The psychological horror of In Sound Mind feels years out of date

One of many first phrases you hear in In Sound Mind, growled with malice because the digicam sweeps again throughout a cityscape flooded with oil-slick water, is “curiosity.” It’s one thing the sport is assured you’ll really feel. Aren’t you interested in the way you’ve woken with out recollections on this nightmarish house constructing? Don’t you need to discover out what’s up with the speaking cat, or the hostile entity who refuses to cease bullying you over the telephone?

Sadly, my reply was by no means extra emphatic than “I suppose?” In Sound Thoughts can’t fairly handle to generate that curiosity. As a substitute, as I muddled alongside as amnesiac psychiatrist Desmond Wales to piece collectively a sequence of psychological terrors and tragedies, I couldn’t shake the sensation I used to be taking part in the identical form of horror sport I’ve been taking part in for a decade or extra. As soon as once more, I used to be trailing the lengthy march of video games within the lineage of Layers of Concern, Amnesia, and Condemned, to the identical vacation spot: the identical grungy hallways, the identical scrounging round for flashlight batteries, the identical compulsory fascination with madness. In Sound Thoughts colours nicely inside the traces.

There are issues to love although, a lot of them visible. The imagery as Desmond’s house contorts itself right into a surreal mindscape might be genuinely arresting. As you wander beneath whale carcasses and phantom lighthouses, titanic cassette tapes loom over the horizon, their tape reels spinning whereas audio logs play.

The swimming pools of poisonous pharmaceutical sludge are lovelier than you’d anticipate, and I liked the inky, distorted silhouette of the essential enemies, regardless of the stiff character animations. Mechanically, some fascinating concepts current themselves, like a shard of glass that reveals hidden gadgets behind you whenever you look into its reflection. There’s a buying cart that’s extra enjoyable to kick than it has any cause to be. 

And sure, you’ll be able to pet the cat.

However in any other case, whereas it’s completely playable, In Sound Thoughts struggles to make any lasting affect. Its writing and vocal performances land someplace between corny and melodramatic—though they supply one of many sport’s foremost joys, as you’ll be able to dangle up on the antagonistic voice who calls you all through the sport at will. The puzzle designs are pleasurable sufficient, however it may be tedious having to fumble with a list you’ll be able to solely navigate with directional keys. Particularly after I needed to reenact a nonsense gross sales promotion, scanning gadgets on a sequence of deserted money registers to match particular costs.

There’s a superb quantity of necessary backtracking, typically with out the sorts of discoveries or revelations that make retreading the identical areas really feel justified. As a substitute, your foremost reward for exploring is the pharmaceutical capsules which function character development: accumulate three of the identical sort, and also you get a stat increase.

If I’m actually upset by something, it’s that In Sound Thoughts by no means felt significantly horrifying. There are many little jumpscares and spooky thuds, occasional transient glimpses at lurking threats, however nothing that spiked the center price as a lot as I’d hoped. Perhaps most damning is that its enemies, together with every space’s boss, felt extra inconvenient than scary.

It doesn’t assist that when In Sound Thoughts tries to color with psychology as a part of its horror palette, a few of its makes an attempt dip from clumsy to tasteless. Throughout a sequence within the nightmarish reflection of a shopping mall, it was arduous to disregard that the sport was asking me to defeat a ghost by repeatedly exposing her to the set off for her psychosis—basically asking me to weaponize a girl’s personal deadly psychological trauma in opposition to her to progress. It felt gross.

In the end, In Sound Thoughts is strolling some well-worn paths—the horror equal of competently made consolation meals. Belief me, although: whenever you discover that buying cart, give it a number of boots from me. You’ll be glad you probably did.