75 reviews
Don't get me wrong, i loved this game from start to finish, it just has a few problems that ultimately lead to a disappointing conclusion to some playthroughs.
What it gets right: the characters are fantastically acted and felt realistic, making me genuinely scared to get them killed, the graphics are amazing and a massive step up from previous titles, the soundtrack is great, and the antagonists and settings are pretty scary and tense. I also love how many different paths you can take - it's very fleshed out with many different choices that impact heavily on the game. Many people complain that the game is too cutscene focused and doesn't have enough gameplay, but that honestly didn't bother me, it just made it more immersive.
However, I've heard this game got quite a lot of content cut, which really shows, as it gets somewhat messy the longer it goes on for. It also seems that having 9 main protagonists was a little ambitious, as half of them eventually become irrelevant, and really don't get as much screen time as some of the others do. One of the characters is even completely cut from the story less than half way in, then appears briefly at the very end, a very big waste. There are also some unlikeable characters, who don't get any chance to develop because they get constantly sidelined and there's just no room to expand their arcs. Because of how many paths you can take, some scenes can feel quite disjointed and rushed, especially towards the end.
Another piece of criticism is that it follows too closely from until dawn, which doesn't bother me that much as UD is a fantastic game, but it did make some parts quite predictable. My final complaint is that it has so so much replay value, but it's just a slog sitting through hours of cutscenes you've already seen, as there's no way to skip through them.
Overall, a solid game which is entertaining, immersive and scary, which so much content due to the all the different paths you can take. However, main characters getting forgotten and sidelined really lowered the quality for me and led to a disappointing conclusion. Not worth its very high price in my opinion, but still a great game.
What it gets right: the characters are fantastically acted and felt realistic, making me genuinely scared to get them killed, the graphics are amazing and a massive step up from previous titles, the soundtrack is great, and the antagonists and settings are pretty scary and tense. I also love how many different paths you can take - it's very fleshed out with many different choices that impact heavily on the game. Many people complain that the game is too cutscene focused and doesn't have enough gameplay, but that honestly didn't bother me, it just made it more immersive.
However, I've heard this game got quite a lot of content cut, which really shows, as it gets somewhat messy the longer it goes on for. It also seems that having 9 main protagonists was a little ambitious, as half of them eventually become irrelevant, and really don't get as much screen time as some of the others do. One of the characters is even completely cut from the story less than half way in, then appears briefly at the very end, a very big waste. There are also some unlikeable characters, who don't get any chance to develop because they get constantly sidelined and there's just no room to expand their arcs. Because of how many paths you can take, some scenes can feel quite disjointed and rushed, especially towards the end.
Another piece of criticism is that it follows too closely from until dawn, which doesn't bother me that much as UD is a fantastic game, but it did make some parts quite predictable. My final complaint is that it has so so much replay value, but it's just a slog sitting through hours of cutscenes you've already seen, as there's no way to skip through them.
Overall, a solid game which is entertaining, immersive and scary, which so much content due to the all the different paths you can take. However, main characters getting forgotten and sidelined really lowered the quality for me and led to a disappointing conclusion. Not worth its very high price in my opinion, but still a great game.
- ThreeLeggedEgg
- Jul 26, 2022
- Permalink
- drummerboy-42635
- Jun 26, 2022
- Permalink
In 2015 Supermassive Games released Until Dawn and brought a new level of interactive horror to gamers. With the release of The Quarry, the company has taken the genre to a new level thanks in large part to the power of the new generation of gaming systems and graphic cards.
Unlike Until Dawn which was a PS4 exclusive, The Quarry is available on multiple platforms.
Using the same motion capture and a star-laden cast of Until Dawn, players are introduced to a group of councilors who have just seen their campers head home at the end of the summer.
Eager to get home and on with their college plans and lives, things take an unexpected turn when Jacob (Zach Tinker) decides to disable their van in the hopes that by staying an extra night he can convince Emma (Halston Sage), to not end their relationship which she viewed as a summer fling and with four states between them for school, something that cannot be maintained.
Despite the warnings of camp owner Chris (David Arquette) to stay inside with the doors locked, the kids decide to hold one more party and this is when things start to unravel. Players will take control of various players at random points of the story and this enables players to explore, gather clues, interact with objects and use weapons in rare instances.
The story is told over 10 chapters mainly set in one evening and the dangers that lurk are brutal and graphic when they arrive which means that stumbling around in the dark as the game often requires can have deadly results.
