This game, is a quintessential example of cult classic, a game which didn’t garner much recognition at its time of release, scoffed at by snobby critics.
Yet, as time went by, slowly, people who gave the game a chance were met with quite the unique experience, in an era in which the classic survival horrors were becoming action oriented, this game was like a shinning beacon in the darkness (as ironic as it is with the subject matter).
But, I am getting ahead of myself, let’s just get on with it.
Story & Setting
Just another day at Leafmore High, before going home, the boys are busy shooting some hoops without a care in the world.
By the end, only Kenny remains, as much as he wants to keep playing, he’s got a date later, so, its time to pack it in for the day, yet, while in the locker room, his backpack gets stolen.
Since he is a teenager in horror media, he is compelled to be stupid, so, he decides to look for it, what could possibly go wrong?
Well, he stumbles upon a secret laboratory, and is chased by strange creatures, he thought all the disappearances were just an urban legend.
And now, the guinea pig, is him.
Since he disappeared, his friends and sister decide to stay after school to look for him, but, tonight is special, tonight, monsters roam the school.
And the truth of Leafmore High shall be revealed, for those whom survive that is.
By the end, only Kenny remains, as much as he wants to keep playing, he’s got a date later, so, its time to pack it in for the day, yet, while in the locker room, his backpack gets stolen.
Since he is a teenager in horror media, he is compelled to be stupid, so, he decides to look for it, what could possibly go wrong?
Well, he stumbles upon a secret laboratory, and is chased by strange creatures, he thought all the disappearances were just an urban legend.
And now, the guinea pig, is him.
Since he disappeared, his friends and sister decide to stay after school to look for him, but, tonight is special, tonight, monsters roam the school.
And the truth of Leafmore High shall be revealed, for those whom survive that is.
Presentation
3D Survival horror, even though is a game from the 6th generation, the developers opted to go with fixed camera angels, which do in fact enhance the suspense, specially when it comes to claustrophobic locales.
The pre-rendered cutscenes are stuck at 4:3, thankfully, for the rest of the game, there is a wide-screen hack, and, since the environments are fully 3D, there is no need to worry about breaking something.
The models themselves look pretty good, both for playable characters and monsters, taking into account this game is now 20 years old, it has aged quite gracefully.
However, the animations can be stiff, and the faces and lip-sync could be better.
For the creatures, they range from animal like, to mutated humans, sometimes, a combination of both, they will always be shrouded in darkness, until you use a flashlight on them and get to appreciate the models, they are quite imaginative, and, you also get to see the different stages of infection/evolution.
Many times, they make quite an effective use of the fixed camera angles to ambush the player.
Environment wise, it can vary, some locales will have tons of background storytelling with a lot of stuff, others will be quite bare bones, the devs did try to make it so that it would make sense for some areas to be more cluttered than others, to varying degrees of success.
Ambiance wise, the game truly shines once nighttime happens, creating some really impressive moments of tension with the magnificent use of darkness barely being unveiled by the character’s flashlight.
A lot of hints for puzzles, as well as certain background elements you can interact with (mostly breakable glass, or pushable furniture), are very well conveyed, although, the shining of objects like in RE was surely missed, having to rely on the character’s head moving once you get close to some goodies.
There are some cool tiny details in the firearms, like being able to tell what kind of flashlight it has attached.
Even though the game takes place in a school, they did an excellent job in making each area standout, and avoid things getting samey.
The pre-rendered cutscenes are stuck at 4:3, thankfully, for the rest of the game, there is a wide-screen hack, and, since the environments are fully 3D, there is no need to worry about breaking something.
The models themselves look pretty good, both for playable characters and monsters, taking into account this game is now 20 years old, it has aged quite gracefully.
However, the animations can be stiff, and the faces and lip-sync could be better.
For the creatures, they range from animal like, to mutated humans, sometimes, a combination of both, they will always be shrouded in darkness, until you use a flashlight on them and get to appreciate the models, they are quite imaginative, and, you also get to see the different stages of infection/evolution.
Many times, they make quite an effective use of the fixed camera angles to ambush the player.
