‘Sorry we are closed’ review (xbox): Unique, indisputable horror indie

When he landed on the computer in October 2024, Sorry we are closed It passed me completely. After finally catching it in front of this month’s release on Xbox, PlayStation and Switch, I will never forget it – even though the price comes a year later than it should be, is a real candidate indie Goty.

Sorry we are closed He is one of the most unique titles of the last five years, and another example of the success of the British studio – followed in his steps opposed Fortunately, you’re here! with another eccentric and idiosyncratic (and sometimes very funny) experience. It is also one of the best modern survival missions from the Thursday and the sixth console generations, never being the same.

It is amazing but understandable that something so brilliant but weird is a debut game for his studio, à la mode games: Indie Duo Tom and CB Bennett, who met Phantasy Star Online In 2006 before he finally experimented with the development of the game during the pandemic, leading to this mindboggling escapade.

From dream to nightmare

Sorry we are closed Begins as a story in a story – a television show called Pedal He plays high drama between Epiphany Oxblood lovers and Canary Rouge. You can move away from the action to reveal that you, Michelle, are an unfortunate store worker. In addition, one of the actors Pedal Is your ex girlfriend. Womp Womp.

Pedal Defines himself as a sub-history in the broader story, such as Guardian‘small Tales of black truckAnd that is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Sorry we are closed‘s unklingly imperative, which becomes only more curious and more complicated with every turn. Even the dirty suburb of London feels worrying, but again, it is plagued by scary contempt: disappearances, violence and malignant theories (especially your friend Marty) that there is a demonic element in all of this.

Of course, this proves perfectly happens when, during your sleep, you visit a strange, gang, sexualized and scary neon creature. It’s an obsession and wants endless love. By you.

Fortunately, your friend Robyn, who I never knew so far was a demon, is committed to saving you from the inevitable perception and almost certain death. What first seems like a dream of fever is suddenly turning into a very real nightmare that is a cross between Killer77; Silent hill; Eternal darknessIf it was produced by David Lynch.

This begins your three night history where you have to get away from its complexes, but also explore relationships with other key players: angels, demons and normally love affairs, greed, stabilization, heart and self -treatment. Each character has its own goal, shaping the story in one of the four separate finishes and it is up to you to do what you think are the right decisions – not an easy task, taking into account the rapid normalization of the imagination of terror that takes place around you.

Using the eye of your mind

There are two levels you deal with: Normal reality, and the strange granted by your third eye, given to you by the Duchess. This is the common “addition” that your demon gives to all its potential love interests and by clicking on your fingers, you can see another world in a small radius around you.

It works in many weird and wonderful ways. For exploration, shows you a look in the past, when things were better – a reverse withdrawal Silent hill‘s OveryWorld – but it also allows you to browse the past blockages or access interactive elements on the other hand, such as a simpler version of ‘Effect and cause’ from Titanfall 2.

Then there is the social element, in which its use reveals hidden demons, or shows you the real faces of the seemingly people around you. A particularly wonderful use of this is with Cerberus, a trio of Heavies, acting as normally hard children in their usual form, but are revealed to be humanoid dogs in your demon vision, with a different (dog-centered) dialogue for startup.

Still, the third eye is a central element in the incredibly inventive battle system of the game, which undermines the restrictions of the horror of the old school’s survival with a modern twist.

Third -person adventure, first -person shooter

For the most part, the exploration is done through classic fixed cameras or the casual projection, which is watching you, say, a long corridor. However, your third eye viewing allows you to see absolutely anything from the first person’s perspective-the only warning you cannot move as you do.

Sorry we are closed It combines this with Aplomb with its battle system. You start with an ax before you later carry a pistol and a shotgun. As enemies go slowly, you can go to first person mode.

You can shoot them until they die – waste and less damage, but sometimes necessary in a sting – or use your third eye to temporarily stun your enemy and reveal glittering hearts inside them. Taking them causes maximum damage, such as the infrared field used to kill the regeneratives in 4th. The harder the enemy is, the more you have to shoot and sequentially.

Often, this is about reading the room before planning your attack line. You even get a relatively early superpower in which it can be a real benefit to a sting. The whole battle element gets some ordinary, but once clicks, it feels incredibly satisfactory.

The gift of sound and vision

Sorry we are closed It is a beautiful game that manages to distract everything from its low political aesthetics, at the same time constructing enemies’ plans, landscapes of other worlds and focal cuts both worrying and magnificent. The direction of art evolves at a fast pace, which means that every new day brings a completely different experience.

This is combined with a wonderful series of sound effects. The characters are non -verbal, but their dialogue is accompanied by the correct amount of emotions from Gasps, Grumbles and Giggles to regulate mood. Demons have extra depth from noises that range between tortured and mourners. The developers even made the perfect atmospheric noises, including the Lond of London Underground, which add more atmosphere than one would expect. Then there are the goofier SFX you don’t expect, but you love to hear – my personal favorite is the noise of the pistol, which combines a cash bell and a dog.

Finally, the soundtrack is perfectly balanced-a mixture of tested and tested LO-FI music mood, choral, dramatic classic melodies, carefully executed pockets of silence and boss battles supported by OkumuraA stupid talented game that loves Hip-Hop game with love for gambling No more heroes 3).

Fortunately, we are open

There are some things that Sorry we are closed FUMBLES. Many people will not like battle, and some of the boss’s battles are a bit clunky. These game issues feel programmed by the developer as a trait and not as an error-as a mission in the past-but some sections can be based on lightning reflexes or a little luck.

Sorry we are closed It also has a problem of narrative pacing that affects certain sections and characters, which means you are struggling to have relationships with people or to feel the need to help them, simply because you do not know why (or, occasionally, who they are). Chamuel, Clarissa and Lucy, in particular, are extremely difficult to read.

Still, there is a la mode games playing a blinder. Once everything is said and done – my first Playthrough has come in just six hours – a new playing feature +, transferring your purchases, discoveries and upgrades. At this point, you have already entered into the number of missed opportunities and forgotten angles to explore, as well as the collectibles, the errors to erase and a good handful of the 60+ achievements that have still been offered. Having assimilated the madness that came before, you will run to go for another Playthrough and explore these routes, knowing what you know.

This is a good chance that you will not know what happened. Sorry we are closed They will be interpreted by the fans for weeks and months after completing it, but they often complete it. At least there is one constant: the world has a new thirsty picture with the Duchess, a mortality of women even more deadly than Resident Evil VillageMrs. Alcina Dimitrescu.