Until Dawn

I love horror. Like, I love horror.

Switching the lights off, getting the snacks in, and sitting on the edge of the sofa, heart pounding as you anticipate a good jump scare …

So with that in mind, it will come as no surprise to hear that I absolutely love this game.

The game starts with a gathering of friends in a mountain cabin, but events then lead to the tragic death of the twin sisters Hannah and Beth. One year later the friends return to the cabin, and that is when the story truly begins…

There are so many intricacies to the design of this game. The most interesting feature is the butterfly effect, where various choices you make throughout the game will affect the story in different ways later on. Some of these can be trivial affects .. and some of them can be catastrophic!

Another of these intricacies is the relationships between the characters, and their own individual stats. Many of the decisions you make will increase or decrease these stats, and again this can affect certain plot points of the game. For example, if the relationship is not high enough between two characters, someone may be more concerned with saving themselves, and leaving the other person to whatever fate may befall them.

As an intermission to each chapter, you will be treated to a brief session with Dr. Hill. These visits will become gradually more disturbing and seemingly unhinged, and some of the choices that you make with him will actually affect what you might see in the game, which is just another little thing to add to the atmosphere of the game.

You better make sure your fingers are prepared for this game, as you will face plenty of Quick Time Events to keep you on your toes! I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that failing these could prove to be disastrous…

It is possible to have all the characters survive the night, but it is also possible for each and every one of them to die! The game does provide you with incredibly vague hints if you can find them … There are a number of collectibles for you to come across, some of these being miniature totems which will show you a brief glimpse of the future for one of the characters. They may help you avoid an untimely end if you can figure out what the totem is showing you!

You will also find collectible clues scattered around the mountain as you play – each clue bringing you closer to uncovering the mystery of the mountain.

If you’re anything like me, then you’ll find yourself very quickly deciding which characters you like and which ones you don’t, and that will probably affect how you react to decisions and conversational cues. There’s one character in particular who I would actually prefer if she did meet an untimely end … (I’ve no doubt that many of you will feel the same way)

I cannot express how impressed I was with this game, and now we are expecting another of it’s type from Supermassive Games – Man of Medan! This is definitely something that I will be getting at some point, and I’m sure I’ll have plenty to say about that once I’ve had the chance to complete it … assuming I survive.

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• Platform: Playstation 4
• Release Date: 25/08/2015 (US), 26/08/2015 (PAL), 28/08/2015 (UK)
• Genre: Survival Horror, Interactive Story-Telling