Players will have the option to make choices at several points during their gameplay and they can range from the tone used to answer a question or if they wish to run or hide from danger. There are other options as well as the intensity rises which all will change how the story unfolds as the game is based on branching storylines where who lives and who dies can change with each time through the story.
While there were elements where it seemed that I was stumbling in the dark trying to find where I was supposed to go and that large segments at times left me with little to do but watch the action and only occasionally pick a response when I had to move and make some rapid choices on directions and hotkeys, the game really drew me in.
The cast is strong and features Ariel Winter, Ted Raimi, Miles Robbins, Brenda Song, and Lance Henriksen amongst others and aside from one character who delivered his lines in an annoying monotone which sounded like they were delivered through a clenched jaw with a head cold, the voice acting is solid and above what one might expect in a game of this sort.
Graphically the game shined on a PS5 and being able to really enjoy the character animations helped me immerse myself in the story.
Since death is a part of the game, players are given three lives which will allow them to rewind the game and try to save the character. While it usually goes just before their passing, one did back me up a full chapter which I had to replay in order to get back to the next which also had to be replayed only to have the same fate befall the character.
In the end, The Quarry is a triumph of interactive storytelling and is an engaging and compelling tale with a strong cast. It will be interesting to see what Supermassive will do next but The Quarry is a game well worth your time.
4 stars out of 5.
Unlike Until Dawn which was a PS4 exclusive, The Quarry is available on multiple platforms.
Using the same motion capture and a star-laden cast of Until Dawn, players are introduced to a group of councilors who have just seen their campers head home at the end of the summer.
Eager to get home and on with their college plans and lives, things take an unexpected turn when Jacob (Zach Tinker) decides to disable their van in the hopes that by staying an extra night he can convince Emma (Halston Sage), to not end their relationship which she viewed as a summer fling and with four states between them for school, something that cannot be maintained.
Despite the warnings of camp owner Chris (David Arquette) to stay inside with the doors locked, the kids decide to hold one more party and this is when things start to unravel. Players will take control of various players at random points of the story and this enables players to explore, gather clues, interact with objects and use weapons in rare instances.
The story is told over 10 chapters mainly set in one evening and the dangers that lurk are brutal and graphic when they arrive which means that stumbling around in the dark as the game often requires can have deadly results.
Players will have the option to make choices at several points during their gameplay and they can range from the tone used to answer a question or if they wish to run or hide from danger. There are other options as well as the intensity rises which all will change how the story unfolds as the game is based on branching storylines where who lives and who dies can change with each time through the story.
While there were elements where it seemed that I was stumbling in the dark trying to find where I was supposed to go and that large segments at times left me with little to do but watch the action and only occasionally pick a response when I had to move and make some rapid choices on directions and hotkeys, the game really drew me in.
The cast is strong and features Ariel Winter, Ted Raimi, Miles Robbins, Brenda Song, and Lance Henriksen amongst others and aside from one character who delivered his lines in an annoying monotone which sounded like they were delivered through a clenched jaw with a head cold, the voice acting is solid and above what one might expect in a game of this sort.
Graphically the game shined on a PS5 and being able to really enjoy the character animations helped me immerse myself in the story.
Since death is a part of the game, players are given three lives which will allow them to rewind the game and try to save the character. While it usually goes just before their passing, one did back me up a full chapter which I had to replay in order to get back to the next which also had to be replayed only to have the same fate befall the character.
In the end, The Quarry is a triumph of interactive storytelling and is an engaging and compelling tale with a strong cast. It will be interesting to see what Supermassive will do next but The Quarry is a game well worth your time.
4 stars out of 5.
It's a riveting horror flick filled with your stereo typical life choice decisions that you as the
player go through out the game's entirety, Siobhan Williams (Laura), Halston Sage (Emma)
both have outstanding performances in the game that will make you go WOOO.
- Dexlerpool
- Jun 10, 2022
- Permalink
- HollisWoods
- Feb 26, 2023
- Permalink
- gunnarmiller-47271
- Jun 12, 2022
- Permalink
I'm a sucker for narrative and while this is a fantastic game with some great moments, actors and script - it falls short of Until Dawn in terms of gameplay, amusing cliches and overall twists and story.
