Scouring a deserted cruise liner sounds like it would be a hoot right? Even better if you’re a horror fan and there’s a promise of some scares along the way. Indie developer Influsion Inc. recently dropped the demo for their upcoming first-person survival horror game ‘SENARA: The Sacrament’ and gamers can now see if the previously described scenario is one that translates into a compelling game.
‘SENARA: The Sacrament’ puts players in the role of a new recruit of a religious organisation on a cruise liner called ‘The Senara’. The game starts as you wake up and find the crew missing and the corridors eerily empty. What’s happened and what’s going on? Well that’s up to you to find out as you roam the cruise liner and uncover the secrets on-board. It sounds promising but does the demo offer something that’s going to draw in horror fans and make for a satisfying gaming experience?
The premise is certainly intriguing, and the developers have really paid attention to the layout of a cruise liner, making this a rather sprawling game that you can get lost in for hours. There are plenty of puzzles spread around the game, and you must use everything at your disposal to solve them as the game tests your observation skills as much as it does your brain. Initially, this works well but you soon realise that maybe the game is a little too expansive as you spend long periods of time searching cabins and toilets that have nothing to offer. The problem here is that there is so much to explore, and the puzzles are at times so obscure, that you feel more like you’re trapped in a repetitive ‘Silent Hill’ loop than a thrilling horror game.
If you’re expecting a game that escalates rapidly, you’re going to be disappointed. In my first couple of hours of playing, I encountered one other character. The rest of the time I was checking maps to figure out where to go, collecting money that’s randomly placed around the cruise liner, and endlessly searching vast locations for some idea of what I’m supposed to be doing. The game is so abstract, that you really can’t leave any stone unturned because you may just happen upon something crucial that will help you advance in the game.
By the time I’d come face-to-face with any of the zombie-like creatures, I had mostly lost interest in what was happening. A quicker escalation to that stage would have been welcome as I don’t think a lot of seasoned gamers will bother persevering. I’m all for a game taking its time to introduce its world, but ‘SENARA: The Sacrament’ is almost glacial in its progression.
What really lets ‘SENARA: The Sacrament’ down is the controls. I played this demo with a game controller paired to my PC and moving your character is frustrating. Once you find out there’s a run option, that helps but nothing improves the slow speed at which you can turn around. Honestly, at times it’s painful and it could well make the difference between you being killed by an enemy or getting away from them. The whole control system just feels clunky and out-dated, and that was a big negative for me when working through the demo.
‘SENARA: The Sacrament’ has lofty ambitions but it falls short. It’s a classic case of trying to offer too much, when actually a more concentrated approach would have worked much better. I’m all for an open world feel in a game but here it just felt unnecessary, and sadly made the game quite boring at times. The central mystery is intriguing enough but there are plenty of games on the market like this, that just executive it much better. Hopefully the developers will take the feedback from the demo and improve the game before it’s eventual release, which at the time of writing this preview is TBC.
Find out more about ‘SENARA: The Sacrament' on Steam, where you can download the demo.