Environment wise, it can vary, some locales will have tons of background storytelling with a lot of stuff, others will be quite bare bones, the devs did try to make it so that it would make sense for some areas to be more cluttered than others, to varying degrees of success.
Ambiance wise, the game truly shines once nighttime happens, creating some really impressive moments of tension with the magnificent use of darkness barely being unveiled by the character’s flashlight.
A lot of hints for puzzles, as well as certain background elements you can interact with (mostly breakable glass, or pushable furniture), are very well conveyed, although, the shining of objects like in RE was surely missed, having to rely on the character’s head moving once you get close to some goodies.
There are some cool tiny details in the firearms, like being able to tell what kind of flashlight it has attached.
Even though the game takes place in a school, they did an excellent job in making each area standout, and avoid things getting samey.
Sound wise, the soundtrack is really good, the most notable one, being the intro, which is sang by Sum 41, sadly, it has been removed from re-releases (together with the other licensed music), an easy way to tell you have the original version, is if you hear Still Waiting on the game’s intro. There are also songs by Span, but, no idea who those are.
Am I biased because I am a Sum 41 fan? Perhaps.
There is also choir music, which is often used in moments of high tension, especially on boss fights, or plot relevant scenes.
The music does a great job on magnifying the atmosphere, making tense encounters against unknown and dangerous enemies even more memorable.
The sound design is great as well, each creature has a distinct sound, but, it can still deceive, when there are many, its hard to focus on the specific one after all, making situations even more tense.
Voice acting wise, I noticed some problems with lip-syncing in the in-engine cutscenes, but that’s probably cause of my duct taped together fixes (its an old game after all), overall, its alright, it does go on the camp direction, but, its a horror game, that is not a problem.
Many times, specially early on, you will be hearing screams, and sounds of fighting somewhere far away, as you are immersed in the campus slowly being taken over by monsters.
Am I biased because I am a Sum 41 fan? Perhaps.
There is also choir music, which is often used in moments of high tension, especially on boss fights, or plot relevant scenes.
The music does a great job on magnifying the atmosphere, making tense encounters against unknown and dangerous enemies even more memorable.
The sound design is great as well, each creature has a distinct sound, but, it can still deceive, when there are many, its hard to focus on the specific one after all, making situations even more tense.
Voice acting wise, I noticed some problems with lip-syncing in the in-engine cutscenes, but that’s probably cause of my duct taped together fixes (its an old game after all), overall, its alright, it does go on the camp direction, but, its a horror game, that is not a problem.
Many times, specially early on, you will be hearing screams, and sounds of fighting somewhere far away, as you are immersed in the campus slowly being taken over by monsters.
Mechanics
The game has 5 playable characters (technically 6 but that one is played only once), each one having a special trait (except the 6th one).
Josh will tell you if there are still items or story points in a room.
Stan can picklocks almost instantaneously.
Kenny can sprint.
Ashley has a special melee attack, can rapid fire, and does slightly more damage.
Shannon gives you hints as to what to do next.
You can only control 1 character, and have another as a companion, you can freely switch between characters, or you can actually play the game co-op, with a friend controlling the companion.
You can give commands to the AI companion, but is mostly unnecessary.
Josh will tell you if there are still items or story points in a room.
Stan can picklocks almost instantaneously.
Kenny can sprint.
Ashley has a special melee attack, can rapid fire, and does slightly more damage.
Shannon gives you hints as to what to do next.
You can only control 1 character, and have another as a companion, you can freely switch between characters, or you can actually play the game co-op, with a friend controlling the companion.
You can give commands to the AI companion, but is mostly unnecessary.
Inventory is shared for the most part (including ammo and healing items), the only exception is with weapons, with you having to use the menu to give a weapon to your companion.
Keep in mind that if you change companions, your dismissed companion will retain any weapon on them, so be sure to clean their inventory if you don’t plan to use them again.
The other companions, will hang out in designated safe areas, to which you can return when you wish to change partners, new hub areas get unlocked as you progress through the game.