- AlienRefugee
- Jun 18, 2022
- Permalink
I enjoyed my entire playthrough, I'm a die hard until dawn fan and have felt their games since have fallen short. Thankfully the quarry stops this trend and might even surpass my love for until dawn. The entire game is paced beautifully and it keeps you engaged.
- chase-72425
- Jun 10, 2022
- Permalink
I was really hyped about this game, Supermassive Games usually don't fail us in the horror/drama genres but this time...
The start was ok, but the story developed in a very slow pace and only in the 9th and 10th chapters you feel that your choices are really important for the characters fate.
Also this game has a lot of bugs and fails in dialogs, in some parts i was thinking for myself if they really worked that aspect.
And when you finish, you just don't want to play another 10 hours or 2 hours (if you only want to play the final chapter) of boring cutscenes... It had potencial but, in my opinion, failed in very points. Paying 70 bucks are definitely not worthy.
Also this game has a lot of bugs and fails in dialogs, in some parts i was thinking for myself if they really worked that aspect.
And when you finish, you just don't want to play another 10 hours or 2 hours (if you only want to play the final chapter) of boring cutscenes... It had potencial but, in my opinion, failed in very points. Paying 70 bucks are definitely not worthy.
- andremanuelalves
- Jun 11, 2022
- Permalink
Played it two times now. The first time with two Friends via Couch-Coop and let me tell you, that's the best way to play it. The monster-design is a little bit disappointing and feels like they reused the wendigo design from Until Dawn and changed it a little bit. The characters are so well written and the story is gripping. We had such a blast unraveling the mystery of what happened and what kind of monster is hunting you.
Also Kaitlyn is best girl!
Also Kaitlyn is best girl!
- SkeletonGrimm67
- Jun 11, 2022
- Permalink
- zeezee-59363
- Jul 26, 2022
- Permalink
I wanted to love this game, but it just hugely missed the mark and the graphics were not awesome enough to make up for it.
The dialogue is ATROCIOUS. The storyline is sub-par at best. The things they do (and the choices they allow you to make) make no sense at least 70% of the time, but not in the typical 80's campy fashion, unfortunately.
The way they talk to each other insane. You're in a life or death situation and tell someone to call 911. Their response is "what do I say? Do I ask for the cops or an ambulance?" and hesitate to call is something I can't imagine literally anyone ever doing. It's also very contradictory, someone will say one thing and later say something that contradicts what was mentioned earlier, which is confusing and frustrating.
Also, as much as I love female empowerment and representation (being a woman myself), this was just too much- they force it down your throat and make all the guys fumbling idiots. I would much prefer a more well-balanced game that lets you work together as a team regardless of gender. Or better yet, to choose which characters you want to make work together or not based on previous interactions with them.
The graphics are nice, there are some fun visuals and puns, I like the menu, and as always the ability to make your own choices is addicting and fun. I'm going to finish the game because I paid for it, but I'm severely disappointed to be halfway through and amazed at the stupidity.
The dialogue is ATROCIOUS. The storyline is sub-par at best. The things they do (and the choices they allow you to make) make no sense at least 70% of the time, but not in the typical 80's campy fashion, unfortunately.
The way they talk to each other insane. You're in a life or death situation and tell someone to call 911. Their response is "what do I say? Do I ask for the cops or an ambulance?" and hesitate to call is something I can't imagine literally anyone ever doing. It's also very contradictory, someone will say one thing and later say something that contradicts what was mentioned earlier, which is confusing and frustrating.
Also, as much as I love female empowerment and representation (being a woman myself), this was just too much- they force it down your throat and make all the guys fumbling idiots. I would much prefer a more well-balanced game that lets you work together as a team regardless of gender. Or better yet, to choose which characters you want to make work together or not based on previous interactions with them.
The graphics are nice, there are some fun visuals and puns, I like the menu, and as always the ability to make your own choices is addicting and fun. I'm going to finish the game because I paid for it, but I'm severely disappointed to be halfway through and amazed at the stupidity.
Supermassive delivers yet again!
The choices in this game matter once more, with subtle choices resulting in long term consequences. Miss something on a shelf? Now you have to to hide instead of defend yourself. Decided you don't like someone? Tell them, but don't expect their support later.
The game transports you into a modern day horror story with fresh out of high school 18-19 year olds as camp counselors. All fun and games until someone gets hurt, right? Can the 7 counselors pull it together and make it through one last night at camp, or shall hope abandon them? Only you can decide.
