Tormented Souls Reviews
Good ideas, good inspirations, solid audiovisual setting, but nothing more. In all other respects, Tormented Souls simply does not deliver. Which is a pity.
Review in Polish | Read full review
While I wholeheartedly recommend the game, I warn everyone to stay away from the Nintendo Switch port until the issues are ironed out. As for me, I’m seeking out the Playstation 5 version as I’m legitimately curious about the ending.
We made an effort to like Tormented Souls. We even recognize that it could be the beginning of a franchise with a future. But baby steps. Many baby steps. Perhaps the "religious fans" of Suspense and Horror games can appreciate this one, but it has several points to be improved to bring other types of players to like this initiative.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
I wish Tormented Souls had a story to match the amazing visual work. I get imparting the tale via personal journals but pairing that with characters that pretty much ignore Caroline's direct questions and statements regarding it is just sloppy and uninspired. This could have been a game that left me with my hairs standing on end and delicious goosebumps. Instead, when Caroline's screams persisted through the continue screen and bled into my game it ate away my desire to pick the controller back up. Not enough morphine in the world to make me want to suffer through this again.
If you like what you see and you’re not put off by the stilted controls and obtuse puzzles, you may gain some enjoyment from Tormented Souls. It’s a worthy spiritual successor to horror titles from gaming’s past even if it doesn’t do a lot to stand apart from them.
Ultimately, although Tormented Souls is a commendable homage to classic survival horror games, its focus on the past is unfortunately its biggest downfall. Advertisements for the game bill it as a "modernisation" of the genre, but the mechanics within feel as archaic as the games it's emulating. At around seven hours or so in length, you'll have a decent time here if you're a die-hard fan of horror games that wishes some of the big names would revisit their origins, but for everyone else, the fixed camera angles and limited combat may prove more frustrating than nostalgic. Add to that some technical hiccups in the way of dodgy cutscenes and animations, and you've got a game that very much plays second fiddle to the more established survival horror games on Switch.
Tormented Souls creates an environment that's a blast to explore, and the puzzles it provides help to enhance the engagement the locations provide. However, too many shortcomings get in the way of what could be a solid nod to classics horror games. A handful of bad things can be ignored, but having voice work, enemy integrity, and an underdeveloped main character are too much to overlook. There's an appeal here, but it lacks refinement.
Tormented Souls has a lot of subtle scares which create a haunting atmosphere, and its retro-inspired gameplay helps keep the tension high. It loses some of its horror with annoying navigation and spotlight-hogging monsters that don’t always pose a threat. Still, there’s no reason to torment yourself over the lack of subtlety survival horror games anymore.
This is as much a compelling, mysterious videogame adventure as it is a janky, flawed game not always able to nail its ambitions. If Tormented Souls was a PS2 game we’d be seeing $100+ online listings, just like many of its inspirations. It fits that space like a torn, bloody glove.
Tormented Souls is a very clumsy and corny survival horror game that plays like a love letter to genre giants.
Tormented Souls tries to capture the magic of the good, old Resident Evil titles. The game delivers a genuine scary atmosphere and decent storytelling, sometimes overwhelmed by poor graphics and some technical issues.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Through all that, I found Tormented Souls to be just intriguing enough to be worth checking out if you have the time. It's a lesson in where survival-horror games have come from and what stories can still be told within the genre. With a little more modernization within the combat and cleaner visuals, this probably could have been an underground classic.
Tormented Souls draws heavily from the first Resident Evil games to create a horror experience whose atmosphere, presentation and level design are spot on. At the same time, several of its puzzles seem nonsensical, the performance is rather irregular, and the game has a dearth of new and original ideas, while its lighting mechanic is far from a good implementation. While Tormented Souls is overall a good game, it falls short of expectations for those who hoped for something more.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Yes, you could argue that in trying so hard to make a game for the mid-2000s in 2021 leaves the developer with a game that’s fundamentally dated before it began, but that’s the point. All the modern indie horror games that work get that. Compromises will certainly bring you a bigger audience, but games like Tormented Souls, as scraggly and mean-spirited as the games that inspired them, are far more likely to scratch that itch for survival horror’s golden era, rough edges and all.
There haven't been many games that have effectively emulated the success of the classic Resident Evil, but Tormented Souls does exactly that, although with some flaws.
Tormented Souls is a classic survival horror romp through the bowels of the Winterlake Mansion. Beware, as the place is infested with hostile terrors that will gladly end you. The game stays pretty true to the play style of the classics in the genre. It is a pretty decent survival horror adventure, though you might find it on the difficult side, especially if you’re new to such games. You can complete the adventure in 10-20 hours depending on how much you die. The game also includes three different endings to get. While Tormented Souls is currently available for $19.99 on Steam, Xbox Series X, and PlayStation 5, it will also be coming to Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 soon. Can you uncover the fate of the missing twins, or will you perish along the way?
Tormented Souls is a love letter to the earlier years of the horror genre. The fixed camera angles, heavy reliance on puzzle solving, and claustrophobic mansion-style environments all combine to form a package heavily reminiscent of the titles spanning the fifth and sixth console generations.
Ormented Souls is "Resident Evil 1 in 2021".
Review in Greek | Read full review
If you want to play an old-school survival horror title, but you don't want to play the classics, Tormented Souls is a fine alternative with simple but interesting story and a creepy atmosphere.
Review in Slovak | Read full review