CARRION Reviews
There just isn't a reason to play Carrion. There is little narrative, repetitive combat, limited puzzles, and almost zero horror elements. The atmosphere is okay and it reminds me of Alien but that's about as far as it goes with horror. Just leave this monster stuck in the vent.
Carrion struggles to depict the idea of “having power” as nothing else than a brainless venture. Something you inherited. Therefore, every action and every killing lose its meaning. Even though you are a monster, your actions are never questioned or given context. In the end, the gore is the only thing that really makes you feel something. Gross, at most.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Carrion has all the potential to become really interesting, but right now it feels like a technical demonstration of an incomplete concept.
Review in Russian | Read full review
Carrion is a game that I would love to play through in one night with a group of friends as long as I'm not the one playing it. While it's not the best Metroidvania to navigate, it's a joy to watch. If you love horror, especially old monster movies, this is worth checking out for the atmosphere alone as it makes for a rather spook-tacular night.
Carrion embraces its identity as a "reverse-horror" experience, offering some viscerally violent action that is not for the faint of heart. Presentation here is top-notch: this is a polished title that Phobia Game Studio has taken a lot of care in crafting. Sadly, it stumbles in its core gameplay. The combat is poorly balanced and navigation can be a frustrating chore, but when Carrion does transcend these trappings, it does so with a sadistic glee that makes it unmistakable amongst its peers.
As it stands, Carrion is an impressive, creative, and inventive game on paper. In practice, it ends up being a rather middle-of-the-road experience, with unfulfilled promised of potential greatness. If you’re looking for an inventive new take on the Metroidvania genre, Carrion might be what you’re looking for –but don’t go into it expecting it to be Super Meat-troid.
Despite the gameplay and level design being pretty middling, we still think this game is worth a spin. It’s all about the atmosphere, and the organism itself, both of which are rousing successes and worth the price of entry alone.
Carrion is a great concept that becomes repetitive in practice.
Playing as an alien monstrosity is a great idea, and at times works well, but the fiddly controls and awkward mix of gameplay ideas doesn't gel together well.
Does the the disturbing "reverse horror" of Phobia Games Studio's Carrion live up to the concept, or does it miss the mark?
Carrion is a game I’ve been looking forward to for a while. And though I am more than a bit disappointed I got stuck, I’m still eager to play through again sometime soon. It’s an absolute steal at $19.99. Warts and all, this is a fascinating and wholly unique game. I’m glad as always that Devolver Digital takes chances on titles like this, and can’t wait to see what’s next from Phobia Game Studio.
If you’re sick of playing victims in horror games, watching thrillers through the lens of a hapless protagonist, and instead just want to vent your frustrations on them, this role reversal of a game will sate your bloodthirst.
The horror genre is packed with everything you could wish for.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
Carrion is an energetic and taut game that flips the tables on The Thing, putting you in command of the alien creature and tasking you with simply going to town on the hapless humans surrounding you. The loose physics-based gameplay is satisfying to play, and the enigmatic creature's bloodlust is crucially never too powerful to render the armed humans that challenge you entirely helpless. Although Carrion's story falls largely flat, it's a very satisfying slaughterhouse of gnashing teeth and tentacles.
However, frustrations aside, Carrion was still an entertaining playthrough. As one of Devolver’s major releases of the year it doesn’t quite hit the high mark I expected. It doesn’t need to be a breakthrough experience, though. It’s just plain fun, and I could see myself playing through again.
It’s a real treat for horror fans and one of the most original games I’ve come across. There were so many moments that left me with a grin a mile wide, from pulling a string of victims up into the ceiling to turning a soldier against their former friends. But if you choose to wreak your own brand of horror upon Carrion‘s hapless humans, just be prepared to step away when there’s no-one left to torment.
Phobia taps into a very visceral sensibility with Carrion’s fluid, action-based mechanics, which are both simple and fun to execute.
Carrion is remarkably successful in so far that its visuals, sound design and interaction come together to create something truly horrifying, beautiful and engrossing, but its novelty wanes, and what you are left with is surprisingly superficial.
Carrion is a very cool concept held back by frustrating map design and repetitive combat.