Put off the DLC for so long (4 years now? 5?) that I’d have to relearn a fair bit to get back into it.
I remember being chased by a creature and noping out. I’m not built for horror games and that was a huge shift in tone from the idyllic feeling of the base game. I get that the thing I’m avoiding is basically a sprite with eyes and some music cues designed to feel a little stressful but I don’t know.
Sorry if this spoiler text doesn’t work. The only records left behind by the Nomai were their writings, save for a few pictograms, which left a lot to the imagination. The Owlks did have writing, but it was clear that visual story telling was much more important to their culture so we got to see for ourselves what they went through. Seeing the prisoner at the end would not have hit so hard had we just read about them.
IIRC there’s an accessibility option that makes things less dark, so probably less scary. Doubt you’ll get back to the game after so long (even though it’s really worth it!), but it might help other people
They have a mode to turn off the creatures for exactly that reason. I haven’t tried it, but other than the spooky factor the creatures don’t add a ton to the game, so it probably wouldn’t lessen the experience. (There is a small thing, but it’d spoil some story elements if I were to say them here)
I did have reduced frights on and it didn’t work for me. I’ve even read some anecdotes about it being worse than having it off. It doesn’t remove the creatures I think it just makes them walk slower and makes the sounds less jumpy, I think.
I understand you. The DLC is scary af but not really horror. There is nothing more malign there than the anglerfish i the base game and as you may have noticed this creature chasing you doesn’t even make you die.
I fully understand. But if it helps (without major spoilers), the horror elements are not permanent, and as you learn to progress you learn to work around them and through them.
But yeah, if they’re too deal-breaky upfront, I totally get that. You do spend a lot of time, pun intended, in the dark.
As an insanely big fan of the base game, I had exactly this problem with the DLC. The tonal shift from existential horror to “thing in the dark” stealth sections horror is just… Not great. You’re not alone in this bit for sure.
It’s unfortunate, because I suspect the DLC story is as amazing as the base game, but I’ll probably never know, at least, not in the way it’s intended to be experienced.
Put off the DLC for so long (4 years now? 5?) that I’d have to relearn a fair bit to get back into it.
I remember being chased by a creature and noping out. I’m not built for horror games and that was a huge shift in tone from the idyllic feeling of the base game. I get that the thing I’m avoiding is basically a sprite with eyes and some music cues designed to feel a little stressful but I don’t know.
I really hope you give it another try. The story the DLC tells is so much more incredible than the base game. I tear up just thinking about it
I think it’s the change in medium that does it.
spoiler
Sorry if this spoiler text doesn’t work. The only records left behind by the Nomai were their writings, save for a few pictograms, which left a lot to the imagination. The Owlks did have writing, but it was clear that visual story telling was much more important to their culture so we got to see for ourselves what they went through. Seeing the prisoner at the end would not have hit so hard had we just read about them.
IIRC there’s an accessibility option that makes things less dark, so probably less scary. Doubt you’ll get back to the game after so long (even though it’s really worth it!), but it might help other people
They have a mode to turn off the creatures for exactly that reason. I haven’t tried it, but other than the spooky factor the creatures don’t add a ton to the game, so it probably wouldn’t lessen the experience. (There is a small thing, but it’d spoil some story elements if I were to say them here)
I did have reduced frights on and it didn’t work for me. I’ve even read some anecdotes about it being worse than having it off. It doesn’t remove the creatures I think it just makes them walk slower and makes the sounds less jumpy, I think.
I understand you. The DLC is scary af but not really horror. There is nothing more malign there than the anglerfish i the base game and as you may have noticed this creature chasing you doesn’t even make you die.
I fully understand. But if it helps (without major spoilers), the horror elements are not permanent, and as you learn to progress you learn to work around them and through them.
But yeah, if they’re too deal-breaky upfront, I totally get that. You do spend a lot of time, pun intended, in the dark.
As an insanely big fan of the base game, I had exactly this problem with the DLC. The tonal shift from existential horror to “thing in the dark” stealth sections horror is just… Not great. You’re not alone in this bit for sure.
It’s unfortunate, because I suspect the DLC story is as amazing as the base game, but I’ll probably never know, at least, not in the way it’s intended to be experienced.