Remothered: Tormented Fathers
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Remothered: Tormented Fathers is the pure and realistic survival horror videogame. A game by Darril Arts, directed by Chris Darril, developed by Stormind Games. Psychology plays a huge role within the game: heroes and enemies are atypical and the line between good and evil is blurred. The plot is rich of unpredictable twists, but it is touching at the same time. The development of the game is similar to that of a film narration, where the player perfectly identifies himself with the character. The soundtrack, composed by Nobuko Toda (Final Fantasy, Halo, Metal Gear Solid) and Luca Balboni, enhances the terrifying atmosphere of the game.
Steam User 3
Man, I should really NOT be recommending "Remothered: Tormented Fathers". It's an incredibly obtuse and frustrating game, with some maddening designs and nigh incomprehensible plot. Incomprehensible in the Metal Gear Solid way, not the artsy indie game way. But... well, "Remothered: Tormented Fathers" has a ton of character, and as dumb as it can be, it is committed do deliver an old school horror experience, and it does it in spades. It is unique, stressful, bold, and unlike any other horror game released in the past decade. The atmosphere is unnerving. The plot is crazy weird, and ends with one of the longest expositionary monologues I have ever heard. Overall, "Remothered: Tormented Fathers" might be one of the most memorable indie horror games I've seen. That said, my recommendation comes with a warning: you better think this one through. Are you patient? I hope you are. Are you observant? You better be. And maybe a little nostalgic for the old days of "Clock Tower" and "Haunting Ground"? That would certainly help. Also, I'd say don't be ashamed to check up a walkthrough when you're stuck. Getting the puzzles right (while a butt-naked maniac stalks you tirelessly) is one thing, but pixel hunting was a bit much for me. I'll end on a list of complaints, because as much as I loved this game, I need to get these frustrations out of my system: Some interactive elements are hidden just above your line of sight, especially if you're crouched all the time like you should be (to avoid detection). In other cases, the interactions just don't work, so you'll have to walk in circles around the object you're trying to pick up. The puzzle design could have used some better sign-posting, or it would have been more bearable if you could navigate around the mansion faster. It does not help that environments are littered with single use defense items that all look undistinguishable from key puzzle items. And for God's sake, why just one staircase? In the first half of the game I was constantly stuck around the stairs, waiting for the bad guy to walk away just so that I could change floors. Sometimes it was easier to just run, lose them in the basement (which is almost an exploit) and then run to wherever I wanted to go in the first place. So yeah, "Remothered" will make you suffer. But you may still end up appreciating it.
Steam User 3
This game scratches so many of my survival horror itches.Intriguing story and genuinely interesting characters.Hostile non-linear environments that force you to explore.Gameplay that doesn't hold the player's hand from one objective to the next.Actual puzzles (not just find-a-fuse rubbish).Slow-burning horror built on tension and atmosphere.That said, there is a fair bit of gameplay jank. If you want to throw an item, you better make sure there are no doorways or obstructions so much as in the same postcode as your character. It's also way too fiddly to get your character at the exact spot to interact with specific items (tip: ignore your character, and try to position the icon dead center of the screen). The cutscenes are also a bit stiff. Animation can seem jerky, and conversations don't always flow naturally. These are all blemishes I can forgive given the game's charms, however.
Steam User 2
A little jank can't spoil this fascinating horror experience.
Is this an excellent game, with smooth controls and a superb gameplay loop? No, it's none of these things.
The pacing is rough. Many of the systems are only explained in loading screens! Since everything is succeed/fail, the only consequences for poor play are making you do things over (and sometimes over, and over, and over) again.
I played on mouse & keyboard and while the controls weren't awful, a lot of things weren't that intuitive either. The game loves to gotcha you with sudden QTEs - and yes, if you fail, you are treated to a long death cutscene and starting over from your last checkpoint (which can often be several minutes ago). There are several different types of items, and you guessed it, using them is never explained, except maybe in load screens I never saw. There are a few types of items I never figured out how to use. Items are scattered around the game space very liberally, which I guess is nice because it means you don't have to jealously manage every teacup and bottle of detergent, but it also means you miss out on managing resources which I feel is a classic pillar of survival horror. The basic stealth gameplay isn't bad but really takes getting used to, and using distraction items, if you can even figure out how to, is flatly inferior to simply pushing past attackers with the dodge button and running away.
Worst of all, the final sequence breaks a fundamental rule of gameplay design. Instead of a "final exam" of everything you've learned, the ending traps you in a tight space and gives you new rules; none of your old tools work quite the same as they used to, and the dodge mechanic you've come to rely on no longer works at all. You are no longer allowed to explore the map, figure out where you need to go and use stealth and misdirection to get there. Instead you need to overcome a locked series of obstacles with only one linear solution which is rarely obvious - requiring you to read the developer's mind and guess what he wanted you to do - that's right - over and over again. Guess wrong and yep, you have to start the whole level over.
