Siren

The implementation of sightjacking works well in achieving contemplative gameplay, as well as heightening suspense; on the contrary, the complexity of the game’s organization and the Scenario Link Navigator may turn some away.

If you can deal with several gameplay mishaps, you’ll enjoy the game since Siren does a great job at telling its story in a new and involved way.

Siren's grand ideas are to be applauded, but savouring them takes effort. If you can invest the time, and look away in all the right places - such as the genre's trademarks of outrageously bad combat and dogsbody objectives - then there's a uniquely suffocating horror experience waiting to be survived. [Mar 2004, p.99]

For newcomers to the scene, getting into the designer's desired mindset will arguably prove too daunting, but veteran adventurers will admire the new ground that Siren breaks and its chilling atmosphere, and be able to forgive some of its basic flaws long enough to follow through with what is, at times, an immensely challenging and absorbing experience.

In a game so clearly reliant on tension, ambience and atmosphere, it's almost unthinkable that somebody at one of the largest entertainment companies in the world would not choose dubbing rather than subtitling in such an Eastern title but, worse still, green-light the appalling finished dub which may well have permanently damaged our ears. [Mar 2004, p.94]

Siren's dreamy, unsettling experience is ultimately marred by tedious trial-and-error-based design that makes it best suited to survival horror fans with a good store of patience.

Its innovative concepts and creepy atmosphere are hampered by slow and tedious trial and error gameplay.

The variety of innovating aspects are balanced by multiple flaws, making this one strictly for the horror-obsessed.

It relies far too heavily on trial and error design, meaning it will likely only appeal to the 'hard core' crowd.

Sadly this is another title that suffers from a lack of replay value.

I really, really wanted to like Siren, but in the end, I just didn't have much fun or feel like the innovative parts of the game were used to their advantage. [May 2004, p.97]

For those with a lot of patience and perseverence, Siren has its share of chilly moments. For most folks, though, the game is hellish in ways that simply aren't fun. [June 2004, p.26]

Despite its unique approach though, the game is also very frustrating, and at times, feels more like work than like fun. The stealth gameplay is much too basic, and though the ability to see through the eyes of your attackers is creative (and spooky), it doesn’t help the player as well as it was intended.

Difficult navigation and slow play require Zen-like patience, but riches await the persistent. You’ll revel in a bowel-loosening atmosphere, brain-twisting puzzles, and voice acting surpassed in horror only by "My Slutty Wife XIX."

The story is so fragmented, the missions so pointless, and the action so sparse that there's no drive to progress. [June 2004, p.90]

Siren is an experiment gone awry -- a confusing fog-sacked combination of stealth and survival-horror that'll drive you batty with frustration before it can creep you out.