You are free to use any combination you want, as no character is actually critical to progress at any point.
Do keep in mind, that in order to get the good ending, all 5 characters must survive.
Cutscenes and dialogues change according to which character and which duo you are playing.
When it comes to enemies, there is a very important mechanic, light, while shrouded in darkness, enemies have higher defense, to reduce the shroud, you must shine your light at them, do keep in mind that the shroud regenerates very fast if for one reason or another you change targets, or if your flashlight overheats.
In the early game, you can break windows to illuminate rooms, but, once nightfall occurs, you will be relying on flashlights, as ambient light doesn’t work (unless it does for plot reasons).
You can use duct tape to attach flashlights to firearms, which you can replace once you get better ones later down the line.
You can use flashlights the same way you use a gun, even without them being attached to anything.
You can make your light more effective for a limited amount of time, which overheats your flashlight, thankfully, it goes back to normal when too hot, it doesn’t turn off.
There is no battery mechanic.
In order to save, you must find CDs around the areas, they work like ink ribbons from RE, the only difference, is that you can use a CD to save wherever and whenever (as long as there are no enemies).
For healing, there are 2 items, monster energy for light healing, and medkits for good healing.
Keep in mind, that the amount of ammo, CDs, healing and healing effectiveness changes with difficulty level.
How quickly you get certain weapons also depends on difficulty level, as well as how much damage enemies do.
The puzzles in this game are quite simple, its mostly a manner of paying attention to the documents for passwords, being attentive for little background hints, and finding the right items, not much solving to be done, you can also find some general tools, like the screwdriver for vents, or the wire for lockpicking, both of which are never consumed when used.
Enemies can ambush you at any moment, including when solving puzzles and lockpicking.
There are multiple mini-bosses who later become regular enemies.
Finally, there is bonus content to unlock, as well as special mode, which adds alternate costumes and weapons.
Keep in mind that if you change companions, your dismissed companion will retain any weapon on them, so be sure to clean their inventory if you don’t plan to use them again.
The other companions, will hang out in designated safe areas, to which you can return when you wish to change partners, new hub areas get unlocked as you progress through the game.
You are free to use any combination you want, as no character is actually critical to progress at any point.
Do keep in mind, that in order to get the good ending, all 5 characters must survive.
Cutscenes and dialogues change according to which character and which duo you are playing.
When it comes to enemies, there is a very important mechanic, light, while shrouded in darkness, enemies have higher defense, to reduce the shroud, you must shine your light at them, do keep in mind that the shroud regenerates very fast if for one reason or another you change targets, or if your flashlight overheats.
In the early game, you can break windows to illuminate rooms, but, once nightfall occurs, you will be relying on flashlights, as ambient light doesn’t work (unless it does for plot reasons).
You can use duct tape to attach flashlights to firearms, which you can replace once you get better ones later down the line.
You can use flashlights the same way you use a gun, even without them being attached to anything.
You can make your light more effective for a limited amount of time, which overheats your flashlight, thankfully, it goes back to normal when too hot, it doesn’t turn off.
There is no battery mechanic.
In order to save, you must find CDs around the areas, they work like ink ribbons from RE, the only difference, is that you can use a CD to save wherever and whenever (as long as there are no enemies).
For healing, there are 2 items, monster energy for light healing, and medkits for good healing.
Keep in mind, that the amount of ammo, CDs, healing and healing effectiveness changes with difficulty level.
How quickly you get certain weapons also depends on difficulty level, as well as how much damage enemies do.
The puzzles in this game are quite simple, its mostly a manner of paying attention to the documents for passwords, being attentive for little background hints, and finding the right items, not much solving to be done, you can also find some general tools, like the screwdriver for vents, or the wire for lockpicking, both of which are never consumed when used.
Enemies can ambush you at any moment, including when solving puzzles and lockpicking.
There are multiple mini-bosses who later become regular enemies.
Finally, there is bonus content to unlock, as well as special mode, which adds alternate costumes and weapons.