The choices in this game matter once more, with subtle choices resulting in long term consequences. Miss something on a shelf? Now you have to to hide instead of defend yourself. Decided you don't like someone? Tell them, but don't expect their support later.
The game transports you into a modern day horror story with fresh out of high school 18-19 year olds as camp counselors. All fun and games until someone gets hurt, right? Can the 7 counselors pull it together and make it through one last night at camp, or shall hope abandon them? Only you can decide.
- adambredlau
- Jun 12, 2022
- Permalink
I'm a huge fan of choice-based story games especially when it comes to horror, I'll say this game did not disappoint. The story is one of the best I've ever seen in gaming, the writing is incredible and very detailed, and the character development is probably the best thing about this game. The attention to details, soundtrack, music, visuals, lightings, shadows, cinematography and graphics are pure art, honestly they made a huge effort and it paid off. The human interactions and facial expressions are so lifelike and photorealistic, everything is visually stunning and beautiful to look at. The realism and natural dialogues are insane, the actors gave us a flawless performances to add to the narrative. It was such a unique journey and an amazing story to experience.
Yes there are some flaws and technical issues but I'm sure they can be fixed and they don't really affect the game that much. Overall, This is easily the best horror game this year and probably one of the best of all time. Highly recommended 10/10.
(People need to stop comparing this to Until Dawn pls. I know Until Dawn is so much better but we still gotta appreciate they made something close to it)
Yes there are some flaws and technical issues but I'm sure they can be fixed and they don't really affect the game that much. Overall, This is easily the best horror game this year and probably one of the best of all time. Highly recommended 10/10.
(People need to stop comparing this to Until Dawn pls. I know Until Dawn is so much better but we still gotta appreciate they made something close to it)
- gameskiller-07685
- Jun 18, 2022
- Permalink
I really love when you can tell you like a game from the first few minutes, and this game doesn't fail to surprise you and it holds your interest throughout its entirety. They really did a great job with this, and I really hope we get more games like this in the future! It's so fun to play through it and make your own decisions that really effect the outcome of the story, and it's amazing how many different endings you can get from playing through and making different choices. I liked this game more than Until dawn, but just by a hair because they are both great games! 9/10!
- ShinyKermit2288
- Jul 11, 2022
- Permalink
Although some may say that its bland, I don't think so at all! It was a very fun experience with a lot of replayability! I loved all the different way the characters could die, and I liked the twist. Definitely a successor to Until Dawn, and I loved that about it because I loved Until Dawn. Overall, this game is a nice horror game that can be played for hours without getting bored. I really enjoyed the settings, choices, characters, story, atmosphere, and pretty much everything about it.
- mamaandbabyhulk
- Jun 27, 2022
- Permalink
The Quarry has an excellent prologue and great early game, setting a great, exciting tone moving forward. Sadly, the game seems to hit the breaks just as it approaches its conclusion, grinding to an anticlimactic halt where many of the characters feel irrelevant and underdeveloped, no satisfying conclusion is presented, but it's first half is engaging nonetheless.
- georgecross-63421
- Jun 23, 2022
- Permalink
THE QUARRY (2022) was a super cool game. It is a game with many different choices and pathways to choose from, a game that sure keeps you guessing, with many twists and turns along the way. It was a fun play.
The premise of The Quarry takes place at the end of summer in Hackett Summer Camp, after some counselors (Laura & Max) have mysteriously gone missing. When the sun goes down on the last night of summer camp, seven teenage counselors (Jacob, Emma, Ryan, Kaitlyn, Abigail, Dylan, Nick) are plunged into an unpredictable night of horror and have to try to survive a night in the quarry.
Overall, the game was a fun horror game, more thriller than hardcore scary. If you like mysteries, walking simulators, choice-driven, narrative-driven, horror thriller games, with a good throwback to the teen horror movies haydays of old...then you'll really enjoy this. You never really know till the end what's quite going on...Psychos, Monsters, Paranormal events? Who knows? It's all fun and games till you can't survive The Quarry...
STORY: 8/10 GAMEPLAY: 9/10 GRAPHICS: 8/10 ART DESIGN: 9/10 MUSIC: 8/10 OVERALL RATING: 8.5.
The premise of The Quarry takes place at the end of summer in Hackett Summer Camp, after some counselors (Laura & Max) have mysteriously gone missing. When the sun goes down on the last night of summer camp, seven teenage counselors (Jacob, Emma, Ryan, Kaitlyn, Abigail, Dylan, Nick) are plunged into an unpredictable night of horror and have to try to survive a night in the quarry.
