Through the Woods

Through the Woods is a horror adventure game for PC, PS4 and XONE. It is the debut production of Antagonist, a Norwegian development studio.

Plot

The action takes place in modern times in a dark forest somewhere on the outskirts of Norway. We assume the role of a desperate woman named Karen who tries to find her lost son. We are constantly interrupted by various evil creatures inspired by Nordic mythology and folklore.

The plot is presented in a quite unusual way—as a retrospect. The whole story is being told by the protagonist who tries to cope with its event during a session with a psychologist. While playing, we can her narrate. At the same time, by replaying past events, it is possible to shape the present of the woman.

Mechanics

Playing Through the Woods for PC, PS4 and XONE, we observe the action from a camera placed behind the protagonist’ back. In the game, we mostly explore the world and solve logic puzzles. Sometimes we have to engage in arcade challenged, but the majority of them boils down to escaping and sneaking. The heroine is practically defenseless in direct combat against monsters so we are forced to avoid confrontation. Every enemy has a unique character and habits. Learning them gives us knowledge useful for survival.

The use of the torchlight plays an important role. Its light makes exploration easier—the action takes place mostly at night—but it also significantly increases the risk of being detected by monsters. With the torchlight switched off, the visibility is severely limited but the protagonists’ senses sharpen, especially her hearing, which lets us detect nearby dangers more effectively.

Last updated on September 19, 2016