those people, so the supernatural should be expected.
For those who don't know, Sean Bean is the guy that dies in 90% of the movies & shows he's in. Usually in a very brutal fashion too. So my guess is you can die in this walking simulator.
I just bought it on ps4 network. I would ask for a full refund plus my time back if I could. what a pile of shit. boring annoying. should be called a "haunted walking simulator"
with out quick saves its trying to make it hard. Take dark souls for example no map at all and no quick saves. I feel like that they dont detract from gameplay at all. But thats just my opion. I go by if it does not make you rage then its too easy
I don't like horror movies,i don't like horror games,when that appears in front of me freaks me out,i mean why did you played anyway even after you knew that was a horro game hahah.Ign l&g XD.
This game is overrated. You always get lost because there are not actual indications of where to go except a compass and you'll end up getting lost in caves. There are a few creepy, surreal events at the beginning. The story is basically a Dyatlov Pass FanFic where SPOILERS: It turns out you are the freaking thing that killed the hikers. The story is completely incompetent and incomprehensible. This game was not fun.
DayOneNoob Well, aside from the fact that it runs like crap, it's just a generic survival game made from UE4 assets that the devs didn't even make. It's made by an amateurish studio and I doubt this game will ever be completed, just like DayZ, Rust, H1Z1 or all those other crappy survival games.
Omg, why would you want to know where you are at all times in a game like this?? Part of the sense of dread, the atmosphere, is trying to keep track of where your going with the map and the compass. Wondering if you're where you think you are or if you've gone off track. It's such a fundamental element to the psychological horror of the game
It's definitely a convenience I think the player should have in most games, but in Kholat? Idk. It's creepy most of the time, the feeling of being lost, but at the cost of being frustrated. You can swing it both ways. I personally would prefer the system in game.
Also I find it impressive how the scariest thing in this game are the fog and the wolves for me. Those wolves don't even appear in game but my first time though they horrified me. Their distorted howls... Make me shudder.
Well I agree it contributes to the feeling of being unsafe, but the problem is the leveldesign doesn't do a good job of telling you where you are. To be fair, you can easily recognize the important locations, but when the majority of environment is endless passages all looking the same, it makes it a nuisance to figure out where you are. The compass did not help with that either. Compass was only good for something like "alright I wanna go to a place far to the west but I have no clue where I am right now so let's just go as far west as west goes, and then try to find it from there".
I like the supernatural Lovecraft theme, which is eldritch horror. Also, this is a good example of how to do walking sims (Dear Esther, I'm looking at you)
Also to address your point on the map system, if you were there in real life your map isn't going to say "You're here" you wouldn't know where you were.
+enderrevolution2 Intuiting where you are was, I thought, pretty much the only gameplay mechanic there was apart from "Look for pages" and "Don't get caught by the Fire Slenderguy."
Sean Bean??? fuck! I guess we are gonna die sooner or later!
Free on Steam right now 2-2-2019
Wow. The visuals really are stunning. I'm intrigued to see what some AAA developers will do with Unreal 4.
MbdeltaPC Same, it looks like a really good engine right now. I might have a play with it myself.
I really enjoyed the map system. It forces you to look around and actually keep track of where you are. This, for me, increases the immersion immensely. In other games, especially with a mini-map, I tend to rush to the next check point while only looking at marker on the map.
The map itself could have displayed the environment more clearly though. It's easier to navigate with a map in the real world than in the game. The compass helped to mitigate this problem, though.
What annoyed me was the lack of a jump button. So many artificial obstacles ...
Plus, it's one of the games in which you can only run for a few meters until your character is too tired which makes it a little tedious.
I would've preferred a better save system but ultimately it didn't annoy me that much.
l've listened to so many people comparing this game to Dear Esther ,let me put things clear for those who are confused
1) Dear Esther is NOT a game but an interactive novel ,Kholat on the other hand is a game since u have things to do that will determine either success or defeat
2) Kholat's gameplay mechanics are basically borrowed from Slender the arrival ,find "x" number of pages/notes/diaries at different lanmarks scattered trhoughout the map
3) Kholat is not designed as a walking simulator but as a stalker type survival horror (like Slender or Daylight)
+TheMATEMAGICIAN Oh that's good. Even though Daylight is considered bad, I still enjoyed it and I loved Slender
Just an additional note this game has 3 endings depending on what extra notes you found around the map. This game is very expiration heavy so if you are planning to play this game please roam alot don't just go to the coordinates provided on the map. There are rocks and trees marked with coordinates in the game to let you know where you are.