Overall, the game was a fun horror game, more thriller than hardcore scary. If you like mysteries, walking simulators, choice-driven, narrative-driven, horror thriller games, with a good throwback to the teen horror movies haydays of old...then you'll really enjoy this. You never really know till the end what's quite going on...Psychos, Monsters, Paranormal events? Who knows? It's all fun and games till you can't survive The Quarry...
STORY: 8/10 GAMEPLAY: 9/10 GRAPHICS: 8/10 ART DESIGN: 9/10 MUSIC: 8/10 OVERALL RATING: 8.5.
- Jinxxa_Wolfe
- Mar 17, 2023
- Permalink
I have mixed feelings about this "game".
I had really high hopes (being a massive horror fan) and I do definitely like parts of the "game" and did in several chapters of it feel exited about the characters and their developments and wanting to know what happens next. The graphics are also really good most of the time, even to the point that you can clearly see who the actors of the characters are, since they have modeled the characters on the actors playing them. The actors and voice-lining is also really good, far better than in almost any other game I've seen. But the main problem is that this is not really a game. When it is best, it's more of a semi-interactive movie. The game parts are only a very small part of the "game" and they have severe problems. At times, especially in the prologue, the interactive elements really made me feel more a part of the story and made it a lot scarier, but at other times they feel more like an interruption of the story and quite lazy made. For example, a lot of the "choices" you have to make are not really choices at all, since the same thing will happen either way. That is one of the worst things about this "game". Also, most of the time, you lack the ability to make real choices when it really matters and could divert the story in genuine different directions.
While choices do at times have effects, even severe effects, it seems like that the creators only really bothered to make one plot line and are therefore forcing you to follow the same narrow road with small differences, no matter what you do. That is just lazy, bad storytelling and kinds of ruins the whole idea of the game. More real choices with more real different effects would have made it so much more exiting and drastically increased the replay value, if decisions would branch into entirely different plot lines. A lot of games not focusing as much on "choices" as this one officially do, actually ends up giving the player more possibilities of choosing different of the story that this "game". Also, there are some glaring plot holes and a lot of places where the characters acts really stupid and irrational, more than can possible be believable in any way. Even when all goes to hell, they often still makes some really illogical choices beyond anything people could reasonably be expected to make. Unfortunately, the story is dependent on these irrational stupid actions of the characters for the plot to hang together. This is a sign of bad writing. If your story is dependent on people acting like idiots, it's because the plot is idiotic. There are no excuses. Good horror plots are not dependent on constantly glaringly idiotic decisions by the characters. I don't mind that the story is set off by stupid decisions before they know something is wrong, but it gets annoying and breaks the engagement with the story when it continues to the degree it does here.
The walking scenes where you control the characters are on the one hand nice, in that it is there that you have actually gameplay control, but they do at the same time suffer a lot. In a way, this is saying a lot about how little of an actual game (in the traditional sense at least) this really is. The controls are clunky and reminds me of the worst controlled adventure games of the 90s and the camera angles are at times really bad. A lot of the time they are working fine, but at times (for example playing Emma at the campfire) they make the sections infuriating and almost unplayable. Also, the characters walks way to slow and these sections can at time take up a lot of time, not justified by what is actually going on, just dragging out the story.
A problem is also the darkness/brightness settings. Even if you follow the guide in the game helping with setting it right, or even if you don't, it ends up being very dark. And quit clearly darker than meant to as there are several instances where the camera is trying to show something that is not possible to see because it is to dark. At the same time the brightness shifts when scenes cuts, so it can become a lot brighter suddenly.
Despite the many drawbacks, I did find quite a lot to like, enough to finish and enjoy the game. But it could have been so much better and I can't help feeling disappointed and questioning why the reviews are not more critical of the many glaring problems. The main reason, for now, to recommend this game is that there aren't to many similar games, but I do hope that better similar games will be made in the future.
I had really high hopes (being a massive horror fan) and I do definitely like parts of the "game" and did in several chapters of it feel exited about the characters and their developments and wanting to know what happens next. The graphics are also really good most of the time, even to the point that you can clearly see who the actors of the characters are, since they have modeled the characters on the actors playing them. The actors and voice-lining is also really good, far better than in almost any other game I've seen. But the main problem is that this is not really a game. When it is best, it's more of a semi-interactive movie. The game parts are only a very small part of the "game" and they have severe problems. At times, especially in the prologue, the interactive elements really made me feel more a part of the story and made it a lot scarier, but at other times they feel more like an interruption of the story and quite lazy made. For example, a lot of the "choices" you have to make are not really choices at all, since the same thing will happen either way. That is one of the worst things about this "game". Also, most of the time, you lack the ability to make real choices when it really matters and could divert the story in genuine different directions.
