For the most part, this game didn't spook me much but it had a lot of great set pieces and inventive ideas on how to scare the player and build tension. I was impressed a few times with how much the game got to me though, particularly a specific segment towards the end. Rather, it was the lead up to the main segment that got me rather than the actual part itself.

That's something that this game does struggle with a little bit. There will be a lot of tension building up through atmosphere and story over a long period of time, and then the scare finally happens and is pretty good, but then it just keeps doing the scare over and over again to the point where it is just no longer scary.

It is definitely more of a "haunted house" type of horror game than it is a survival or psychological horror game, I would say. For that type of game though, it is the best I've seen by far. The developers really knew what they were doing with the type of game they wanted to make and I do respect it.

One major gripe I have with the spook factor of the game is that it is CONSTANTLY playing these random scary sounds like doors creaking, things being tipped over, thunder, etc. and you just KNOW they are sound bytes programmed to play at random intervals. Listen, it's not scary when it is happening all the time and there is literally no threat. You'll hear a door opening next to you right where a wall is. Stuff like that really takes AWAY from the atmosphere for me, and the game was at its best when it was dreadfully quiet.

MADiSON is also heavy on the puzzles, and they can be a little bit convoluted but are mostly really good. I have a whole notebook page full of puzzle notes which is a REALLY good sign! The puzzle solutions are all randomized for every playthrough too, so although you can look up a guide to help you know HOW to solve the puzzle, it won't be able to straight up give you the answer. This almost killed the game for my friend and I though unfortunately, because we missed a puzzle clue that could only be found one time and we just didn't find it in the right way. We basically just tried a bunch of random stuff because it would have been REALLY hard to brute force it, and thankfully we got it within like 30 minutes.

The story is also pretty interesting too. It has to do with demonic possessions and rituals. While you're playing, some parts can seem like they come out of left field entirely, or it feels like there are completely separate stories going on at once, but after thinking about it a little bit once I had finished playing... it is all connected in a pretty good way. There is one small plot hole that is never technically explained, but it isn't too egregious and you can understand everything else relatively well.

The main character's voice is extremely gay, and you can turn it off, but we chose to left it on because it was kind of funny to listen to. I can imagine they added the setting to turn it off because people were complaining it was breaking up the atmosphere, which is completely understandable.

Anyway, as far as horror games of this nature go, they aren't my favorite things in the world but I did enjoy it and it did genuinely spook me out a few times. I went into it thinking it was going to be more or less indie horror slop but was pleasantly surprised. Give it a shot if you're looking for something spooky!

#beardgamereview