Hello Everyone
I am here once again with another review. But first of all, I want to thank 
Today I am reviewing Detention for the PS4. Detention is a survival horror game created and developed by Taiwanese game developer Red Candle Games. It's a 2d side-scroller with point-and-click puzzle elements. The game is set in 1960s Taiwan during a time when it was under martial law.
So, the game starts in a classroom then after the brief intro everyone is gone and you play a young boy alone in a school amidst the typhoon alert. After the brief prologue you meet the main protagonist Ray. Ray is a young girl caught up in this nightmarish school full of ghoulish creatures from Taiwanese mythology. Ray has to uncover what's going on and find a way out of the darkness by solving puzzles unlocking new areas and avoiding the dark creatures. You collect various things in your inventory that you can try to use to solve puzzles and riddles if you succeed you unlock more items or new areas. Everything you collect to create a new entry in your notebook which you can refer to at any time to gain clues on how to solve your current puzzles. Most of the puzzles they're fairly linear but later when they do become a lot more avant-garde and they do require you to think outside the box and also notice your surroundings a bit more. In particular, there was this one puzzle that involves sound and you had to listen to a melody memorize it and use your memory to unlock a certain puzzle with that melody. It was a great little moment and it kind of it's refreshing to see a game really make gamers use their brain when they're solving puzzles rather than just spell everything out for you.
In terms of save points, you can only save out religious altars and you'll find these strategically placed throughout the school grounds. The main threats to your progression are the ghosts like creatures that linger in the corridors of the school. There are several variations like the Linga who make some of them creepiest sounds I've ever heard. To this to avoid being killed by them you need to hold your breath and you need to slowly walk past them if they hear you, you are done. For another really creepy enemy are the lantern spectres who are these long-limbed people who slowly creep around and if you make eye contact with them you're dead basically look away hold your breath and hope you don't run out of air. They're all really well imagined and the moments you encounter these creatures they are genuinely tense and disturbing. Overall it's a very atmospheric and terrifying game to play. The school is a horrific place with a nightmarish echo resonating throughout the grounds it's thick with atmosphere and for survival horror fans or fans of avant-garde puzzle solving this will be an absolute must. It's one of the most immersive games I've played in recent times and it's just dark, it's weird and it's shocking throughout.
Visually, the game is simple but effective it deliberately chooses a kind of muted color tone with grainy visuals. It has a minimal feel but that really does add to the effect the game is set in a school and the environments they're very well created everything looks tired rundown and distressed. The lighting effects are great and it's genuinely creepy to look at and explore.
The audio, Detention has some of the finest audio work I've heard in any indie title for the PS4. Firstly, the music is amazing and it's perfectly pitched the music adds a real dark undertone to the experience it builds the tension and mystery and it just elevates every moment of the experience. The sound effects are very good but it's the voices of the lingered creatures that really steals the show. The sounds they make I just guttural and terrifying and they make you feel on edge whenever you encounter them it really gave me chills and just talking about it gives me goose bumps. So, the audio all round is just fantastic.
Final Thoughts, It's one of the most atmospheric games I have ever played. The only negative is sometimes the controls feel a little bit clunky but it was originally made to be used with a mouse and a keyboard. So, it's understandable there would be a little bit of awkwardness when using a PS4 controller. Detention is an instant indie classic it's a mysterious and chilling adventure with a real strong core of horror running through. But it the undercurrent of the story is very powerful and I can't really speak highly enough of it. it's one of the most atmospheric and powerful indie titles I played, the setting and what the game is based on will send chills down your spine. However, if you have young kids I would keep them away from this as it can be a little bit traumatic and disturbing in some parts. So, for young impressionable minds I would not advise giving them access but if your adult gamer who wants a powerful visceral and emotive journey, Detention is something you should try.
My pervious work Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Review