This is by far the most complete review of that game on UA-cam. Really well structured and edited review.
Thanks a lot, I'll subscribe!
Thanks for your review. The tank controls of the first resident evil games gives them a great challenge and everybody says its the real way to play those games.
We can't complain about a map that doesn't tells you were you are, as this is the main way Kholat challenges the player. Get lost (which contributes to the fear) and find your way again by reading the map by yourself its the main focus of its gameplay. Also, if you are in the hunt of the notes (even all the ones that are outside the main story) you have A LOT of checkpoints as the game saves every time you get one and shows you where you are in that moment. Love the game. Short, but very well made.
Just got this game from this months humble bundle. This months bundle turned out to be an awesome one!
I was thinking the same thing. Gotta love humble bundle.
For sure! I just found out about the humble monthly and bought a subscription to that, well worth the money.
The atmospheres look good, but I am on the fence about getting this...
+The Chosen Shane If it's cheep it's a nice experience.
go to humblebundle.com and buy it for steam with 2 more games for a dollar.
What Seim said ^^^^
It's pretty much like Kona, looks like a nice experience but kinda sucks, Kona graphics were awful and the game/story was dissapointing. Maybe buy it when it costs 5 bucks.
I've had my eye on this game, for some time... looks like a keeper.
U bought it?
Thank you for saving my time. I am not reading a story in game. I want to experience a story.
Is that batman in the beginning
Love your reviews mate keep it up!
just to let everyone know you can pick this game up right now for $1 on humble bundle sounds like a good deal to me! Its why I'm here to see if the game is any good. Great Review BTW!
Did you get the survival bundle? Tharsis and kholat I'm not too sure of but the rest look pretty decent
As usual really good review! :)
Professional and all, keep going!
Playing as an investigator is something not a ton of games do, but given how many exploration and "walking simulator" games have been coming out recently, and how richly detailed their worlds are, I think it's a no-brainer. More detective modes!
Idiotech you are very helpful I'm a big horror game guy and this helped me decide I'm gonna get it and I will subscribe to you oh and is it really that hard to get around the map?
Duck Duck Thanks man, It's not hard to get around the map, there just isn't enough checkpoints.
It's some of the best use of the Unreal Engine I've seen, quite frankly.
I just finished Firewatch. Guess this will be Snow Watch...
good review, man, actually talking about what people want to know
Free on steam now
Good job, I agree completely about the super natural and wanting a more reasonable approach. I too would have loved to be an investigator following the path, collecting clues, and figuring it out as best we can. We could use the real story and real clues they found.
I would have also been fine with being one of the hikers before the incident started, or perhaps you play the killer. Which honestly if it wasn't an animal then it had to be one of them by default. Perhaps radiation poisoning, perhaps a secret government building producing radiation that they stumble upon and the government is trying to cover up and you discover the conspiracy.
I just don't like the explanation that "God" did it when asking questions. Aliens or the super natural are the new worlds "God".
Death Mwauthzyx Yeah I am glad I am not the only one. It's interesting enough without adding the supernatural imo.
Idiotech The story is actually a lot deeper than the Dyatlov Pass incident, that ends up being somewhat of a decoy.
It's really an immersive horror story all its own.
It does end up making surprising sense in the end (not giving it away though as that would definitely spoil the game).
***** I can say, and I did.
***** what? I have no idea what you mean or are trying to say here.
***** Ha, but if you admit someone can actually say it then doesn't that mean your initial statement that "no one can say" is wrong?
any score other than 0-0 would seem to disprove your theory.
Good review, fair, balanced and concise. Will subscribe
+Meta Vet Cheers :)
Give it time Supermassive Games will most likely cover this in the dark anthology
About map and coordinates: this is as close to a real world as it can be (besides, you know, having random coordinates written on rocks).
That's precisely why I really enjoyed this system. Except that the map could have been clearer. On a real map it's easier to "read" your environment.
