Lovecraft Again: Another Contender Enters the Fray
There are many things that are certain in the world of horror. Whether it’s the jump scares or misshapen fiends hidden just beyond the ghostly veil of a flickering candle, we all have that same fear of the things that go bump in the night. It’s a part of human nature as much as breathing. Even those that claim to have conquered it can’t deny it for the terrors it sells so well –the fear of the unknown.
Cosmic horror has been one of the most popular sub-genres of the horror space for decades now. It’s idea is simple in premise just like any other form of horror, but it relies on the aspects of the world that make us uncomfortable. At it’s center, the main aspects that make cosmic horror tick for so many of us is its emphasis focusing on humanity’s insignificance in a vast, indifferent universe ruled by beings who sees us as nothing more than cattle. Scary thought isn’t it?
Now it’s no secret that cosmic horror has been the centerpiece of dozens of games through the past two decades that have left their mark on the space. Everything from EA’s Dead Space to Fromsoft’s Bloodborne have all tailored their own tales of madness in the image of H.P. Lovecraft’s original novels. But the question always remains –who can depict this unique genre of horror the best besides the man himself? Let’s find out how the next competitor fares in today’s preview of The Sinking City 2.
The Streets of Arkham: A Sunken 1920’s City
Originally released in 2019, the original Sinking City was a game that was focused on selling itself as an open-world detective game with a Lovecraftian twist. Set in the fictional city of Oakmont, Massachusetts, the story focused on Charles W. Reed and his goal of discovering the cause of the visions that have been plaguing him. This inevitably leads him to get involved with discovering the source of the city’s unrelenting flooding and his adventure has him exploring the various districts and uncovering the ploy by a Great Old One to purge humanity from the world.
This game gave you three different endings you could choose from and each one presented the main character with a path that allowed him to either succumb to the visions that have been haunting him or break the cycle. Either way, at the end no matter what choice you make, Charles’ story ends here as far as we know. The Sinking City 2 has introduced a new character named Calvin Rafferty, whose goals and motives are different than our previous hero, and a new city to explore called Arkham.
The journey begins with Calvin waking up inside the Annex of Miskatonic University after being attacked by an eldritch creature while in search of a Ritual Book rumored to be held there. Following the Dreaming Ritual that left Faye, his lover, in a coma, the book is the most promising lead Calvin has in his search for a way to bring her back. Arkham itself is a city in ruin: flooded, abandoned, and infested with the Slither, parasitic creatures that emerged with the rising water.
Throughout my time with the preview, the most obvious thing that popped out to me in both sections that I was allowed to explore was the post-apocalyptic sense of dread that seems to bleed from the city as you explored it. You are thrown into the first hour or so of the game with the sole purpose of making your way deeper into the city of Arkham by any means necessary. This first section, appropriately named ‘The Streets of Arkham’, has you solving clues and slaying the infected townspeople and other monsters between you and your goals. It is primarily focused on a church that has you solving an occult ritual on the grounds that will allow you to discover the next path towards helping Faye.
Without giving away too much, I have to admit this entire section felt like a page right out of the survival horror handbook. You are thrown into claustrophobic buildings and gloomy waterways that were once the host of the everyday lives of the citizens of Arkham. To add to this compounding sense of dread is the presence of the infected townspeople, who attack Calvin without any pause. The survival horror setting here feels nearly perfect, with certain tropes like limited ammo and ruthless enemies to keep you on your toes when everything seems too quiet.
As far as the puzzle section that is included, a seemingly simple monolith with different insignias that can be rotated, I was impressed by the amount of thinking that was required to solve it. The detective based systems that were in play might not be the primary focus anymore with a more survival horror based approach taking hold, but it became very obvious throughout my hour in The Streets of Arkham section that Frogwares is intent on respecting their past entries while letting the series embrace the next evolution. My only gripe with this first section is that it ended too soon. The controls felt a little tight at times, but the baseline experience they’re leaning into feels like a combination of some of the survival horror greats that have come before it.
The Akeley Memorial Hospital: Claustrophobia Personified
When we talk about the second half of the preview, the narrative gets flipped on it’s head a bit when we are thrown into the terrifying gauntlet that is the Akeley Memorial Hospital. This second area is the polar opposite of what I expected compared to The Streets of Arkham section. You see this area is meant to be more along the lines of the ‘survival’ aspect as opposed to making you feel defenseless. In this section, you explore the hospital in search of certain things that will help you in relation to the ailments that are effecting Faye. I have no intention of spoiling anything else, so that’s about as much information as you’re going to get out of me for now. Like I said this section is the opposite of the first in the best way possible because of one simple change –you’re armed to the teeth.
This section didn’t feel as horror based as The Streets of Arkham section simply because you now have the choice between four different firearms and a ton of ammo spawns scattered around the hospital to keep you happy. You do get a chance to fight a decent number of the infected townspeople, and I’ll admit that they do pose a good bit of challenge in a way that doesn’t feel too overbearing or overpowered. The hospital is a mostly linear experience that ends with you standing face to face with a boss before the curtain falls and you are sent back to the menu. This whole area was honestly terrifying to explore, even with the arsenal at your fingertips, and though we’ve explored derelict hospitals a hundred times before in the genre, I think the 1920’s setting makes it stand out in a crowd of familiars. Yet again I felt the same feeling when it ended –I just wanted more time to play around with it.
Final Thoughts: A Game Chasing Greatness
The Sinking City 2 sets the bar high for its release and feels like the perfect evolution to follow in the footsteps of the original. It’s setting and overall gameplay elements remind me of survival horror staples like Resident Evil 4 and The Evil Within; while feeling like it’s own twisted eldritch monster in the same breath. Fans of survival horror will undoubtedly run to the flooded streets of Arkham to fight the rising tide, but will they conquer the Old Gods or fall to the parasites that now call it home? You’ll have to wait to find out.
