Thriller Uncanny Valley from Cowardly Creations is now out on Nintendo Switch. Find out more about this horror game in our Uncanny Valley review!

 

Sometimes you just want to run away from everything and try to turn a new leaf and just… not think about things. That ought to work for you, right? Well, maybe not if you are Tom, who just got a new job as a security night guard in an abandoned facility. He seems to not be able to run from his past and memories. With many choices to be made, what is the truth behind all of this?

The game’s primary drive is the multiple endings you can get, and this means that every choice you make, and I mean any of them, will end up affecting the result. Who you talk to, where you go, what you do or don’t do, everything takes you down new branching paths in the game and its story. This, of course, gives it a lot of replay value. But is it worth going back to play everything again to find out more? Well… yes and no.

The game’s story is very important to the experience, but this can be made a little difficult when you consider the text style and the interface chosen to tell this story. You see, it makes it really hard to understand what you are trying to read and can get annoying rather quickly. On top of that, the game also works by periods, where you are either in the real world or in the nightmare one, and these work on a time limit that, most of the time, may make you feel rushed and pushed instead of on the edge of your seat. But if you don’t find yourself bothered by these things in your first playthrough, chances are you will enjoy trying to get as many endings as you can, as the game is rather short but it always leaves you with a quiet and tempting sense of curiosity about the many “but what if” you can experience.

That being said, though, this game does a wonderful job in the horror department when considering the medium. Usually, pixel art isn’t considered, well… spooky at all, but Uncanny Valley manages to really nail its style to give this world a particular feeling to help with the overall experience – which matches the overall atmosphere thanks to the audio cues that help to wrap the entire thing with a nice, scary bow.

All things considered, this game walks a fine line between being tedious and enjoyable, and it really depends on which side you find yourself stepping the most on to say if it’s your cup of tea or not. But for those looking for a short, exciting horror experience, this is very likely a good addition to your library.

Disclaimer
This Uncanny Valley review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy provided by Digerati.