While choices do at times have effects, even severe effects, it seems like that the creators only really bothered to make one plot line and are therefore forcing you to follow the same narrow road with small differences, no matter what you do. That is just lazy, bad storytelling and kinds of ruins the whole idea of the game. More real choices with more real different effects would have made it so much more exiting and drastically increased the replay value, if decisions would branch into entirely different plot lines. A lot of games not focusing as much on "choices" as this one officially do, actually ends up giving the player more possibilities of choosing different of the story that this "game". Also, there are some glaring plot holes and a lot of places where the characters acts really stupid and irrational, more than can possible be believable in any way. Even when all goes to hell, they often still makes some really illogical choices beyond anything people could reasonably be expected to make. Unfortunately, the story is dependent on these irrational stupid actions of the characters for the plot to hang together. This is a sign of bad writing. If your story is dependent on people acting like idiots, it's because the plot is idiotic. There are no excuses. Good horror plots are not dependent on constantly glaringly idiotic decisions by the characters. I don't mind that the story is set off by stupid decisions before they know something is wrong, but it gets annoying and breaks the engagement with the story when it continues to the degree it does here.
The walking scenes where you control the characters are on the one hand nice, in that it is there that you have actually gameplay control, but they do at the same time suffer a lot. In a way, this is saying a lot about how little of an actual game (in the traditional sense at least) this really is. The controls are clunky and reminds me of the worst controlled adventure games of the 90s and the camera angles are at times really bad. A lot of the time they are working fine, but at times (for example playing Emma at the campfire) they make the sections infuriating and almost unplayable. Also, the characters walks way to slow and these sections can at time take up a lot of time, not justified by what is actually going on, just dragging out the story.
A problem is also the darkness/brightness settings. Even if you follow the guide in the game helping with setting it right, or even if you don't, it ends up being very dark. And quit clearly darker than meant to as there are several instances where the camera is trying to show something that is not possible to see because it is to dark. At the same time the brightness shifts when scenes cuts, so it can become a lot brighter suddenly.
Despite the many drawbacks, I did find quite a lot to like, enough to finish and enjoy the game. But it could have been so much better and I can't help feeling disappointed and questioning why the reviews are not more critical of the many glaring problems. The main reason, for now, to recommend this game is that there aren't to many similar games, but I do hope that better similar games will be made in the future.
If you love teen horror and supermassive games Until Dawn this is absolutely perfect for you, this game blew me away with its graphics gameplay and very well written horror story 10/10 in my book.
I'll keep it somewhat short and avoid spoilers.
The game is cool enough if you like this sort of play style. It is of course heavily focused on the storyline, which is fairly good although not very original.
You can think of it as a pretty standard teenage horror movie about a group of teenage camp counselors stuck out in the woods, but you get to make many of the calls which decides how the story progresses. This makes what would've been an okay but forgettable movie into a pretty interesting video game.
There were however two main annoyances for me, one of them being pretty major.
The first one is about mechanics: The parts of the game that lets you control a characters movement is generally pretty clumsy. You are also not allowed to move the camera around much, and in some instances the camera is stuck in a way that makes it very hard to understand where you are even going.
The second annoyance is in the script itself and it is the larger of these two criticisms that I have: For a game that is so very heavily based on the story and not so much the actual gameplay, the script is pretty bad and the characters often act extremely unnatural given what they are going through. The characters can experience something that would put any normal teenager, or adult for that matter, into complete shock or panic mode, and they simply go "meh". It really makes a game that is supposed to be scary feel... much less scary, in a lack of better words. They simply do not behave like any normal human would. Often in the game the group gets split up and run into various situations that are extremely abnormal and traumatizing, and when they then meet up with their friends again they don't even mention that something has happened to them. They simply carry on with whatever the next task may be.
To add to that, even if they have not mentioned any of these abnormalities they ran into while alone, the others all of a sudden still seem to know about them. The script simply leaves out many things that you as a player will know about (since you played through it), but there is no way for the characters to have knowledge of them; yet somehow they still do. Basically just a bunch of sloppy writing.
