Whip out your smartphone obscura.
While the sequel, DreadOut 2, is currently available on consoles, the original DreadOut as well as DreadOut: Keepers of the Dark were PC exclusive. So, it stands to reason that the publisher sought to rectify that with DreadOut Remastered Collection.
First things first, both games are seemingly remastered, but only in the narrowest sense. They run at more modern resolutions, and I think there may be a filter added? But for the most part, both games look like their original iterations on PC. Which isn’t exactly a bad thing; neither game was a graphical showstopper to begin with, but they’re also not out of date despite originally releasing in 2014. There may be a few bugfixes, but there’s not really any resource I could find to tell me so.
And, honestly, the overall setting is the primary draw for these games. There really aren’t that many Indonesian horror games on the market, so that gives it a unique edge. The ghost designs, in particular, saw much praise during the game’s original release, and that holds true even now.
And that’s about where most praise tends to end. You might be able to tell from the trailer that this is Digital Happiness doing an Indonesian Fatal Frame-type of game. And there’s nothing wrong with that per se, but overall, the execution thereof is left a bit wanting. And that is not changed from the original PC releases.
Controlling Linda is a bit looser than I tend to prefer in games. And for some reason, there is no setting for aiming with the right stick that feels good; default is roughly 1/3rd of the gauge and it feels like it’s already dialed up to the point that it’s barely controllable with any precision. At one point early on, I accidentally unleashed a locust and was left fundamentally incapable of taking a picture of it to get rid of it.
That sign can’t stop me because I can’t read (Indonesian)!
Aside from that, most criticisms of the original releases remain in effect. Things overall feel a bit too loose for their own good. Puzzles are sort of dull when they aren’t irritating. Combat has shockingly little feedback in any way. And, sadly, the interesting death mechanic (sending you to limbo and forcing you to walk further back each time you die) fundamentally amounts to a slap on the wrist.
So can I recommend DreadOut Remastered Collection? Well, only with a proviso. If you really think the flavor of the setting is enough to hold you despite the mentioned gameplay issues, then I wouldn’t be one to hold you back. It wasn’t exactly my cup of tea, though, and if anyone asked me if it’s on the same level as its obvious gameplay inspiration, I’d tell them no. There are positives there, though, they just weren’t enough for my liking.
Fun fact: this happened after my first death, and I had only been playing for about 10 minutes.
Final Score:
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