Review of the game INSIDE

The Danish studio Playdead became famous for its amazing game Limbo (2010), in which a little boy was looking for a missing sister in a dark, otherworldly world. In this unusual project, religious allusions intertwined with the elements of horror, and everything was executed in the form of a monochrome 2D platform, full of puzzles. Immediately after the release of Limbo, the developers focused on working on the next game, which eventually became INSIDE. Six years it took the studio staff to translate all of their ideas on the screen. And now we can say with confidence that these years have not passed in vain. The game has already appeared on the PC and Xbox One, and on August 23 it will also look at the PlayStation 4 platform.

INSIDE events unfold in a gloomy future. Apparently, we observe the world after a certain natural cataclysm, since from time to time we are shown empty cities and villages. The remnants of mankind were divided into two factions: gentlemen and slaves. Scientists managed to create a system for manipulating the human mind, so most of the survivors in the cataclysm of people now represent a kind of remotely controlled zombies. The protagonist of the game is an unnamed boy, trying to survive in a mad anti-utopia, in parallel destroying the existing system, step by step moving towards a single known goal.

From the first seconds of the game, you realize that you stayed with this frightening world one on one. Developers do not even bother to explain to us how to control the main character. Do not expect INSIDE to be lenient towards you. Each puzzle will have to be solved with your own mind. The game will not lead you forward by the hand, encouraging at the same time. This approach emphasizes the pervasive atmosphere of despair and loneliness, which is the leitmotif of a gloomy adventure. No one will come to the aid of the unfortunate boy. The whole world is against him and craves his soonest death: he is shot, electrocuted, his body is torn by furious dogs and directed explosions, in general - even the enemy does not want to be in his place. Developers managed to significantly increase the degree of "horror", set by the first game of the studio in 2010. They easily play with our senses and immaculately achieve the necessary emotional coloring of what is happening on the screen. Step by step exploring the world around him, the protagonist, and at the same time the player, discover the terrible truth about what really happened to humanity.

Like Limbo, the game is a two-dimensional (though executed in three-dimensional graphics) platformer with a lot of puzzles, most of which are tied to physical laws. You have to run, jump, climb the stairs, swing on the ropes, interact with various mechanisms - all these elements are familiar to any fan of video games. But the developers decided to diversify the traditional gameplay with several innovations. For example, in the game there will be times when the main character is entrusted with the management of the bathyscaphe. The study of the underwater world hidden from the eyes is felt really great. In addition, in solving puzzles you will have to actively use the very same zombies, which can be controlled using a special control helmet. And immediately recalls the film "The Beginning" of Christopher Nolan, because controlling one zombie, you can put on it another helmet, and now this zombie will manage his own puppet, making the puzzle solution even more layered and complex.

Of course, INSIDE has a double bottom and a secret ending. However, in order to see it, you will have to find 14 gleaming spheres hidden in the locations during the passage. Only by disconnecting all spheres from the power supply, you will be able to see what will allow you to add the disparate pieces of the plot into one. Only when you see an additional ending, you finally understand what is really going on. It's intriguing, is not it? The plot of this game is not something trivial. It's as difficult to understand as the movies with Jake Gyllenhaal. Remember at least such tapes as "Donnie Darko" (2001) and "Enemy" (2013). With such films, it's time to issue instructions in six volumes, so that at the end the audience, taken aback, could comprehend the deepest meaning implicit in their scenarios. With INSIDE there is a similar situation. The game is really tough for thinking people. And this she attracts even more.

Studio Playdead decided to abandon its own graphics engine in favor of the popular tool today, the development of Unity. Despite the fact that the game is no longer monochrome, as it was with Limbo, its color palette mainly consists of dark shades of blue. Against this background, the red shirt of the protagonist looks like a catchy challenge to an authoritarian system that turns people into limp pieces of meat. Important elements of puzzles, switches, doors and other objects that can be interacted with are also often illuminated by red lamps. Visually the game looks simply amazing, even despite some artistic simplifications and excessive styling of graphics. Elegant animation complements the picture and makes you believe unconditionally what is happening on the screen.

The attention of the artists of Playdead studio is striking to the smallest detail, which most players will not even notice. I studied the game locations for a long time and my eyes sometimes opened tiny elements that carry a huge meaning, important for understanding what is happening. INSIDE is a game not only for thinking people, but also for people very attentive. However, even without excessive care on your part, it is capable of delivering a huge and incomparable pleasure, although it takes place on average for some three to four hours. Together with the main character, the player will have time to live a lifetime in these few hours, full of vivid emotions and unexpected blows of fate.

As for music, there is practically no music in the game. Most of the time you hear an incredibly oppressive sound background. Composer Martin Stig Anderson recorded it using bone conduction technology, transmitting sound through the bones of a real human skull. These muffled sounds gracefully emphasize the overall stylistics of the game and make it even more unique. I would safely refer INSIDE to works of art in the field of video games. However, I do not think so, because the main sponsor of project development was the Danish Film Institute and even the government of Denmark contributed to the support of the studio. Let the Playdead account for the time being only a couple of games, but each of them is in its own way masterpiece and does not look like anything.

Pros:

• A magnificent multi-layered plot and two complementary endings.
• A unique visual style and a beautiful, truly animated animation.
• Atmospheric soundtrack recorded using bone conduction technology.
• The attention of developers to the smallest details is amazing.
• Smart puzzles, sometimes causing your gray matter to boil.
• I want to hang the game on the wall, like an expensive and very rare picture.
• One of the best incarnations of anti-utopias in the history of the gaming industry.

Minuses:

• Relatively short duration.

The INSIDE game raises a number of very serious questions and brings the player to one of the darkest anti-utopias ever created. A unique visual style, elegant animation and enveloping soundtrack make the game outstanding even against the background of multi-million blockbusters AAA-class. It becomes more difficult to differentiate between video games and real art. On the one hand, I want more games like this, but on the other hand, you understand that this is only piece work. And if all the developers start to imitate Playdead, then there is a risk of quickly being satiated with such works. And satiate with them categorically do not want to. After such a wonderful dinner, there should be an easy feeling of hunger. Without hesitation I put the game 10 points out of 10 .

The article is based on materials https://hi-news.ru/games/obzor-igry-inside.html.