Powered by the Unreal Engine 5, the maestros of Bloober Team have won their bet layers of fear. By chaining shots with a dark and depressing atmosphere, we rediscover the eventful history of the artist family from the first work and the film actor from the second work. And more, with brand new chapters. A success that avoids the discounted remaster box.
The demons of my nights
ce layers of fear à la Sauce 2023 is on the border between a remake and a new work. Based on the previous two games and their expansions, it takes each of the stories developed in those titles and connects them to a new character. So begins the adventure at the helm of an author who has retired to a lighthouse to write her next book. An oasis of solitude, but certainly no rest. As she explores, she comes across relics of the protagonists of the first and second games: a painting and a roll of film. Thus, it will be the beginning of a long dive into the tormented psyche of the 20th century painter and actor aboard the ocean liner, with the lighthouse as the focal point of the adventure.
I had already enjoyed the trip very much the first time in 2016 layer of fear, a mix of walking simulator and some interactions. The balance between narrative and horror effects has already worked well. The formula adapted to our days is still working and gaining contemplation. The new version under Unreal Engine 5 takes over a new face that exudes excitement and excitement.
A sound and light show from A to Z
Let’s talk Unreal Engine 5! First game released with the latest engine from Epic Games. layers of fear describes what players can expect from it. We’re not going to mince words: it’s great. Every piece traveled offers potential for capture. It’s also one of the games I’ve shot the most in the last two years. All without an integrated photo mode. Volumetry, lighting, textures: Everything contributes to a larger-than-life staging with terrifying potential.
The sound cannot be beaten with a binaural experience that is very qualitative and well exploited at the level of moments of shock. Note that the game offers two modes: a quality mode that limits the framerate to 30 FPS with ray tracing and global illumination. Performance mode offers 60 FPS with lower resolution and fewer effects. I spent my entire adventure in Quality mode as I didn’t mind the lower frame rate for this type of game.
Existing and new
As mentioned above, this layers of fear takes up the story of the previous games, but also brings something new with it. First we discover a whole new chapter of the first opus, in which this time we play the painter’s wife, the musician. A decision that finally makes it possible to have a global vision of this family in which the dreams of each member have been shattered. Then the story of the author, who puts all the sounds together into a symphony. The successful interweaving of the two stories and the short story is particularly successful. The common thread seems to be intentional and at the same time natural and logical. Almost as if the Bloober Team teams already knew what they wanted to create in 2016. A work in constant evolution, with multiple layers that fit together perfectly, revealing its magnum opus.
Accustomed to the genre and license, I spent almost 20 hours on the title, having covered three quarters of the adventure. Depending on whether you’re familiar with the studio’s work or not, you can easily add an extra ten hours or even more to the end.
I appreciated the following:
- The terrible atmosphere perfectly executed
- visual quality
- The headset listening experience
- The rhythm of storytelling
I liked the least:
- Jump scares are less effective in the second half
- A few not-so-bad bugs
- death without consequences
Accessibility Criteria
| visual impairment | hard of hearing | |
| ✘ High contrast (target reticle) | ✔️ Subtitles with mood hints | |
| ✔️ Font color size | ✔️ Identification of the person speaking | |
| ✘ Tag enemies | ✘ Customizable font | |
| ✘ Customizable interface | ✔️ Customizable font color | |
| ✘ Customizable mini-map color | ✘ Alternative alarm options (vibration, flash…) | |
| ✘ Option for color blindness | ✔️ Reported ambient noise (presence notification) | |
| ✘ Text to Speech option | ||
| ✘ Game slowdown |
test conditions
| TV details | 4K | Game provided by the publisher | Yes | |
| console | Xbox Series X | Time spent in game | 20 hours | |
| difficulty level | NC | game over | Not |
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