Anyway, the game is still pretty cool and I did enjoy it. I played the game via my PS+ subscription and thus did not have to pay for this game specifically, but if you are in a situation where you'd have to pay full price for it I would think it over once or twice. Maybe wait for a sales event when it's discounted, at least.
The game is cool enough if you like this sort of play style. It is of course heavily focused on the storyline, which is fairly good although not very original.
You can think of it as a pretty standard teenage horror movie about a group of teenage camp counselors stuck out in the woods, but you get to make many of the calls which decides how the story progresses. This makes what would've been an okay but forgettable movie into a pretty interesting video game.
There were however two main annoyances for me, one of them being pretty major.
The first one is about mechanics: The parts of the game that lets you control a characters movement is generally pretty clumsy. You are also not allowed to move the camera around much, and in some instances the camera is stuck in a way that makes it very hard to understand where you are even going.
The second annoyance is in the script itself and it is the larger of these two criticisms that I have: For a game that is so very heavily based on the story and not so much the actual gameplay, the script is pretty bad and the characters often act extremely unnatural given what they are going through. The characters can experience something that would put any normal teenager, or adult for that matter, into complete shock or panic mode, and they simply go "meh". It really makes a game that is supposed to be scary feel... much less scary, in a lack of better words. They simply do not behave like any normal human would. Often in the game the group gets split up and run into various situations that are extremely abnormal and traumatizing, and when they then meet up with their friends again they don't even mention that something has happened to them. They simply carry on with whatever the next task may be.
To add to that, even if they have not mentioned any of these abnormalities they ran into while alone, the others all of a sudden still seem to know about them. The script simply leaves out many things that you as a player will know about (since you played through it), but there is no way for the characters to have knowledge of them; yet somehow they still do. Basically just a bunch of sloppy writing.
Anyway, the game is still pretty cool and I did enjoy it. I played the game via my PS+ subscription and thus did not have to pay for this game specifically, but if you are in a situation where you'd have to pay full price for it I would think it over once or twice. Maybe wait for a sales event when it's discounted, at least.
- fredlindhh
- Apr 7, 2023
- Permalink
- liammarklh
- Jul 25, 2022
- Permalink
Any memorable slasher can be different, but most of them follow a formula. The individual characters have their quirks (depending on the movie) but they're usually painted with broad strokes. The Quarry keeps up that tradition and while some people may complain about them being stock characters, much like Until Dawn, they walk a fine line and they're successful. Jacob and Emma came the closest to annoying me as the "jock-bro" and the "vain mean-girl" but they each have their moments where they show a little depth underneath. There's also some really good character development to counter balance, Laura and Max are a compelling couple and team that were very easy to root for. I'd also submit Dylan as another example, he seems like a type, but as you go on, he's really funny and surprisingly multi-layered. So while the writing on the characters may not be stellar across the board, it's more than satisfactory overall and even really good for some of characters.
Getting to the creatures, the Wendigo in Until Dawn were a nice choice. They weren't as established and it allowed them to play with the mythology and the look. Without spoiling anything, the beasts stalking our intrepid heroes is of the A-list monster variety and their design even resembles the Wendigo. But it's a fresh design considering other version of these monsters and it played for me. They carry over most of the classic rules and mythology (being scared of water was new to me but maybe that's always been the case) and they do a good job fitting them into the story. They know to obscure them and to have them lurk around instead of wandering around in the open and it adds to the sense of danger and mystery. But they also pack a punch, the wrong choices in The Quarry lead to savagery and those moments should satisfy the gore fans in the audience.
Until Dawn had a surprisingly loaded cast list. Most of this was due to them lucking into catching several famous actors and actresses on the upswing (Hayden Panetierre and Peter Stormare were already names but Academy Award winner Rami Malek and Brett Dalton weren't there yet). Most of The Quarry's cast are either horror genre vets or people you'd recognize from other things. My favourite performances were from Ted Raimi as Travis Hackett, Siobhan Williams as Laura Kearney and Skyler Gisondo as Max. I don't think there are any terrible performances (Justice Smith isn't great but he just doesn't fit the brooding and angsty loner type for me) but there are members of the cast that are underutilized. Ethan Suplee, Lance Henrickson, David Arquette and Lin Shaye are in the game less than you think and that's too bad. They have the talent and they're all respectively good, I just wish they were given more to work with.
