Devotion

Way back in the day, a certain Taiwanese side-scrolling horror named detention would make its way to the gaming world and leave those that encountered the title stunned, petrified and yet mesmerised with what was on offer. Then a great deal later in 2019, the time would come for this Taiwanese horror spectacle to make its way to the modern era of gaming, adopting a first-person perspective and promising to be just as unforgivingly horrifying as its predecessor. This game would be called Devotion.

This game plays very similarly to modern horror games of this era such as Layers of Fear, Outlast, Amnesia: The Dark Descent or even Resident Evil 7 without the guns. You’ll find yourself navigating a quintessentially Taiwanese home as the horrors that unfold begin to change your environment and lead to some interesting and truly frightening moments.

Unsettling and Theatrical

What the games we mentioned above do very well is timing their jump scares and ensuring tension has been built leading up to this moment. However, what devotion does instead asks the player to live in a constant state of discomfort, never quite being able to settle. The story takes place in an ever-changing version of the same house throughout different years. Where the context of the story will change and the environmental cues will drive the narrative forward in wondrous fashion.

The wooden blocks that depict the horrors that occurred to the residents of the house, for example, are a horrendously classy touch of brilliance. They are reminiscent of BioShock fiend Sander Cohen’s frozen corpse masterpieces or perhaps Pathologic 2’s theatrical figures. Small touches like these add to the tension and make the moments that finely break this scary as hell.

Culturally Accurate Realism

The game also has tremendous levels of visual detail which is delivered in the form of an intricately designed Taiwanese homestead. The decor is perfect for the setting and the small details only add to the lived-in and authentic feel of the environment. Take the newspapers that are fully legible, the patterned china ornaments and bowls or perhaps the calendars that mark the national holidays of the nation.

This world-building is further accented by other great additions such as television broadcasts that show the commercial side of the nation in this eighties time period. Or perhaps the radio broadcasts that can either be throw away filler content that builds the world or it can offer information that helps you understand the mystery of the house and its family. It’s much like Hideo Kojima’s P.T. is this respect.

Enthralling from start to finish

Devotion isn’t the longest game you’ll ever purchase. In fact, you’ll probably have this game done and dusted in approximately three hours but every minute is jam-packed with tension, collectable finding, exploration, narrative and other assets that never let you exit a constant flow state.

The 3D audio also helps in this respect and for this reason, the game deserves to be played with headphones. This audio provides a constant need to be on alert, remaining vigilant for any monstrous beings making rumbles in the shadows while you explore and it’s been produced with a great deal of care so you know exactly where sounds are coming from and how far away they are.

A Horror Blockbuster

The last few years have been kind to us in reference to fantastic horror experiences but arguably none really nail it like this one. The level of intricate visual, audio and world-building detail that has been carried out here is nothing short of remarkable.

Pros

• Visuals and audio are flawless
• In the game, the world is super detailed
• Environmental cues are very cleverly used.
• The story is gripping.

Cons

• Quite a short runtime