OKAY, SO.
This post will be a game review, not an actual update. The last time I felt I had to break a game down like this was when I played Rift for the first time after a long 7 year relationship with World of Warcraft. It was emotional.
I am emotional right now, though I will do my best to remain as unaffected as possible.
SO APPARENTLY, unbeknownst to me, Bendy and the Ink Machine appeared on Steam earlier this year in April as a free-to-play first person horror/puzzler game.
NOTE; SPOILER IN-GAME IMAGE WILL BE A LITTLE WAYS DOWN.
SO.
YEAH.
The only reason I even found out about it was because I was looking for Cuphead art on Deviant Art, and shit like this popped up:
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| Kirby-Popstar credit: http://fav.me/db5zp99 |
WELL, along with that cuphead tag, came a lot of art having to do with old cartoons, and that horned character, I learned, is named Bendy.
A quick google search led me to this very post that you are now still reading, evidently. (Thanks by the way.)
Bendy and the Ink Machine is a HORROR game by TheMeatly Games
A puzzler in the sense that the player must navigate through labyrinth style corridors with the objective of finding clues and objects in order to move forward in the story.
The atmosphere creates enough suspense, anticipation, and eeriness despite it's old-timey cartoon art style.
This excellently demonstrated that to be ornate with monsters, old houses, and dark environments with a small light source is not a per-requisite for atmospheric horror games in order to achieve sufficient suspense in the player. In the 30 minutes it took me to complete the first chapter, Bendy successfully got 2 very well deserved jump scares out of me.
Being someone as welcoming to atmospheric horror games as I... preparation for jump scares is always ticking in my psyche, and I expect things to jump out at me. I often do not fall for them.
In Bendy and the Ink Machine, this expectation was overshadowed by well disguised art, and ultimately failed me. I gasped like a little bitch lol
- New content is released incrementally by DLC chapters via Steam. (also for xbox but idgaf about cha'll)
Synopsis:
The protagonist, (das you) goes to visit the old animation studio belonging to Joey Drew Studios that has fallen prey to time, and seemingly other forces.
While beautifully done, the first chapter felt too introductory and streamlined, with opportunities to add interactive clicky bits to objects that could satisfy most atmospheric horror fans' curiosity while exploring.
The player has freedom to wander and look around as much as they please, but I can't help but miss opening up random furniture just for the love of it.
- This is the 1st chapter, so it's also important to keep in mind that it played very much like a demo.
!!! S P O I L E R I M A G E B E L O W !!!
With the traditional elements of the cartoons many of our relatives grew up on, TheMeatly Games brilliantly married love-able with oh hell no.
(Not gonna lie, I feel like this game is just... made for me. It's not, but .... I'm not saying that I love horror games and my favorite spot in Disneyland is the old cartoon room and Oswald is my husband, but........)
I am very, very excited to play the next chapter, which my friend Andrea so kindly gifted me
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| Thank you, bb girl :* I don't deserve you |
It is FREE on Steam, (idk about xbox but prolly?) and took me a modest 30 minutes to complete, all of which were thoroughly engaging from the start because of the art style.
Bendy and the Ink Machine has a 9/10 rating right now on Steam with amazing reviews, including my pathetic fan girling.
I want to cosplay something from this game.
On to chapter 2!