The last thing I wanted to touch on was the element of choice in the game. I'm a sucker for games that let you influence the story through your choices but it's harder to execute that kind of formula (Telltale made some good games but they made a fair amount of lacklustre ones too) than you may think. The Quarry isn't firing choices at you at a mile-a-minute clip but I'm happy to report that the choices do have consequences and how attentive you choose to be has ramifications on the narrative. It's also a pleasant surprise that the QTEs (quick time events) are more forgiving in The Quarry. Until Dawn's QTEs are brutal, you miss one and that character's done. I think the studio listened to that criticism and even if you miss one or even two in a line, you usually have a chance to course correct and that will help new players.
The Quarry is a much needed home run for Supermassive but I'm so happy both for them and for the fans of Until Dawn. Anyone who played any of the Dark Pictures Anthology knew they could do better and with The Quarry proved that they still can deliver the goods. I love Until Dawn even with the cliche characters and the hammy dialogue, it feels like the creators are paying homage to the genre instead of being careless with the material. The Quarry is tightly plotted, the characters have more dimension this time around and while it isn't as multi-faceted as Until Dawn, they bring the thrills and chills. Partner that with how the story branches out in a satisfying way to justify the choose-your-own adventure aspect and you've got a winner. Supermassive deserves all the kudos and I hope we can get another project of this quality from them moving ahead. If you're a fan of the choose-your-own-fright genre, The Quarry is worth picking up at full price.
Getting to the creatures, the Wendigo in Until Dawn were a nice choice. They weren't as established and it allowed them to play with the mythology and the look. Without spoiling anything, the beasts stalking our intrepid heroes is of the A-list monster variety and their design even resembles the Wendigo. But it's a fresh design considering other version of these monsters and it played for me. They carry over most of the classic rules and mythology (being scared of water was new to me but maybe that's always been the case) and they do a good job fitting them into the story. They know to obscure them and to have them lurk around instead of wandering around in the open and it adds to the sense of danger and mystery. But they also pack a punch, the wrong choices in The Quarry lead to savagery and those moments should satisfy the gore fans in the audience.
Until Dawn had a surprisingly loaded cast list. Most of this was due to them lucking into catching several famous actors and actresses on the upswing (Hayden Panetierre and Peter Stormare were already names but Academy Award winner Rami Malek and Brett Dalton weren't there yet). Most of The Quarry's cast are either horror genre vets or people you'd recognize from other things. My favourite performances were from Ted Raimi as Travis Hackett, Siobhan Williams as Laura Kearney and Skyler Gisondo as Max. I don't think there are any terrible performances (Justice Smith isn't great but he just doesn't fit the brooding and angsty loner type for me) but there are members of the cast that are underutilized. Ethan Suplee, Lance Henrickson, David Arquette and Lin Shaye are in the game less than you think and that's too bad. They have the talent and they're all respectively good, I just wish they were given more to work with.
The last thing I wanted to touch on was the element of choice in the game. I'm a sucker for games that let you influence the story through your choices but it's harder to execute that kind of formula (Telltale made some good games but they made a fair amount of lacklustre ones too) than you may think. The Quarry isn't firing choices at you at a mile-a-minute clip but I'm happy to report that the choices do have consequences and how attentive you choose to be has ramifications on the narrative. It's also a pleasant surprise that the QTEs (quick time events) are more forgiving in The Quarry. Until Dawn's QTEs are brutal, you miss one and that character's done. I think the studio listened to that criticism and even if you miss one or even two in a line, you usually have a chance to course correct and that will help new players.
The Quarry is a much needed home run for Supermassive but I'm so happy both for them and for the fans of Until Dawn. Anyone who played any of the Dark Pictures Anthology knew they could do better and with The Quarry proved that they still can deliver the goods. I love Until Dawn even with the cliche characters and the hammy dialogue, it feels like the creators are paying homage to the genre instead of being careless with the material. The Quarry is tightly plotted, the characters have more dimension this time around and while it isn't as multi-faceted as Until Dawn, they bring the thrills and chills. Partner that with how the story branches out in a satisfying way to justify the choose-your-own adventure aspect and you've got a winner. Supermassive deserves all the kudos and I hope we can get another project of this quality from them moving ahead. If you're a fan of the choose-your-own-fright genre, The Quarry is worth picking up at full price.
- CANpatbuck3664
- Jul 30, 2022
- Permalink