In the past, there was quite a contentious debate about whether video games should explore dark or sensitive subject matters. This might seem hard to believe, as video games are now a respected medium, but there was a substantial following back in the day that insisted they should never explore mature themes or try to emulate anything you would get from a TV show. If that type of train of thought had dominated the discourse, we would have never gotten phenomenal titles like What Remains of Edith Finch or Gone Home. I bring this up because it’s not necessarily evident what the plot of Eclipsium is, let alone what the defining message of the experience is. But it’s deliberately crafted in a way that allows the player to form their own interpretation of what the journey symbolises or the world surrounding you is trying to portray.
An Unconventional Form Of Storytelling
If I were to sum up the Eclipsium in one sentence, I would describe it as an atmospheric horror walking simulator, where visuals, music, and sound effects take centre stage. The plot is incredibly vague and ambiguous. You assume control of a Wanderer, who wakes up in an abandoned hospital bed and begins their search for an abstract entity named “Her”. And that’s pretty much all you know. From there, it’s for you to make your own deductions of who you are, why you’re there, and what the apparition of “Her” represents.
The experience is actually quite ominous, as you’re never entirely sure what to expect or what you’ll encounter next. It doesn’t rely on conventional horror tropes, where someone is chasing you, nor does it trick you into making foolish mistakes that will lead to your demise. You’re merely walking a linear path, heading to a destination − nothing you can do will change your fate, as it’s already preordained. It’s an abstract form of storytelling that may not resonate with everyone, as your purpose is to be an observer, not a participant. I tend to prefer experiences where I have the (illusion) of free will, but I must admit that the way the developers, Housefire, have executed this form of environmental storytelling is very impressive.
Dark Themes Will Follow You Throughout
However, it’s clear, no matter who you are, that you’re not necessarily human (or not in the traditional sense), as you’re able to dismantle your limbs without any real-world consequences. In the opening sequence alone, you will be forced to violently cut off your tongue with a pair of scissors and place it on a scale to open up a door in what feels like some ill-fated-omen ritual.
The dark themes don’t end there, though, as your hand will quite literally morph into a demonic, otherworldly being that can cut down environmental objects and can even burst into flames to open up pathways. And that’s before mentioning the red mist that has engulfed the sky, in what almost feels like an apocalyptic world. Safe to say, you wouldn’t want to reside here.
These visuals are not as full-on as they might sound, as the retro, pixilated graphics significantly tone down the sinister and menacing vibe to it all. It weirdly looks like the type of game you could have played on Windows 95, but in a good way. In fact, it cleverly adds to the overall ambience, as it slowly renders what is in front of you, so you can never tell what is ahead, adding to the suspense.
Some of the environments you walk through are very simplistic, such as the countryside outback and an underground mine, while others have a sinister undertone, like a meat factory or a cathedral that evidently tries to convey multiple biblical meanings. A detail I really appreciated is that every location interweaves with the others. For instance, just before you leave the hospital and walk outside, the halls will be consumed with overgrown vegetation. And once you have reached the outside area, you will then need to break down trees to get to the underground mines.
There is so much surreal imagery that it sometimes feels like a gigantic fever dream. At one point, you will quite literally see pigs walking, like it’s a scene in Animal Farm. Honestly, there are so many ways to interpret the experience, but my takeaway was that it explores the cycle of life and death, as well as the moral decay that we will witness during our lifetimes. A good example of this is when you leave the hospital room, you will encounter a wooden bead maze. Now, is this infant toy simply placed here because it’s heavily affiliated with hospital rooms, or is this a more profound symbolism of the beginning of life? For me, there were too many uncanny parallels to these themes, but you could easily play this game and come to a whole different conclusion. The beauty of art, eh?
The Puzzles Are Solid, But Could Be Expanded
There are a few environmental puzzles, and some of them are reasonably well thought out, like using your demonic hand to ignite a pathway or solving an illusion trick. However, as many of them only take a handful of seconds to solve, I would have liked to see more puzzles, especially since interactive engagement is one of the game’s pitfalls. Your character also travels through the world at a very slow pace. I understand they could have done this so the player picks up the finer details they’re trying to portray, but it might have been nice if it were just a little bit faster.
The soundtrack is fantastic, as it effectively adds tension to all the dark and questionable imagery on display. I would go as far as to say it’s one of the eeriest soundtracks I’ve heard in an indie game in recent years, and that’s saying something when you consider the high calibre out there. It appears that the entire soundtrack was created by a single music composer called Hudon Bikichy. The sound cues are also on point and add to the atmosphere, making you feel truly alone, such as the sound of footsteps causing the ground to creak or the clinking of pulling your arms up on a ladder.
I wouldn’t recommend Eclipsium to everyone, as it explores some rather dark concepts and doesn’t shy away from using surreal imagery. But those who like hyper-analysing or theorising about abstract concepts will find a lot of honourable characteristics here. I wish there had been a bit more engagement with the world itself, as it would have held my attention more during my four-hour playthrough. However, I enjoyed what I saw, and I would definitely be interested in seeing what other people’s interpretations of the experience were. But it’s not a game I would personally play repeatedly to discover new facts. It’s more of a one-time stick.
Disclaimer: Critical Reflex provided a PC (Steam) copy of Eclipsium for review purposes.
