We reviewed Narcosis

Driftwood
Tuesday, March 28, 2017 | 12:00 PM
9 comments

GSY Review PC Xbox One

As you know, the Gamersyde team does not only like AAA games. We are always happy to discover independent titles, especially when they are well done, like Narcosis. Small developer Honor Code started it as a student project at Cnam-Enjmin in Angoulême France, so we had no idea what to expect in terms of atmosphere or story. If you want to find out more about the game, check out of videos and read our verdict inside. As announced earlier today, we'll also be live tonight at 8:45 with one of the developers.

Verdict

Narcosis is a very pleasant surprise yo say the least. One might have thought that coming after SOMA would be difficult, but as it turns out, they are quite different in terms of gameplay and narration. Frictional Games' title also put the emphasis on a story-driven experience, but Narcosis doesn't follow in their footsteps, and the same goes with the core gameplay mechanics. They share the same reflection on the implications of survival and loneliness in a hostile environment, but Honor Code's game is a lot more grounded reality, in that it never leans toward science-fiction. As a first project, it may not be perfect, but it managed to keep us on our toes until the very end, up until the unexpected final twist that we personally didn't see coming. Sure, maybe sometimes the developers try a bit too hard to scare the player, which does not seem necessary to us as the game is atmospheric enough not to require such easy gimmicks, but at the end of the day, Narcosis is an experience well worth your time, on a monitor/TV, or with a VR headset.

On the plus side
Suffocating and oppressive atmosphere
The slow movements of the suit make perfect sense
No supernatural monsters or underwater zombies
The mix between linearity (first part) and exploration (second part)
Solid storytelling
Nice visuals
Excellent voice acting
VR compatible (HTC Vive and Oculus)
The unexpected ending
The narrative bonus unlocked at the end
Good Price/Length ratio (4 to 6 hours for $19.99)

On the downside
Can occasionally be a bit frustrating
Pretty generous when it comes to oxygen supplies
Now everyone will enjoy the slow pace...
... or the Walking Simulation aspect of the game

High quality stream and download

Commented on 2017-03-28 14:08:42

Interesting. It will have to be really awesome to surpass my champion, SOMA.

In reply to

nostradamus

Commented on 2017-03-28 20:48:19 In reply to Zat

Posted by Zat

humm... no just different. soma was a boring (in gameplay) walking sim with great exposition, atmosphere and sci-fi script/writing. This seems more of a game, and more low-fi/productions.

Moonwalker

Commented on 2017-03-28 20:50:05

Nothing on this game on the Xbox store. Wtf?

Commented on 2017-03-28 21:07:16 In reply to nostradamus

Yeah...I can´t really compare yet, since I´ve seen only three videos. SOMA just had everything for me, to be a good scifi/horror and the effort put into design and sound was amazing. We will see.

Driftwood

Commented on 2017-03-28 21:21:10 In reply to Moonwalker

Posted by Moonwalker

Mid April.

Simplex

Commented on 2017-03-30 13:21:05

"The unexpected ending"
Now that I know it, I will be expecting something unexpected at the end, which will ruin the surprise.

Megido

Commented on 2017-03-30 13:31:33 In reply to Zat

It had everything? Yeah, except for the most important bit; interactivity. Decent story, but i mean...the player is virtually only walking from point a to point b tontrigger the next story bit for like 90% of the game :P

KORNdog

Commented on 2017-03-30 13:35:51 In reply to Zat

soma was indeed great. and had such an awesome premise and story. it stuck with me for days the same way silent hill 2 and oxenfree did. it was only really a stealth game in regards to traditional gameplay, but what was there was definitely better than amnesia imo. i just wish it ran better....crappy unity.

Commented on 2017-04-01 19:30:17

Amnesia craps all over Soma. not even funny. different takes on overexposition of story and lore vs. textual narrative, but there is no contest, Amnesia is a horror game through and through. Soma is a Sci-fi movie. Maybe next time they should invest time making a whole game, instead of Soma.