One
interesting consequence of technological progression is the romanticising of technologies
and techniques which were the ‘best we had at the time’. Creating a film in
black and white, or without sound, is now an artistic choice and no longer a necessity
owing to limitations of technology. 2D side-scrollers, once the kingpin of
arcades, may now mostly be the preserve of dodgy takeaways which have that one
beaten-up arcade cabinet with Streets of
Rage, Metal Slug, and Bust-A-Move 3 on it. But they’ve also
become the go-to format of choice for amateur game developers, and not just
because they’re considerably easier to design. Again it’s an artistic choice, like
deciding whether to use a sock or toilet paper.
Once such Indie developer, Jasper Byrne,
cut his teeth demaking the Silent Hill
games into old-school side-scrollers; an influence which has seeped into his
debut game Lone Survivor. A 2D side-scroller
initially seems an unusual format for a psychological horror game, akin to
writing the Great American novel in Excel. But it works precisely because of the format's limitations. Lone Survivor is an emulation of the heyday of the side-scroller, complete
with a pixelated visual style and simplistic soundtrack. The graphics are
deliberately blurry and distorted in a bid to seem authentically retro, and
also to keep the horror aspects ambiguous. Similarly, the soundtrack is made up
of miscellaneous instruments overlaid with creepy ambient noises and has that
strained midi vibe which resembles Harvey
Fierstein trying to sing Ol’ Man
River.
Lone Survivor is indebted to the Silent Hill franchise – particularly Silent Hill 2 & 4 – a parasitic
twin feeding on its sibling. The player is placed into the shoes of ’You’, a
strange man who religiously wears a surgical mask like a Chinese tourist. I'll admit that I thought the mask was a big grin akin to the one Doomguy adorns whenever he picks up a chaingun. You’s
apartment complex has become a dilapidated ruin, everyone’s either disappeared or
become a monster, and You is slowly descending into madness. And no, Ali G didn’t write that last sentence.
This is your standard psychological horror game set-up – rocks have fallen,
everyone’s died, and it’s up to you to find out why the rocks have fallen. Or haven’t
fallen.
Eschewing the Orpheus myth-esque
narrative of Silent Hill 2, which saw protagonist James descend into the abyss
to save his bird, Lone Survivor is structured more like an unholy hybrid of
Silent Hill 4, Twin Peaks, and The Sims. Each day You has to leave the
sanctuary of his apartment to complete a variety of standard video game
objectives - go here, unlock this, turn the power on, write a scathing criticism
of Donald Trump online – before returning
home to recover and begin the next day anew. I liked the effect this created,
impressing the survival aspects as you’re forced to scavenge for food and
attend to You’s needs. The needy bastard.
The drudgery of You’s daily routine plays into the psychological aspects
of Lone Survivor. You're given just enough ammo and resources to deal
with all the pulpy nude monsters you encounter, but the game's survival horror leanings
encourage you to take the more thoughtful approach of running, hiding, and
baiting the enemies. Being stealthy and non-lethal requires more patience and
dedication from the player and you can see how You would slowly lose his mind
over this endless toil. Like the start of every Mad Max film after the first one, really. For a horror game, Lone Survivor
is fairly understated. You shouldn’t go into the game expecting an experience
that’s bombastic like The Evil Within
or Dead Space. Sure, it has visceral
elements such as the zombie-things, gore, creepy ambience, and horrifying scenery and situations.
But Lone Survivor is more about the toll of isolation and desperate
survivalism: You’s perspective is increasingly distorted and Lynchian as the game proceeds.
You's tranquil apartment, not unlike the one from Silent Hill 4, becomes the sole place
of solitude in an otherwise nightmarish world - helping him to restore his shattered mind. Knowing you can just pick up
your ball and go home whenever you want does ruin the feel of descending into
Hell, however. Which is a shame as Lone Survivor features an excellent moment early on
in which you step through a gory tear in the fabric of the apartment and cross
a dreamlike landscape. Initially it feels like a watershed moment of crossing
the threshold of realities. Turns out, however, that it’s less Marco Polo stepping on to the mysterious shores
of China for the first time, and more like popping to the corner shop for a
pint of milk.
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