Scorn from Ebb Software is a first-person adventure game set in a horrific and decrepit world, where abominable biomechanical organisms function symbiotically or even parasitically like clockwork. Here we follow a lost soul newly birthed from the grotesque bowels of a monstrous structure as they seek escape and salvation, lest they become another cog in this world’s gruesome gears.
Scorn is one of those games that has been at the edge of my periphery for a while now, and a game that has perpetually intrigued me with its disturbing imagery and concept. The idea of a world built on biomechanical entities where everything from the walls, to the doors, and even to the weapons were all “living” in one way or another had me absolutely fascinated and eager to find out what the heck they were going to do with it.
Now, the issue I had with the game leading up to its release and my eventual hands-on time with it was, I had no freakin’ idea what kind of game it was going to be! Based on the trailers I was able to deduce that it was in fact a first-person adventure, you did indeed explore mildly to severely disturbing environments, and there may or may not be combat using squishy bone and viscera laden weapons. Beyond that however, it was a mystery. Which, if I’m going to be completely honest, had me even more excited to dive in to find out more. So, the moment I had the opportunity, that’s exactly what I did.
Aesthetically, Scorn refused to pull any punches and more than delivered on its promise that while you’re playing it, you'll be tempted to avert your eyes yet somehow compelled to push forward and explore its meticulously detailed and fleshy environments. Every corner is filled with pulsating machinations, discarded corpses of those who have seemingly attempted this pilgrimage (escape?) in the past, and the spine chilling sounds of whatever the heck is still living in this haunting world, machine or not. It’s not just the environment either, it's literally everything you interact with and the ways in which you have to interact with them! It all culminates into an experience that leaves you feeling uneasy and at times speechless. Sure, the environments weren’t particularly varied. Once you’ve seen one veiny squishy wall, you’ve seen them all, you know? But the sheer scale of imagery was inspiring and not once was I visually fatigued during my travels.
What baffles me is that at no point did I become desensitized to what I was seeing, the actions I was performing, or the situations I would find myself in. You know, like you normally would in any horror game the longer you play it. Instead Scorn always found a way to one up itself in that regard, which is probably one of its most impressive feats. Making the game as a whole feel uncompromised, and that’s something I truly appreciated.
If at this point the visuals didn’t turn you off from playing the game, you’ve won half the battle, but now it’ll be the gameplay that’ll make or break your decision to keep playing. To some degree, it’s about managing expectations. Meaning, if you go in with absolutely none, I think you’ll have a much more enjoyable time. Scorn is after all a game all about traversing wildly uncharted territory so I think it’s best enjoyed (?) with an open mind and probably an empty stomach too. On a more direct note though, Scorn is also an immersive adventure game where you’ll be solving environmental puzzles, deducing what goes where in order to progress, and cringing in horror as you fumble around with its slightly frustrating combat. Just know that the combat, although deliberate in design, is secondary to everything else. Which honestly makes me wonder why the designers decided to include it, despite it adding some intensity to the middle sections of the game. I say that because what I enjoyed most about playing it, aside from theorizing what the ever lovin’ #$@% was going on, was figuring out its clever puzzles and piecing together the sequence of events needed to unlock the next step. In a lot of ways it reminded me of playing something like Myst. An overused comparison I know, but it’s apt in this case.
With that in mind, my biggest gripe aside from struggling with the game's vestigial combat, was that figuring out those sequence of events could be monotonous and at times could require a lot of trial and error. Though, now that I think about it, it wasn’t because they were overly obtuse or particularly difficult to solve, but because the environments could be a bit hard to parse. Visually stunning mind you, but it wasn’t always clear what was a point of interest versus what was just a fancy (and gruesome) part of the background. That said, as I got further and further into the game, that was much less of a problem as I became acclimated to how the game, its puzzles, and its environments were structured.
I admit, Scorn is a lot to take in, and if I’m going to be perfectly honest it’s also not going to be for everyone - understandably so. From its visual grotesqueries, to its methodical puzzle focused gameplay, to its clumsy combat, there’s a lot to push people away, especially at first blush. However, Scorn is also a game not just about looking past its discomforts, but instead embracing them and allowing yourself to be swept up in its mysteries. It leaves little to the imagination, but also doesn’t hold your hand or explain itself. I mean, it took me a good hour before I figured out how to heal myself! Nonetheless, that’s where the true reward for playing it comes from. It prompts you to think, whether that’s in disgust or in wonder, and it leaves you to unravel its enigmas on your own.
I think it's quite different to play an artistic horror game, I mean I don't know horror games are not really my thing hahaha.
By the way, I noticed that you never interact with other people's posts in the community. If you visit other authors' posts and interact with them, for example by commenting, they will visit your post and you can make friends and progress in the Hive. Please consider this advice.
Thanks for reading, and we appreciate the advice! We're in a bit of a transition period with the new account so it has been busy but it's definitely something we've been hoping to do more of, and hopefully we'll be able to talk again!
Congratulations @twosomesup! You have completed the following achievement on the Hive blockchain and have been rewarded with new badge(s):
Your next target is to reach 100 comments.
You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word
STOPTo support your work, I also upvoted your post!
Support the HiveBuzz project. Vote for our proposal!