Game Review: Remothered: Tormented Fathers (Xbox One X)

The true strength of the poorly titled, Remothered: Tormented Fathers lies in one particular area…its narrative. What we have here is a survival horror game that chills, intrigues and shocks.

We take on the role of Rosemary, a character who is clearly modelled on Jodie Foster from Silence of the Lambs. She wants to find out about a missing girl so under the pretence of being a doctor, visits the house of the girl’s adopted mother and father. While there she meets Mr Felton, who is suffering from a mysterious disease, his nurse Gloria and hears about Mrs Felton who has become a recluse.

Rosemary makes the mistake of blowing her cover by demanding answers from Mr Felton. He kicks her out after Gloria checks out her story and discovers it to be false. She’s told to leave and never come back but that’s not going to stop the obsessed Rosemary.

When Gloria leaves for the night, she sneaks back into the house and sets about trying to find out the truth. However, it is far worse then she could ever have expected. Escape is no longer an option, she’s trapped inside and something is stalking her.

Stealth is the name of the game here as you must explore the house to expose its secrets as well as try to find a way out. All the time you’re doing this though you’ll have to run, hide and avoid the madness that stalks the halls. Rosemary isn’t helpless though and the game gives you a few ways to fight back. Distractions such as alarm clocks, music boxes and thrown items can help you avoid danger briefly while the odd item can be used as weapon to fight back. These are very ‘last resort’ though as you’re going to want to avoid the wandering denizens of the house as much as possible.

No easy task as they have no set paths and you can literally turn a corner and run into them. It’s very important you quickly learn the layout of each floor and where the hiding spots are. As once you’ve been seen you’re going to have to outrun them and hide until they leave.

While some may not enjoy the slow creeping around that is involved in Remothered, it certainly adds a lot of tension to the game. The music also adds to this with it ramping up when enemies are near but not making it clear just where they are. This really is quite terrifying and that you have to be conscious of the noise you make adds an extra layer of dread to things.

The puzzle elements of the game are handled well in an old-school way. Find items to progress, be it a key to unlock a door on another floor or find the handle to an oven to find some film that will used to reveal more of the story. It’s very early Resident Evil/Silent Hill and that is no bad thing.

As well as these old-school influences, you save the game at special mirrors that also serve as locations to heal yourself. The game does have checkpoints but these aren’t as regular as you might be used too. You’re going to have to remember how to play a game without your hand being held all the time.

So many positives, so much to enjoy in Remothered but it is not without fault. The visuals of the house and its surrounding locations are really nice to look at. As well the game makes great use of lighting to enhance the tension. However, character models aren’t so good with stiff and unconvincing movements. As well as that, the dialogue is pretty amateurish too. With some lines that come across cheesy and they rarely match up to the lip movements. As well, should you have subtitles on you’ll see many a mistake. In spelling, grammar and what characters are actually saying.

A lot of these issues are mostly noticeable during the games cut-scenes, some of which are quite lengthy. With such a complex and detailed story that in itself isn’t a problem. Although if you don’t pick up and read the many objects and documents lying around you might find yourself a little unsure of what was going on at the end.

As part of a planned trilogy, Remothered: Tormented Fathers gets the series started well. The flaws aren’t enough to ruin the experience. If you’re craving an old-school style survival horror then it more then delivers on that.

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