The Evil Within Reviews
Director Shinji Mikami's latest fright-fest is pretty much just what our reviewer has been aching for in a survival horror game for the last decade.
There are some genuinely terrifying, nightmare-inducing moments in this game. Unfortunately they are few and far between, which is frustrating because the concept here is solid. A little restraint would go a long way here. Stop throwing hordes of enemies at me and just let the game be scary.
'The Evil Within' has some rich and interesting imagery, but its story and gameplay are disappointingly derivative.
The upshot is that The Evil Within will give survival horror purists a rare contemporary pleasure fix. But be warned: if you prize smooth, silky action above all else, it will drive you insane.
The Evil Within could be leaner and more technically sound, but the blemishes on its blood-stained carapace fade against its thick atmosphere and the frantic thrill of battling its monsters in the dark.
At its controller clutching best, The Evil Within evokes memories of Silent Hill's high points – but it's the Resident Evil comparisons that are most consistent throughout. Unfair difficulty spikes swap out the title's pervading sense of fear for outright frustration at times, while technical issues undo the developer's outstanding art direction. Thankfully, legendary director Shinji Mikami doesn't disappoint in the gameplay department, forcing you to get creative with your plentiful combat options due to an unending absence of resources. It's here that developer Tango Gameworks finds the breathless brilliance within.
Even with these issues I still enjoyed the lengthy adventure Evil Within delivers. It has been a long time coming, but Mikami has definitely delivered classic survival horror. Fans of the genre should not miss this. While it is plagued with visual problems, the pacing is almost perfect, and the tension is unmatched. There is a lot to love with Mikami's latest title, and I cannot wait to see where he goes next.
The Evil Within is by no means a perfect game. The give-and-take of this love affair with the olden days is sacrificing Resident Evil 4's perfect level design, weapon choices, and tension for The Evil Within's better graphics, a better story, and more streamlined, modern controls. It's a balancing act that still sees Resident Evil 4 coming out way on top. There's no shame in coming up short on one of the greatest games ever made though. Mikami does his inspiration justice with this game, and any fan of his from the peak of his career can't go wrong with The Evil Within.
The Evil Within seems to be a title that tries for too much but falls flat in everything it attempts to do. Jump-scares are still fun in the title, but The Evil Within largely creates an uninteresting gameplay environment that is plagued with issues in it's storyline, mission structure, character development, and as such - fails to achieve itself as a title that lives up to Shinji Mikami's preceding reputation as the former director of Resident Evil 4.
I experienced many scares and might have even pooped my pants a bit. Yet in the end a lacklustre storyline, uninteresting characters, clunky combat and far too many frustrating sequences hold "The Evil Within" back from being considered one of the greats.
It might not be the scariest game out there, but The Evil Within brings the scary and the tension. Unfortunately it trips over its feet in key places.
By sticking to tried and tested survival horror staples, The Evil Within effectively creates a sense of tension and fear, something which makes the descent into darkness all the more terrifying.
The Evil Within isn't without some glaring shortcomings, but overall, this is survival horror at its most brutally rewarding. A triumphant return for Shinji Mikami.
The Evil Within is a noble attempt at bringing back classic survival horror, but it could have learned a thing or two from games that aren't almost ten years old. It has its moments of brilliance, scattered through periods of antagonizing design.
The Evil Within is the most impetuous realization of Mikami's creative vision. Finally autonomous, yet so careful to recover fragments from the game designer's other hallucinate visions, the title tells a story that mixes alienating moments and oppressive clashes, strange hermetic symbolism with brutal violent exaggerations.
Review in Italian | Read full review
A masterful demonstration (perhaps a little too gory), both from the point of view of the realization as well as the narration, the atmosphere or the playability, even if it is not always the most accurate.
Review in French | Read full review
While The Evil Within doesn't quite reach the iconic Resident Evil 4's level of brilliance or scariness, this is a satisfyingly gruesome adventure. Playing on Survival difficulty or higher is a true challenge, and you need to make quick decisions about which enemies to take out first, when to run and hide, and which crossbow bolts to make in semi-real time. The story is pretty convoluted, and you don't really become attached to most characters, but ultimately this is a very well-done survival horror game with stealth elements mixed in for good measure. The Evil Within is a great game for the Halloween crowd, and has some added replayability in the form of a New Game+. This is an easy buy for all horror fans, and is a game that should not be missed by those who want a challenge.
There's little of that symbiosis here, as The Evil Within's more serious tone and greater reliance on non-interactive cutscenes leaves the player disengaged from the rollercoaster of action.
At its best, The Evil Within offers a few scares and decent, if bland and predictable, combat; at its worst, it's unoriginal, uninspired and plodding. If you're looking for something scarier, try playing through two other recent current-gen horror games, P.T. or Outlast. Heck, I'm betting my nephew's skeleton costume this year will be spookier.
Even with its issues The Evil Within is a solid survival horror experience. It brings back the best of what this genre was built on.