The Dark Pictures, a horror game series by Bandai Namco that returns with a third episode under the name of House of Ashes. We take what had made the first two parts and we just change the story. This time, we're leaving for Iraq!
The game that plays like a movie.
For those who do not know The Dark Picture, we are on the genre of game that leaves very little room for adventure and a lot for cinematics with various QTEs. Basically, you're going to have to make choices and succeed in actions. Even if some success of action does not necessarily mean the survival of a character. That's where the sadism is in this series. Your choices… Your consequences. We will also be free at times to explore small areas to discover various secrets and macabre vision of a future. This could either guide you on how to avoid it or on the contrary lead you to make various mistakes. We will not hide it from you, it is the story and its quality of writing that once again save the furniture. The gameplay being quite secondary. House of Ashes will above all offer a gripping story, even if for this episode, a hair… too much telephoned. On the graphic side, the title continues on its momentum. It is easy to recognize the actors. In addition the animations are quite neat and the decorations rather pretty. The title is not a visual slap, but as a whole fares better than most titles that are meant to be realistic. However, we hope that the sequel will be entitled to a little more finesse with the new generation consoles and current PCs allowing so much more realism.
It's not my war…
On the history side, House of Ashes takes us to Iraq in 2003. Saddam Hussein is dead and the Americans are still looking for nuclear weapons. On the iraqi side, the war is not over yet and they want to save what remains to be saved. It is in this delirium that a unit is secretly deployed in the mountains in order to find a hidden silo. Except that nothing will go as planned and the hidden silo is actually an ancient temple filled with secrets dating back to Sumerian times. While everyone is trying to find a way to get together and find an exit… A presence is felt and chases them. That's it on paper, it looks huge. In fact, being a big fan of the Aliens movies and Slasher… We are far from the first episodes that had managed to surprise me. At times, we have the impression of seeing passages from Aliens and stereotypical dialogues to the possible of American at war… Which makes us take a lot of laughter to say what the characters will say or what will happen before it happens with 90% of the time … Reasons…
Not even afraid!
We are not going to lie, the dubbing work, the soundtrack or the staging are a great success and will succeed in keeping the purists of the genre in suspense. For others it will be good entertainment. In addition, replayability is quite good in the sense or several endings of its available depending on the survivors. Not to mention that it is also possible to play in co-op with a friend. You will complete the title in 5 hours easily and then start again several times to succeed in a run without death. And as much to say, this small replayability is always a pleasure in this kind of game. Not to mention all the collectables to find. Everything is there to make you shiver for a few extra hours. And then well… The title is sold for only 30 euros. So we are on a super ration quality price.