Phantasmat 3: The Endless Night (IHOG)
A truly chilling tale.
Options include separate sliders for
Music, SFX and Voices, Full-screen and Custom Cursor. Choice of Easy, Medium, Hard or Custom Difficulty, which can be changed at any time.
Story:
It's prom night for your daughter, and also the 50th anniversary of the town's greatest tragedy. A moment's distraction from the road sends your car careening towards disaster, and then... Darkness. Now your daughter is gone, and you're trapped in your ruined car. You fight your way free, but where is your daughter, and why does the prom night banner say that it's 1965? Learn what really happened that night 50 years ago, and save your daughter in the process!
Although this third game in the series starts out the same way as the first - with a car crash - that is where the resemblance ends. After
Crucible Peak I was not expecting the game to be this compelling... or this scary! I don't often feel like I have to "Hurry... HURRY!" when I play an IHOG, but this one is an exception.
We do not have a
Journal, but the story is so memorable that one is really not needed. Puzzle clues will go into your inventory, rather than in a diary.
Gameplay:
Be on the lookout for
collectible eye symbols, one at each location. I think that this was Eipix's nod to the series' original developer, Codeminion, as it is their logo that we are seeking.
The
MAP can be interactive, has insta-transport and directional
HINTS are available. If the location you need to go to is more than one scene away, you'll get a teleportation popup that you can use (or not).
Hidden Object Scenes are beautifully varied. Not only do we have multiple kinds of HOS, but we might do three different types all in the same scene. It may sound like an overwhelming amount of "finding", but they way they do it is so interesting that it didn't feel that way at all.
For many (but not all!) of the HO sequences, you can do a
Match-3 game, instead. The M3 has been improved since game #2, and I found it really fun when I was playing it. Match 4 or more tokens to super-charge random items, and cause an explosion when you match them. This keeps the symbols that you need to bring to the bottom of the screen from getting stuck, but there is also a 'Power' button that will help out if you need it.
The
Mini-games were fun and inventive, and neither too easy nor too hard.
Sights and Sounds:
The graphics are not immediately remarkable, but when combined with the sound work, they became a beautifully-immersive backdrop for this chilling tale. The voiceovers were pretty good for a casual title, and the music was perfectly-suited for the game.
CE Content:
- Integrated Strategy Guide
- Bonus Chapter
- 41 Collectible Eye Symbols (can collect the ones you've missed from the Extras area)
- In-game Achievements
- 14 Wallpapers (in four different resolutions)
- 14 saveable Music Tracks
- 16 Replayable HOP's (with scoring for time and accuracy)
- 24 Replayable Mini-games
- Souvenier Room (a treasure hunt with a bonus item to find at each location)
- 'Making of' video (felt more like a mini-movie teaser for the game)
- 13 Cutscenes
- Match-3 game (endless round with no goals)
Bonus Chapter:
This extra chapter takes place during the main storyline, just from a different character's point-of-view. I can't really give any more information without spoilers, but will say that it was a little confusing for me, and didn't feel as immersive as the rest of the game. Still good, just not the amazing experience that I'd had up to this point.
The remainder of the collectible eye symbols can be found in the bonus chapter.
Verdict:
I am really impressed with this installment in the
Phantasmat series. It was unexpectedly immersive and deliciously-creepy, and actually caused some light anxiety (in a good way) whilst playing it! The combined impact of the story, sound work and graphics with the super-interesting and fun gameplay made for a compelling and enjoyable experience. A new favorite!