So the gameplay isn't that hot. The story must be quite good then, right? Well - wrong. Actually I like the story fine as far as I understood it, but as an English speaker I feel certain that something was lost in translation from the original Italian. I sometimes felt I was coming in in the middle of an episode, and supposed to make connections that never made sense, even after the game was over. Additionally, there are no new themes here - there's a spooky house, a cast of characters with family issues, science gone wrong, and supernatural weirdness. It's not done badly - in fact it all feels like it works - but it's really nothing to write home about.
So why do I mark this game as "Recommended"?
Really I guess two reasons.
First, the game has heart like you wouldn't believe. The creator clearly knows horror and knows anxiety. He knows how to tell a story (even if the story isn't that original) and he knows how to make me care about a character. He made this game because he loves survival horror, period, and that dedication shows in every second, even through the often annoying gameplay and perplexing narrative.
Second, the game has real tension, which in my mind is by far the most essential element in good horror. For one thing, I almost never felt safe in this game. It doesn't even have "typewriter rooms" where you can take a breath and listen to a tranquil piano riff. Here, you never really know the rules exactly and the "stalkers" (enemies) can traverse the entire game space, meaning you really can run into them at almost any time ... or go for minutes on end without crossing their path. Best of all, sound plays a huge part in the stealth, and your character normally walks slowly almost all of the time. I've seen some players complain that they can't always sprint around like lunatics, but .. those players are idiots. The game space is very tight and limited, and you're constantly hearing enemy footsteps clomping around just upstairs or right outside the door (or sometimes you don't hear it at all for a while which is even more nervewracking). For you to run everywhere would simply be stupid, because enemies can then find you easily, so you're forced to take your time and really live with the house you're sneaking through, even when nothing exciting is happening. This brilliant use of "negative space" is one of my favorite things in gaming when done right, and here it's done to absolute perfection.
So I recommend this not because it's a great game, because it isn't, but because despite some jank it truly is a great horror experience. If you're a fan of the genre, keep your gameplay expectations in check and you'll be very glad you took a chance on this.
Steam User 1
Spoiler-free review. Not because I don't want to spoil it. I can't spoil it. The story went completely over my head. I sit here wondering if I'm profoundly stupid which I don't...think is the case.
Having finished it, things I don't know:
What happened
Who were the characters
How many characters there were
What were their motivations
Why the unknown what was happening
What's the relationship between characters
What did I achieve in the end
Yeah.
That being said, I did have a lot of fun playing it. It's a really solid Clock Tower-like horror-thriller, I really enjoyed the art design, graphics, the slightly "off" animation also adds to the exeprience. Sound design is pretty solid. It's a fun, suspensful game and I recommend it despite truly having no clue what the story was.
Steam User 1
Quite a good game, the story is very interesting, it does keep you on the edge of your seat, and you want to find out what happens next.
The length of the game for the money you pay, I think it's pretty good, at most it takes you 7 hours to finish it.
Now something I personally didn't like so much, was the character models, it seemed to me like they were a work in progress or they didn't give them as much basis as they needed.
Overall though it's a good choice I think to sit down and play.
Steam User 1
I remember playing this game at its release, mainly attracted by its main character, Rosemary Reed, who’s clearly modeled on Jodie Foster from Silence of the Lambs. Now that I'm preparing myself for Broken Porcelain, which I didn't play at its release because of the game's problems that surely you know, I called to mind my initial impressions which I hope will help you.
My assessment is, no doubt, positive. It has an interesting and mature story, with an original plot and good characters. That is in my opinion the best of the game, and it has to be because for almost the entire game you have to try to go unnoticed while you put together puzzles that will leave you to continue the story, constantly being stalked by seemingly invulnerable enemies. Therefore, you are almost completely defenseless against your enemies, of which you can only hide to survive. This doesn't mean the game´s mechanics are bad or poor. The mechanics work as a whole joined by a remarkable sound design, are they improvable? Absolutely, would a couple more mechanics have made it a better game? Yes. This gives designers aspects to improve for further titles but the mechanics, simple as they are, work, among other things because the game is short and linear otherwise the game would be very repetitive. On the other hand, it has a good visual aspect that achieves a great atmosphere. Again, it has things to improve like the physics of characters, however, it's really good if you take into account that it's an AA indie.
In conclusion, my opinion is that Tormented Fathers is a game with a great story to tell, with mechanics and design that remarkably accompany it but with some deficiencies that, I imagine, are due to its budget, remembering that, as I said before, it's an AA indie. So, I recommend the game, a great job, but I recommend it mainly because keeps a story, and that is and that will be, at least for me, the most important. A modern survival horror game that will leave you a nervous wreck after every session but wanting to discover more about it.
Steam User 1
Good horror adventure game. Very well done. You have mostly to hide between use items to advance. It's a little difficult to escape once they see you but you save the game in some places. Played on windows 11 for about 3 hours.