7th Guest Remake Review

the 7th guest remake, vertigo games

Let’s travel back in time for a brief history lesson. Once upon a time there were these things called CD-ROMs that could be inserted into computers. Unsure how? Well they were inserted into a CD drive that was built into your PC to allow you play said CDs. While most PCs no longer come with these drives, these were standard in the past. If you need a modern day comparison those who buy physical games may know this feeling from injecting a disc into the PlayStation or XBOX that has a disc drive although these seem to be even more rare by day.

Why the history lesson? Because it’s worth understanding that the original release of 7th Guest was in 1993. At the time of its release, it received a lot of attention due to the inclusion of live action clips mixed in with what was at the time, an unheard of amount of 3D graphics. Now all these years later, it received a full remake rebuilt from the ground up while keeping true to the core of the original.

The foundation may remain the same, but how does the rest of the home, I mean story, hold up?

Welcome to Harley-on-the-Hudson

Our player character arrives by boat and is quickly greeted by a Lost Soul . This soul will help guide us throughout our exploration of the house. The soul shares with us how to use our spirit lantern and begins to set the stage as we walk up to the house. It’s clear there is something strange going on when we play our first record on the gramophone and the disembodied voice of Henry Stauf, our host, begins to speak.

It seems he’s speaking to the guests that he had invited to this home once upon a time. While the walls aren’t actively speaking to us, we are seeing the memories of the house brought to life. When we meet the guests who arrive, we quickly learn that the adults believe there to be only six guests. However, a seventh guest arrives and it is this seventh who is at the middle of it all. We also hear the voices for the first time.

Tad just wants to play. You’ll let him play with the puzzles right?

During this time we also learn how the house itself works. Each time you hear the clock chime, a new room is open for you to explore. Some of the rooms open in a linear fashion to complete telling the story. We also quickly find the spirit board which shares a map to let us know all of the available rooms, show you progression towards 100%ing the game, and offer you hints and solve the puzzles should you find yourself needing it.

Stauf has invited these guests here to engage in a variety of puzzles to earn a second chance at life. Should they solve the mystery of the house, Stauf will fulfill the guests wildest dream. Of course, only one guest will win this opportunity. It is this challenge that begins our story with the twists and turns. Suddenly our friendly drinks and dinner evolves into a deadly evening for many of our guests. Time to solve those puzzles to unlock the story. The story isn’t revolutionary, but watching who makes it to the end amidst solving the puzzles is actually quite fun.

Our Host with the Most (Sinister Intentions That Is)

While we see the story of the night play out, we also learn more about Stauf.

There is also the story within the story. The story of the evening isn’t the only story we hear throughout The 7th Guest Remake. We also get to learn quite a bit about our host. Through the images scattered throughout the house, we learn about Stauf and his backstory. A quiet boy who had no friends and his rise to being a legendary toymaker. We also learn about his rise and fall and how he hears the voices. The voices that tell him what to do. The voices that lead the way. Voices that now are speaking to you.

Atmosphere & Acting

What makes the story fun to watch unveil is the the atmosphere and acting. While at times, the acting feels slightly cheesy, it’s actually perfect for this story. There are moments where the magician Hamilton Temple feels like such a parody it’s hard not to be amused. Broadway hopeful Martine Burden trying to flirt and charm her way to the top of this game always feels just one moment away from cringe worthy, but believable enough that she gets under your skin. Funnily enough, sometimes it feels like how I have imagined characters from my favorite cozy murder mysteries that I curl up on the couch and read. This exaggeration also carries over to some of the murder scenes where the blood comes splashing out of characters.

Of course you can Mr. Dutton. Let’s see how long you last in this murder house.

Yet the acting doesn’t take away from the atmosphere that is built by the music and decor. There’s something about the emptiness of the house in certain spaces that make the house feel eerie. The cobwebs everywhere also remind us the house has been long abandoned yet spirits and voices still seem to roam around. When you shine the spirit lantern on various art around the house and find the paintings aren’t quite what the seem it adds to feeling as though the house truly is haunted. Some of the images come to life and seem ready to pop out at you, some of them reveal severed heads and devilish characters smiling back at you. These little touches while also looking for how to solve the puzzles are unsettling.

Achievement Hunters, be sure you shine the lantern on this image of Stauf to see his true form.

Of course, there’s also the creepy crawlers in the house that can make people’s skin crawl. When having to interact with spiders and roaches, I found myself shifting uncomfortably in my seat. I am not a fan of bugs and having to hear the skittering or the crunching still gives me the heebie jeebies. Thankfully, The 7th Guest Remake doesn’t rely on cheap jump scares as part of its horror motif. It truly is the tension in the air as you unravel the truth that can keep players engaged and slightly on edge.

Puzzles

While the atmosphere keeps you slightly on edge, it’s great for puzzle solving. The 7th Guest Remake brings quite a variety of puzzles. While some definitely hit the frustrating mark, it wasn’t often because the puzzle was poorly defined. Instead, it was frustrating because its a puzzle I’m not quite good at. I have always been honest that spatial intelligence is something I probably rank pretty low on. So when puzzles require the manipulation of objects or trying to make them fit together in a game such as this, it’s harder for me to solve. Some of them I continued to struggle through and eventually got it right. So what about the some that I couldn’t get perfectly right to move on?

The dolls can’t move but surely we can move them into the right seating arrangements. If only we knew how…

To be completely transparent, there were one or two puzzles where I did end up using the solve the puzzle mechanic that the spirit board provides. Within the game if you find Stauf coins you can trade them with the spirit board for it to solve the puzzle for you. While some may see this as cheating, it allows players who know where they lack certain strengths the ability to continue on. Thankfully, the majority of puzzles, with enough patience and thought I was able to get through them. One of the puzzles did get a small bit of code jamming but afterwards I understood how we got to the end result of making everything add up to 7.

I’m not a fan of code jamming, but now I know how to understand this puzzle moving forward.

To 7th Guest Remake’s credit, none of the puzzles feel overly difficult for fans of puzzles. Of course, it also isn’t overly challenging for those who find themselves tearing through puzzle games and escape rooms at a rapid pace. Those looking for a very difficult challenge may find themselves slightly disappointed but I thoroughly enjoyed the complexity level wrapped in a horror package.

Overall

With 17 rooms to cover, it took me about 5 hours of solid playtime to complete the game. However for those who want to 100% it and find all 50 coins (I found 18) and view all of the Stauf Chronicles, expect that it will take you just slightly longer, perhaps 6 or 7. It’s short enough to play and complete in one evening if you’re skilled, two if you need a little extra time. Those who are looking for scares but aren’t fans of puzzles, this is not the game for you. Unless you want to spend all the time searching for coins to have the puzzles solved for you.

The 7th Guest Remake kept the bones of the story and provided new puzzles that would work for a new audience. At times The 7th Guest Remake feels like an escape room that you are crawling through to save yourself and the lost spirits. At others it feels like an amusement park attraction. I almost expected to find a gift shop near the end selling old man Stauf’s toys. None of this is in a bad way, it nails a certain vibe and joy that can be difficult to deliver without overstaying its welcome. Despite being a remake of a game from 1993, it doesn’t feel dated and old, except where it should in its setting. It was a joy to visit Harley-on-the-Hudson and I hope you each accept that invitation when it comes your way.