Hollowbody

The gameplay is hindered by basic mechanics and somewhat awkward melee combat, which detracts from the overall enjoyment. However, the game excels in creating a compelling atmosphere, and the gameplay maintains a smooth flow. In the end, Hollowbody provides a nostalgic experience for fans of British survival horror at the price of a large takeaway pizza (£14.20), encapsulating both the triumphs and shortcomings of the genre, making it a worthwhile choice for an engaging evening for fans of horror games that like them with a sprinkle of nostalgia.

At a glance, it’s clear that Silent Hill and Resident Evil were major influences on indie horror game Hollowbody. While its retro PS2-style visuals are what initially drew me toward the game, inside of that is a competent survival horror experience that, while not doing too many things different from its predecessors, establishes a world and setting that’s worth exploring. If you’re looking for a game to scratch the itch of those classic survival horror experiences, Hollowbody is definitely worth your time.

It's hard to deliver more for just one person, offering a solid proposal for fans of the classics of the survival horror genre, including a complex narrative. Nathan Hamley shows a lot of potential that we hope he can put on the filed in the near future.

Hollowbody is scary, dreary, and sad; it's all the things I love about horror games. Sometimes, it embodies these feelings because it nearly repurposes the same monsters, places, and predicaments from the games that inspired it. But it's not all familiar, and the things it does differently are its best attributes, like telling a story conscious of and concerned about sociopolitics and offering a minimalistic but unsettling soundtrack of its own. Maybe the last great Silent Hill game is behind us. I don't know. But I do know its memory remains alive in successes like Hollowbody.

Hollowbody excels in some key areas, like its sound design, though it also comes up way short in others, like with its level design. Regardless, it's a serviceable survival-horror game that does everything one would expect. Nothing it does is new, but it does everything well enough to make it an easy recommendation to fans of survival horror games from the 2000s.

Hollowbody is a classic survival horror experience which will delight fans of those PS2-era frights, but some of the dated elements will frustrate.

There are two ways of looking at Hollowbody. As an homage to a bygone gaming era, a conceptual love letter to an influential time, it succeeds pretty well. Without the rose-tinted glasses of nostalgia, Hollowbody is a pretty unsatisfying experience. If you grew up playing Silent Hill 2 on the PS2, Hollowbody will certainly resonate with your memories. For everyone else, there are simply too many more recent and more accomplished games in the horror genre to spend your time with.

Hollowbody aims to pay tribute to early 2000s horror games but falls short of its goal. While it occasionally shines with well-crafted puzzles, it struggles to capture the essence of its inspirations. The outdated aesthetics and lackluster combat detract from the horror experience, and the disjointed story feels pieced together from various ideas. Despite these issues, Hollowbody has its moments, particularly in its engaging puzzles, which hint at its potential. However, the game's overall inconsistency may only appeal to die-hard fans of classic horror, leaving others wanting more. As it stands, "Hollowbody" feels like a project in need of a thorough remaster to realize its full potential and truly honor the genre it seeks to celebrate.

Hollowbody has a pretty fascinating atmosphere and really strong vibes, but fails to deliver a fleshed-out survival horror experience. The game is clearly inspired by classic PS2 titles in the genre, but this comes at the expense of the game offering unique mechanics or a thoughtful narrative. And while I have pretty strong feelings about Hollowbody, I still want to jump back into New Game+ and try to get other endings and find answers to the mystery, no matter how vague they might be.

It’s just not the most memorable experience, either. Hollowbody stakes its identity on being a PS2-inspired horror game and has trouble building on that and finding its own identity. The world it depicts is enticing, but it struggles to find a story there. On the other hand, it’s not uncomfortable to play. It’s enjoyable for what it is. It’s not completely hollow, but it’s far from solid.