Imaginative Spooks: DXC2: The Thing in the Lake

Intro:

She will be fine.

Do you know World of Horror? That black and white (green?) horror RPG exploring the horrors of Japanese inspired cosmic horror. The Thing in the Lake is that but disappointingly annoying than overtly scary.

That bloody gorilla:

There are five chapters in total, each dealing with an individual surrounding an abandoned summer camp in Poland. Some sort of ritual is taking place to appeal to whatever is in the lake. The game itself is very inspired by the Atari area long ago. You control each protagonist as they try to complete their tasks. Each of these stories ends with the protagonist's (with the exception last one depending on the ending) death, befitting the Slasher movies that inspired The Thing in the Lake.

Such deep eyes...

There isn't that much to really do (most notably within the first three chapters). As you guide your hapless idiot through the abandoned campsite before getting murdered. The final two do offer something more, as you have to collect items while avoiding mad gorillas and murders alerted by tall grass. You have to memorize the map to achieve your tasks effectively. What annoys me about this game the relentless and seeming random gorilla spawning.

He will be fine.

That bloody gorilla spawns and chases until it catches up or you leave the map. The problem is that the gorilla can spawn in the exit or entrance you were about to enter or leave. Resulting in an instant death that cannot be avoided. These sort of cheap deaths are very annoying and ruins the tension built up through the chapters and sound design. The final chapter is annoying in that the gorilla keeps spawning when I just trying to get my tasks done. I wasn't scared, I was annoyed at the persistent pestering.

Conclusion:

What could go wrong?

I was not having fun with The Thing in the Lake towards the end of it. I kept dying over and over again in ways that seemed arbitrary and frustrating. It felt like a chore rather than an enjoyably spooky time. I did not like this game in the collection but that is my opinion.

A word to you:

Rest in peace..

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