Strangeland

Release Date: May 25, 2021

Adventure, point-and-click, horror, 2D, indie games, singleplayer

7.2

OpenCritic

94%

Steam

Rate It!

A point & click adventure developed by the Wormwood Studios team. In Strangeland the player takes on the role of a man affected by amnesia, who wakes up in the middle of a psychedelic carnival. The protagonist's task is to unravel the mystery of the grim version of the amusement park, where events (such as the suicide committed by a golden-haired woman) are looped into infinity.

Story
Mechanics
Technical aspects

Strangeland is another point & click adventure in the portfolio of Wormwood Studios - a team of independent developers whose achievements include the warmly received Primordia. The game was created with the PC platform in mind, and the creators used the ideas developed for earlier, long dead projects (such as Trenchmouth and Cloudlands).

Story

In Strangeland, players take on the role of a man affected by amnesia, who one day wakes up in the middle of a psychedelic carnival. Shortly afterwards, he witnesses the suicide of a golden-haired woman who, for his own good, throws herself into a bottomless well. The protagonist decides to find out what's going on, which is all the more difficult because circus tents and dim stalls are inhabited by abormal creatures, such as malicious ravens, eyeless scribe or an animated oven. As if that wasn't enough, things quickly start repeating themselves - like in the movie Groundhog Day, a woman jumps again and again into the endless abyss. The protagonist comes to the conclusion that a dark creature occupying the top of a mountain railway is behind the whole situation.

Mechanics

The action in Strangeland is shown in isometric view. As in the aformentioned Primordia, during the game we mainly deal with traversing locations, conducting conversations with NPCs (who often have valuable information and may or may not be willing to share it), collecting items and solving logic and environmental puzzles.

Technical aspects

Strangeland's two-dimensional graphics adopt the pixel art technique; the game iss maintained in a depressing style and enriched with modest color palette, thanks to which the visual sphere of the game fits well with the gloomy atmosphere built both by the soundtrack and by numerous references to the works of Edgar Allan Poe.

Last updated on May 1, 2020

Videos and Screens

[1:21] Strangeland launch trailer

[1:43] Strangeland trailer #1

7.2

OpenCritic Rating

Game is Recomended by 51% of Critics. There are 11 Critic Reviews.

OpenCritic

Cubed3: 8 / 10 by Renan Fontes

Moody, thought provoking, and chillingly beautiful at times, Strangeland, is a bizarre take on the point-and-click genre that will stick with players long after the credits roll. The story itself is dense with a script layered in symbolism, but never so obtuse where the uninformed can't get by. Thematically, much of the plot centres around the self - self-acceptance, self-doubt, self-destruction, and self-actualization - along with the pursuit of identity. Puzzles lean into the hostile aesthetic to provide a fair degree of challenge, while hints are always available. It all makes for a well-paced, well realized journey that doesn't outstay its welcome. Strangeland is a short adventure, but one of the finest entries in the genre.

Full Review

GameSpew: 7 / 10 by Chris Mc

Whether or not you find the destination satisfactory, Strangeland’s journey is a joy. It dips into the grotesque without getting too in-your-face, and despite some downbeat and occasionally distressing themes, it’s uplifting in all the right places.

Full Review

KeenGamer: 8.8 / 10 by Kenzie Du

Pulsating horrors and puzzling wordplay abound in the place you know as Strangeland. Explore a decaying world filled with bizarre residents and solve supernatural puzzles in this point-and-click adventure. Will you find your way out of this otherworldly prison - or will you fall to the call of the void?

Full Review

94%