The Stone of Madness

It has a great atmosphere and visuals that complement it, but due to technical issues and problematic design choices, it fails to reach its full potential. I wish its release had been delayed and given more thought.

It is invigorating to cycle through five characters and use their abilities to overcome tactical challenges in The Stone of Madness, set inside a Spanish monastery that doubles as an asylum at the close of the 1700s.

The Stone of Madness boasts a striking artistic direction and an effective sound design, both of which help create a tense and immersive atmosphere. However, technical issues and a lack of polish in key gameplay elements risk undermining the overall experience, turning suspense into frustration. If the development team releases targeted updates to address its major flaws, the game could become a much attracting and more rewarding experience for fans of the genre.

The Stone of Madness feels like a nostalgic indie journey, one where you need patience and wit. It may seem a little rough some times, but the setting, characters and skill design make up for it.

The Stone of Madness is an exciting and maximally flexible adventure that allows you to solve problems in a variety of ways.

This Spanish tactical stealth game offers a deep and satisfying challenge with creative character abilities and well-designed levels, but its rigid difficulty, control issues, and frustrating mechanics limit player creativity and slow down progress. Despite its flaws, future patches could refine its mechanics and bring out its full potential.

Set in a wonderfully creative, surprisingly sensitive portrayal of a time period as human as any other, The Stone of Madness is a real gem in the mind of those who play it. At some point, I even stopped noticing Alfredo’s stupid hat.

The Stone of Madness is a highly strategic research title. The game's save game, the sanity system and knowledge fit perfectly in a title that exudes solemnity. Something in which also adds the phrases dubbed into Spanish, which as in Blasphemous, manages to reach us deep inside, contributing to a total immersion.

Although the game has some bugs that can be somewhat frustrating, they do not detract from an excellent gaming experience, with an impressive setting and a well-woven and resolved mystery story.

The Stone of Madness is cleverly attuned to perseverance through incremental progress.

The Stone of Madness isn’t perfect by any means, but its successes readily outweigh its missteps. Its emphasis on real-time stealth and simultaneous control over three distinct characters at a time work to create some very hectic gameplay situations, naturally encouraging the player to learn and improve. Infusing this rewarding gameplay with a striking art style and a tinge of dark humor makes for a unique experience worth looking into, even if the controls can be clunky and the guards can be a little too good at catching up with you when you make a mistake.

The Stone of Madness isn’t a game for everyone, but it’s hard not to request that even the more discerning player give it a try. The game's somewhat bizarre and disturbing art style remains a high point, and even those unaccustomed to real-time tactical strategy titles may find the game’s story and setting compelling enough to stick with it until the end. Despite some finicky controls, it’s clear that the team behind the game poured their heart and soul into it, with each frame packed with an unbelievable amount of detail and care. The Stone of Madness has a way of transforming the player’s frustration into desperation, with every step closer to the truth providing a boost of adrenaline and a desire not to give up. The monastery is hiding something truly ghastly, and that mystery alone is worth delving into The Game Kitchen’s newest release.

The Stone of Madness delivers a puzzling experience that forces players to be creative and quick. Its gameplay elements largely succeed at providing a unique challenge, while its world and characters are easily forgotten.

The Stone of Madness has some excellent art and great moments of sneaking around. But what should have been a fairly replayable and interesting prison break ends up buckling under the weight of its technical problems. Progress-halting bugs, graphical issues, and finicky controls all turn otherwise-engaging sneaking missions into frustrating excursions. With some extra tuning, The Stone of Madness could be a refreshing take on tactical stealth. As-is, there are too many obstacles getting in the way of what’s good here.

The Stone of Madness feels like an admirable gamble of a new direction for The Game Kitchen, and one that mostly pays off. Besides the frustrations with the stealth, sanity system and inconsistent tone, its core prison break loop remains a satisfying one, and the monastery’s environmental design and artistic direction make it a compelling playground to explore.