I find that the most memorable suspense/horror entertainment I consume comes not from startling/gory/shock value material, but instead from a constant feeling of uneasiness. I’m talking about the type of fear and stress that makes you relieved when the experience is over, yet you can’t help but spend the remainder of the night or even weeks afterwards randomly contemplating what you experienced. Reading Clive Barker’s The Damnation Game several years ago and playing 9-9-9 on the DS or Condemned: Criminal Origins on the 360 are three personal examples of such consumption. The most recent experience comes from my Ouya and playing Infinitap Games’ hit Neverending Nightmares.
While not quite as deep and memorable as the other media I mentioned, Neverending Nightmares was definitely a treat to experience. There’s not much to it from a gameplay design perspective — this is really far more about the immersion and just raw experience of playing as a character who has apparently gone off the deep end. You are Thomas, a teenage boy who awakens from his bed only to find himself living in a nightmare that seems to get progressively worse and more sinister. The source of this nightmare, or nightmares rather, stems from the death of his younger sister Gabby. What happened? Was Thomas somehow at fault for her death? How is it that my surroundings, while similar, continue to change from one nightmare to the next? And what’s with all of the weird family portraits? These are some of the questions you’ll ask yourself as you guide Thomas through numerous corridors of a house and mental institution.
Other questions I asked myself included “How the hell do I get out of here?” This was not posed in frustration with the experience, but rather in a growing stress that increased as the nightmares and dangers grew worse. There are indeed a hell of a lot of doorways and hallways to explore, although you’re not likely to get lost given the fairly linear floor design. Many times the option of going into either “door one” or door two ultimately leads to coming out of the one you did not pick, but there is of course a singular, steady path to take. Or so it seemed to me anyway, until I completed the game the first time, which took about three and a half hours. After the credit roll, I was taken to a screen that made it clear there was, roughly halfway or maybe two thirds of the way through, three branching paths. Fortunately, you’re given the opportunity to jump right back into the game at any particular ‘nightmare’ or ‘level,’ so it’s very efficient to be able to go back to the branching part and discover the other two endings.
This isn’t a new game plus mode per se, as unlike many traditional games there is no XP system or items to collect or NPCs to talk to, or upgrades to obtain, or mini-maps, or optional secondary objectives, or a health meter, or anything like that at all. You simply walk, sprint for a few seconds when you want to or have to, and interact with objects, which are almost always doors. In that way it’s a very accessible game, there are literally two control buttons to remember and even the gameplay is designed as such that there is generally zero confusion. Dangers are few, but they are vital in that if you’re caught by a nightmarish creature, its insta-death, but you’ll respawn maybe thirty seconds or so from where you died. Figuring out how to avoid these dangers and how to get passed a few environmental obstacles (i.e. some pitch-black areas need a candle before you can enter) is elementary. In these ways, Neverending Nightmares is very accessible, which is always a good thing. On the other hand, having so few gameplay mechanics/elements, in addition to having repetitive ‘level’ design and just a few too many dead ends, tempers the experience.
Counter-acting the “limited” gameplay design are intriguing visuals and a great sound package. The first thing you’re likely to notice with, well, any game, are it’s graphics, especially if you’re just browsing trailers or screenshots or pull up an article. With Neverending Nightmares, the semi-cartoonish black and white design are definitely unique and fitting for the indie/budget title that this is. That’s not to say they’re bad, or cheap — not all, the detail is quite impressive, and the effects of the shadows and how the flickering light of the sconces and candles plays with the environment is really nice. The dilapidated walls, the assortment of spooky dolls, and the drastic contrast of the blood (shown in vibrant red) are all positives. I have to give a lot of credit to the sound design too, which right from the opening menu sets a great chilling tone. It only helped that I played this game during a dark and stormy night with headphones, too. Speaking of which, the game makes it clear that playing with headphones is highly recommended. I don’t know the technical details of it, but there is a message that says the game has special aural effects that you just can’t notice or appreciate if you play any other way. I was happy to oblige and played with headphones, which helped me catch all of the ambient noises and especially that great immersion-building soundtrack.
With that, let’s get to the summary…