Game Review: Seul.(Alone) (itch.io)

Seul.(Alone) is an interactive, choose your own adventure-style psychological horror game. Developed by Paranormal Games, it is currently available on Game Jolt and itch.io with releases on Steam & mobile coming in the near future.

The developer provided us with an itch.io key for the purpose of this review.

It has to be noted that these interactive text adventures have become a common occurrence in recent years. Both the mobile format & Steam have seen far too many of these types of games with varying degrees of success. With the market somewhat flooded, standing out from the crowd is no easy task. Not only do you need to tell a compelling story, you have to ensure the choices you make have impact & the imagery shown is memorable.

Seul.(Alone) ticks all those boxes & is up there as one of the finer ‘choose your own adventure’ style games.

The story isn’t the easiest to explain & anyone who is familiar with the likes of Twin Peaks will feel at home with the madness & innovation on show here. This is a story based on philosophical ideas, some of which add horror elements. The world is strange & confusing but it’s up to you how you approach it. Do you face the surrealism of it all head on? Or do everything possible to avoid it?

The imagery is made up of a dark or light background (you can switch between the two) with photos of olden times. These images intrigue & disturb with the tension increased by the eerie music & sound effects.

As you make your way through this story, it takes on an almost dream-like state with heavy subjects like existentialism & nihilism becoming the core remaing thought.

There’s a lot to enjoy here, however one criticism has to be levied at the actual text of the story. Off centre & in a font that can sometimes make it difficult to read. It might fit the games tone but you don’t want eye-strain as you struggle to make out what a particular line says.

With decent replay value thanks to so many choices, Suel.(Alone)’s low price makes it a worthwhile purchase. Check it out yourself here.