Final Thoughts
Obscure is a great game, truly underappreciated when it was released, I mean, it had to compete with heavy hitters like Silent Hill 2 and 3, and Resident Evil 4, not even including other survival horror, like Rule of Rose, or Haunting Ground.
Its quite creative with its enemies, from their origin, to their designs, some of the mutants are quite unique and give Obscure a leg to stand on side by side with the survival horror greats of its generation.
Although it allows you to walk around campus, the game is fairly linear in its progression, going from building to building in a set order, as well as returning to previous locations to unlock a few extra rooms, and through the means of locked doors, it keeps you on rails for a long time.
Its also clearly intended to be played with a controller, you can rebind the keys, still, out of the box keybinds are a bit strange, thankfully, there is no actual need for the mouse.
Obscure is a very 2000s game, from the music, to the vibe, to the items, something it doesn’t shy away from, and actively embraces.
I really like the attention to detail, like being able to break the glass of doors to open them, or being able to break vending machines to get some healing items, or being able to move things from the environment just by bumping to them.
As a Sum 41 fan, I really enjoyed hearing one of their songs, specially now that they have disbanded, it was yet another source of delightful and bitter sweet nostalgia while playing.
Btw, this game is heavily inspired in the 1998 film The Faculty, so, if you liked the game, be sure to check that one out too.
All in all, Obscure is a great 6th generation survival horror, very deserving of the cult classic category, definitely worth a try.
Its quite creative with its enemies, from their origin, to their designs, some of the mutants are quite unique and give Obscure a leg to stand on side by side with the survival horror greats of its generation.
Although it allows you to walk around campus, the game is fairly linear in its progression, going from building to building in a set order, as well as returning to previous locations to unlock a few extra rooms, and through the means of locked doors, it keeps you on rails for a long time.
Its also clearly intended to be played with a controller, you can rebind the keys, still, out of the box keybinds are a bit strange, thankfully, there is no actual need for the mouse.
Obscure is a very 2000s game, from the music, to the vibe, to the items, something it doesn’t shy away from, and actively embraces.
I really like the attention to detail, like being able to break the glass of doors to open them, or being able to break vending machines to get some healing items, or being able to move things from the environment just by bumping to them.
As a Sum 41 fan, I really enjoyed hearing one of their songs, specially now that they have disbanded, it was yet another source of delightful and bitter sweet nostalgia while playing.
Btw, this game is heavily inspired in the 1998 film The Faculty, so, if you liked the game, be sure to check that one out too.
All in all, Obscure is a great 6th generation survival horror, very deserving of the cult classic category, definitely worth a try.
Pros
- + Very good atmosphere.
- + Creative setting and enemy design.
- + Easy drop-in drop-out couch co-op.
- + Engaging and tense combat.
Cons
- - Very linear progression for a seemingly open game.
- - Puzzles are far too easy.
- - Very little impact from character's special abilities.
8
Gameplay
Very cool inclusion of light as a gameplay mechanic, with a simple core, and rewarding the attentive player, only loosing points for the janky melee, the little impact skills have, and easy puzzles.
8
Graphics
Very good graphics for the time, the atmosphere is top-notch, specially it the darker and creepy dilapidated areas, as well as cool an intimidating enemy designs.
7
Story
Its a very typical horror story with a bunch of dumb teenagers, but, it doesn't have to be anything else, it knows its inspirations, and it proudly presents a fun yet cliche story.
9
Sound
The use of choir music, and the amazing ambiance highly elevate each scene, specially when enemies are around and their gross sounds enter the mix, also, Sum 41 being great as usual.
5
Replayability
There are incentives, like seeing the cutscenes with different characters, and the bonus unlockables, but, since the game is fairly linear, is up to player's discretion.
8
out of 10
Overall
Obscure is well deserving of the title of cult classic, a very campy story, with a very fun, and engaging gameplay loop, with very cool and unique inclusion of environment as an extra factor for combat, the multiple characters serve more as a flavor rather than have a gameplay impact, its monster design is quite interesting and give the game a unique personality, it proudly and openly wears its influences, and feels more like a celebration of campy teenage horror, still, is a very good survival horror very worth checking out.