Still Wakes the Deep Reviews
While Still Wakes the Deep is a beautiful work of atmosphere and tension, all that can be shattered by its strictly linear trappings.
Still Wakes the Deep's nearly on-rails structure and ineffective scares undersell its otherwise fantastic setting.
An emotive story that is equal parts terrifying and traumatic.
This is The Chinese Room’s best game yet. It has the bombastic set pieces, unflinching gore, and intense stealth sequences that make it a harrowing experience that deserves to stand alongside other games about guys having really bad days. But it also offers a well-paced, meaty narrative with excellent performances that I’m going to be chewing on for months to come.
This is a great, if short, horror game with impeccable looks and fantastic atmosphere. It's scary and full of character, but with a barely five-hour run time your enjoyment could depend on what you paid for it.
A walking simulator that's also a love letter to The Thing, transplanting its blend of naturalistic realism and abject horror into an immaculately recreated 1970s North Sea oil rig.
Still Wakes the Deep is a relatively short game (I completed the campaign in under five hours). The story is strictly linear, akin to some of The Chinese Room’s other games, with no collectibles or secrets. While it’s true that the game builds on the setting, atmosphere, tension, and body horror, it flubs the most crucial aspect: the moments when you actually face the creatures. It’s like if The Thing was “from another world,” but it’s revealed to be E.T. due to how harmless it is. In the end, this romp through an infested oil rig might look slick, but it spills over and slips when it matters most.
Indeed, I started Still Wakes the Deep hating Caz, but by the end of the game, he had won me over. The finale was a complete gut punch, and for the first time in a while, I sobbed over the conclusion of a story. It’s not necessarily a bummer ending — I’ll spare you the details — but it is an emotional one. Each individual element of Still Wakes the Deep has been done before, but they’re brought together marvelously here, and the end result is a horror classic.
The Chinese Room returns to the horror genre with an original tale featuring a memorable monster.
Still Wakes the Deep isn’t the most riveting interactive journey. The monsters are easy to hide from (though plenty scary), and the puzzles and platforming quickly come to feel tired. But Still Wakes does deal with compelling emotional material that rewards you for your time spent with it. It’s the kind of game I’d like to play again and see what new things I get out of it. But it’s also a testament to why I like this genre, the poorly-named “walking simulator,” so much. When I’m not focused on the reactive challenges of a more fast-paced game that demands constant input response, I’m instead offered the challenge of navigating the puzzles of my own thoughts. You know, where the real horror and dread lies.
A horror adventure that knows how to get to the point and tell us its story in a convincing way. In terms of gameplay, it has nothing particularly memorable, but the tide of the narrative will sweep you away.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Treat Still Wakes the Deep like a Netflix mini series and you will have a whale of a time. Its excellent script, acting, and atmosphere make it just as good to passively watch as to actively play, so grab your partner, turn off the lights and binge it over a few evenings.
A horror adventure that reduces horror to its simplest and, therefore, terrible core, made more intriguing by a peculiar setting.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Still Wakes the Deep is a standout title from The Chinese Room and is a must-play for fans of Lovecraft horror. The game utilizes all its audio elements to craft an immersive experience that's thrilling and chilling. The title has fun toying with your mind and peels back the layers of comfort that's brought during the start of the game. As the environment around you changes, so does your experience, and that's what a good story can do. From exploring the rig to hiding from enemies, The Chinese Room brings together its recognizable elements and puts together a strong sailor worthy of its sea legs.
Still Wakes the Deep tells an emotional tale under extreme circumstances, with a stunningly detailed world and intelligent storytelling.
Still Wakes the Deep is an impeccable horror production, a gorgeously sickening nightmare in a rarely used setting propelled by stellar acting and sublimely nasty body horror. It’s more than just “The Thing on an oil rig,” though it makes good on that elevator pitch too. It’s going to remain with me for a long time. A true genre classic.
A first-person North Sea horror that doesn't push the boat out but still excels within its genre
While Still Wakes The Deep doesn't boast the biggest narrative draw, what will really pull you in is the eerie atmosphere it manages to envelope you in. Fighting for your life against the churning sea and the strange creature that rose from the murky depths provided some truly surreal and hair-raising moments.
Still Wakes the Deep is a fun romp for its short playthrough. The lack of environmental storytelling and exploration is really where it falls apart. Still, this being on Game Pass makes it worth checking out for sure. I enjoyed my time with it, but I don’t think it will stick with me like titles such as Soma and Amnesia have.
A short and simple horror game about a man having the worst Christmas ever in quite possibly one of the most claustrophobic and isolated areas imaginable. Fantastic atmosphere, great characters, and some pretty intense moments make Still Wakes the Deep a must play for horror fans. That said, don't go into this expecting some super in-depth story with twists and turns and whatnot. Your journey through the game and the will of the characters to survive is the main story, and it was one I really enjoyed experiencing.