CARRION Reviews
Carrion is a special thing in many ways, but its actual meat and potatoes structure is as formulaic as the genre gets. Thankfully, its core gameplay of tearing room after room of people into wet chunks of corpse never, ever gets old, and sustains the experience throughout. It looks superb, sounds great and is plenty of fun to play, despite some minor issues which just hold Carrion back from the upper echelons of the Switch library.
Devolver’s seal of approval is more than ever evidence of a classic as Carrion’s credentials as an incredible Metroidvania title as well as an inverse horror experience will never be in question.
Carrion excels at creating realistic tentacle locomotion in the shape of a bloodthirsty nightmare. It falls behind when it requests precision from a monster only capable of blunt violence. As mad science grants sentience to raw brutality, articulation must be sacrificed for overwhelming power. It leaves Carrion as a mesmerizing concept overcommitted to its code.
Despite its flaws, Carrion is immensely enjoyable, though I would imagine its grotesque nature will turn some away.
With Carrion, I wondered how Phobia Game Studio would be able to keep me interested without that dynamic. They managed it through the careful balance of giving you enough agency to feel powerful, while still requiring you to plan and act with precision to use that power effectively. The result is a razor-sharp campaign that fully put me in the amorphous shoes of its terrifying beast.
CARRION is a game that only someone associated with the madhouse publisher that is Devolver Digital could create.
All in all, if you love the likes of Alien or the Thing (which would make for a hell of a licenced DLC), you’ll want to buy this day one. On the other hand, if spooks like that make you want to duck under the covers, then maybe stick to something softer.
Carrion is very entertaining and extremely unique. Making humans whimper in fear never gets old and killing them is even more fun. I wish some of the areas were more distinguishable from each other but that's a very small issue really. If you want to play something a bit different then you won't go far wrong with this one.
Carrion is an excellent 2D action game that lets you unleash mayhem as a terrifying, destructive monster.
If you would like to spend five hours ripping and tearing your way through scientists and security guards as a bloodthirsty tentacle monster though, then you’ll probably have a lot of fun with Carrion.
Carrion is a beautifully orchestrated symphony of blood, guts, and dismembered limbs.
Carrion is undoubtedly a unique take on the survival horror genre. There are a couple of misses, but for the most part it works well for those with a few hours to kill.
Not everyone will be able to stomach Carrion's atmosphere and gleeful violence. But those that can will find an experience that is beautiful in being so grotesque.
Carrion is simply a great time. The metroidvania gameplay loop is addictive, while its sound design and highly detailed pixel-art look makes it a joy to hear and look at. An average story and lack of an in-game map sap some of the enjoyment, but Carrion's ability to have you play as an unstoppable monster is gory grandeur.
We do not like backtracking, but we love role of bloodthirsty creature and gameplay.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
Carrion is the perfect marriage of John Carpenter and Cronenberg horror, with an almost unsettling glee as you careen through the game devouring all in your path.
Carrion is a lean but undeniably fun reverse horror with plenty of clever ideas that will have you second-guessing meatballs.
Carrion proves that it’s a capable beast of a game that is able to entertain for the couple of hours that its story lasts. It’s shocking and gruesome at times without any real meaning and that makes it all the more worth experiencing.
Carrion is a short, focused experience, which is something I really appreciate. It is deliberate in its purpose, and it does a small set of things particularly well, rather than sprawling out in too many different directions. The result is a tight, well-paced romp through a unique take on an action horror game that feels like the take-home version of a pulpy 80’s popcorn monster flick. The story is fairly light, but it doesn’t need much to be successful, and the game ends on a fun, surprising note that’s a pitch-perfect end to the messy journey of destruction and devouring that has come before. There are a lot of fun ideas on the table, most of which are used well (if not to their full potential), and the experience of playing Carrion is equally delightful, disgusting, and satisfying to engage with. You’ll probably never get over the unsettling aspect of controlling a writhing mass of angry flesh, but you’ll undoubtedly also have a lot of fun with all of the destruction its capable of.