Back during its 1982 golden age, Atari released an adventure game that changed gaming by becoming one of, if not the first survival horror games created, Haunted House. Atari and Orbit Studio have reimagined the legendary game for modern audiences in time for Halloween! I want to thank Atari and Orbit Studio for allowing me to check out this revamped legend!
Haunted House follows Lyn Graves and her friends as they go to a haunted house her exploring uncle disappeared in. After arriving at the spooky location, Lyn is separated from her friends and must now find them too as well as put a curse to bed, and end the hauntings.
Now, on to the game itself! Haunted House‘s controls seem a bit complicated for a relatively simple story and game with so many mechanics being thrown at you right off the bat! When it comes to sound for Haunted House, the soundtrack, though good, needs more variety. The game could also use some voice-acting, especially during cutscenes as the text on the screen goes by a bit fast.
The art of Haunted House is amazing! Especially if you consider what the original looked like back in ’82! I liked the bright colors, even when it’s supposed to be “dark” it’s still quite colorful.
When it comes to gameplay for Haunted House, it’s pretty simple. The game is roguelite, meaning that death is part of the gameplay. You have to go into a room and to unlock a door, you must complete a task within that room, in some rooms they want you to defeat all the enemies, find and put an owl statue on an alter, or the dreaded one; survive for a set amount of time.
The gameplay is rewarding, you can find jewels that you can use to buy upgrades such as increasing your health, the strength of your flashlight (your weapon), and decreasing the sounds of your steps (stealth is a big mechanic in Haunted House), and there are plenty of fetch quests for other characters to keep things interesting.
Overall, I enjoyed Haunted House. With some minor gripes, it’s fun overall. With an E rating, this game can be enjoyed by all and can be a good Halloween night game for the little ones or some brainless fun for adults wanting to unwind. On my scale, Haunted House is an 8.5/10!
Haunted House is out now for PC, PlayStations 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch.
