Review | Decarnation
“Decarnation is a phantasmagoric horror game, but don’t expect too much gameplay… Although, what it lacks in game time, it makes up for with its narrative and music score, composed by Silent Hill’s Akira Yamaoka.”
Decarnation’s narrative follows Gloria, a Parisian cabaret dancer in the 1980’s reaching the back end of her career. She’s been stuck headlining the show at The Swan for the past decade, and things are slowly starting to fall apart. Her boss is looking to move her on from the spotlight, so in a desperate attempt to take control and stay relevant, Gloria agrees to take on an opportunity that could change her fortunes, only to find said opportunity is more sinister than it first appears.
This is Decarnation’s shining light, its story. Gloria’s struggles are both beautifully and nightmarishly captured. You truly live through the everyday horror of a woman who is constantly objectified and judged. You are there to watch as this poor soul spirals into a world of doubt and self-loathing, often blurring the line between reality and the depths of Gloria’s mind.
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Here you will meet some terrifying demons and supposed angels all brought to life in a stunning 2D top-down pixel art world that looks like it could’ve come straight out of a Mega Drive cartridge.
Paired with some incredible animation, this nostalgic take very rarely got old, and still manages to keep you connected to the horror of Gloria’s world despite the lack of immersive camera angles that we’ve come to expect of more recent horror games.
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My only gripe when it comes to the art style is I wished the game would zoom in on the action. I played Decarnation on Nintendo Switch, and at times the small rooms in the game made it hard to see what I was actually looking at, especially when playing handheld. The locations are full of detail and beauty, and I was hoping to see more of Paris and its nightmare counterparts, but for a good chunk of the game you’re stuck in one location.
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So, a rich storyline and pretty old-school graphics are all good and all, but how does it play I hear you say? Well, not that well…
This game boasts 15 mini-games to drive home Gloria’s twisted tale. Wow, a whole 15!?
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I’m all for a good mini-game, I love me some Mario Party and really enjoyed the mini-games in Final Fantasy VII, finding them to be a welcome break from the narrative. That’s what I kind of expected from Decarnation, which plays a lot like a horror version of an old Final Fantasy game, at least in terms of story.
But what I did find, where the dialog and characters were masterfully constructed, any of these mini-games that came along only derailed any momentum I had gained with the story, taking me right out of it.
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They aren’t even particularly fun games, some are actually confusing. Tapping buttons to the beat while Gloria dances, at least seem obvious choices when your heroine is the star of a cabaret, but others feel super shoe-horned in, like going through a quick time event where Gloria is … stretching and working out. What?
At least there are some decent boss battles.
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Now I actually like a good ‘story’ game. Some of my favourite games over the last few years have been titles that have let challenging gameplay take a back seat and allowed the gamer to be swept up in the yarn that is unravelling in front of you. Visual novels, like the Danganronpa series, have been a welcome ride for me on nights where I haven’t felt like actually ‘playing’ a game, but I almost think Decarnation would be better off without the mini-games.
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Where it lacks in gameplay though, Decarnation makes up for it in some insanely atmospheric sound design. Veteran horror game composer Akira Yamaoka, who brought us the chilling vibes in the Silent Hill series, lends his mechanical and disturbing sound to the game’s score, bolstering some honestly horrific sound effects to really draw you into Gloria’s worst nightmares.
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The gameplay might leave a bit to be desired, but Decarnation plays out like a phycological horror/thriller movie that could absolutely be devoured in one sitting, all in a beautifully nostalgic 2D style.
If you can look past the lame mini-games, you’re in for a powerful and thoughtful experience, unlike any other game I have played before.