My favorite horror title of all time right now is still Outlast and it's Whistleblower DLC. That game scared the hell out of me, and kept me hooked all the way through. How does this game compare?
+jmatt781 It's nothing like those games. It's very similar to slender.
such a great game and expansion! can't wait for the next!!!!
Good review!
The map- and save-system totally broke the game for me.. At least they could do a more detailed map where you would be able to spot things in the environment that would be doodled in the map..
Took me a while to figure out that the flashlight should NOT be used on (invisible) enemies - a lot of sudden deaths.. MAN!
Really good atmosphere though!
WILL PERSONALLY NOT RECOMMEND (at full price) (: !
I agree, the save system isn't good and the map is a little hard to read. However, they did say the following in the survival guide: "Lighting your way with a flashlight [F] you become more visible", i.e., don't use it when enemies are around.
Im all for trying to run around and find shit without a good compass or any at all, however, im 25, i have a full time job, a girlfriend and going to night classes. It pisses me off when im wasting hours trying to find the next piece of intel to be honest
Well, the case was pretty strange. There was no real explanation for the things that happened to those hikers, many people just think it was aliens. Really unnatural things happened to those people, so the supernatural should be expected.
Western Nationalist Yeah, but not this supernatural lol. It's pretty out there.
Idiotech Alright, not sure how supernatural the game is.
Is this better than alien isolation? I know they're different but i loved alien isolation.
Doubt it
+Zidan Tech
...
Uh...
Why in the right mind would you even compare these two..?
xD
***** Cause they're both horror type survival games....
***** That sounds boring as fuck. Well guess I'm never gonna buy it.
No comparision at all. Alien is much better.
For those who don't know, Sean Bean is the guy that dies in 90% of the movies & shows he's in. Usually in a very brutal fashion too. So my guess is you can die in this walking simulator.
4gb ram enough for this mate?
Unfortunate you do not make videos anymore.
im a huge horror fan but i couldn't continue playing this game more than 20 mins i quit
it was so boring :/
This looks interesting. I wish they hadn't based it on a real event though, it seems kinda distasteful.
Brilliant Review..
Thanks, I think you just saved me $20.
I’m A Big Horror Fan & It’s $4.00 Right Now So I Guess I’m Grabbing This! 😂
What did you think of the game?
Did this game came out for North American PS4?? please Help.
Thumbs up if you are here because you got it for free on steam and are lost xD
I just bought it on ps4 network. I would ask for a full refund plus my time back if I could. what a pile of shit. boring annoying. should be called a "haunted walking simulator"
You just saved me $6.
4:48 haha, NO SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
'/+murat karakuş 1:30 :(.... wasn't even rushing, died twice. overall it was ok...
with out quick saves its trying to make it hard. Take dark souls for example no map at all and no quick saves. I feel like that they dont detract from gameplay at all. But thats just my opion. I go by if it does not make you rage then its too easy
I don't give a shit about horror game, my little sister like it so ,but for me it didn't scare me 1 bit
Looks great,,but theres no gameplay....
I don't like horror movies,i don't like horror games,when that appears in front of me freaks me out,i mean why did you played anyway even after you knew that was a horro game hahah.Ign l&g XD.
This game is overrated. You always get lost because there are not actual indications of where to go except a compass and you'll end up getting lost in caves. There are a few creepy, surreal events at the beginning. The story is basically a Dyatlov Pass FanFic where
SPOILERS:
It turns out you are the freaking thing that killed the hikers. The story is completely incompetent and incomprehensible. This game was not fun.
I actually I enjoyed the film much better.
ark survival is getting better ;)
DayOneNoob Glad to hear it, if it's still relevant in a month ill do an actual review.
nice
DayOneNoob How so? I bought the game yesterday and it's pretty bad
why its bad you think?
DayOneNoob Well, aside from the fact that it runs like crap, it's just a generic survival game made from UE4 assets that the devs didn't even make. It's made by an amateurish studio and I doubt this game will ever be completed, just like DayZ, Rust, H1Z1 or all those other crappy survival games.
Thanks for the review. Please stop using "honestly" over and over again when talking.
You make ah da game, si? What's ah the game's ah name? (I am a sorry, I am Italieooon si?)
This game is trash.