The Town of Light

The Town of Light tackles some very controversial themes in such a direct way that it's impossible not to be emotionally invested in Renée's story. Vastly enhanced by the faithful recreation of the Volterra asylum, The Town of Light manages to be an incredibly engaging experience thanks to the narrative flow, which drags players into this Hell on Earth and doesn't even let them go after the game's incredibly bittersweet ending.

The Town of Light is an experience with the power to enlighten many to the anguish of those few still lost in the dark.

If you’re looking for a feel-good gaming experience, it’s probably best to steer clear of The Town of Light. It’s a darkly haunting narrative that touches on a subject matter that doesn’t get anywhere near enough attention nowadays, while also avoiding falling into the trap of sensationalism. As long as you can get past some of its legitimate structure issues, not to mention a general lack of a cohesive gameplay thread, it provides a depressing, yet unforgettable quest into a person’s descent into madness. While this is definitely not an experience that I plan on putting myself through ever again, it will undoubtedly stick with me for a long time.

The Town of Light is an intense and dramatic experience, though technically poor.

The Town of Light is a powerful experience and you’ll certainly be affected by its story. There are a few issues with music breaks and some of the things you’ll see may provide too upsetting, but overall you’ll never forget your time in Volterra.

Mental illness is always a tough subject to pitch correctly. The Town of Light, to me, does an admirable job with a period tale filled with a bleak series of events. It’s a thought-provoking journey through a truly troubled mind. It might prove upsetting but I do feel this is worth consideration.

A haunting, personal horror story that doesn't need jumpscares or cheap shcking moments.

A dark, intriguing and very grown-up story is The Town of Light's greatest draw, though long loading times and inexplicable framedrops keep it from reaching lofty heights.

There are plenty of engaging moments, despite the annoying puzzles, that make this game worth recommending. It’s also a great representation of mental illness, portraying the patients not as cackling sociopaths, but as victims of tragedy. While it’s not for everyone, especially those who want a more “in-your-face” kind of horror, the historical setting and creeping dread make for a very memorable experience.

The Town of Light is not perfect, and it defies the usual categories in many ways – frankly, given its lack of player agency, it’s even hard to call it a game. But it is a narrative experience every gamer should try. After you finish it, and put down the controller, Renée’s sad life story will haunt you in ways that no feral ghoul or shuffling zombie ever could.

It's such a shame the visuals end up spoiling an otherwise harrowing experience. [Aug 2017, p.96]

The Town of Light is a beautiful title, with great sound and reworked voice-overs that improve on the original release, but it needs harder puzzles, some work on the camera and maybe be a bit darker to give the flashlight some purpose. Besides that, The Town of Light accomplishes what it promises, and is a game people need to try, because it is something different to experience within the video game medium.

The Town of Light isn’t a game you play for fun. There’s nothing enjoyable about the true face of mental illness nor the fear and isolation it engenders. Instead of aiming to reward players with a sense of enjoyment, LKA.it strives to help them empathise with the character of Renée and the unspeakable horrors she’s forced to endure. There’s a sobering, meaningful story to be witnessed and while its delivery is imperfect, The Town of Light still makes for one of the most thought-provoking games of this year.

I found it enjoyable, but I also have an interest in old medical and mental illness treatment practices. Someone looking for action or a Resident Evil style horror experience should skip this, but those looking for a good story in a beautifully bleak environment to explore at a leisurely pace would likely find some enjoyment in The Town of Light.

A different kind of horror that could have been much better without its technical flaws and a bit more freedom.

The Town of Light is a powerful experience that highlights a fascinating, if chilling, chapter in human history. The heavy atmosphere is achieved through the very real setting of Volterra, and Renée’s unfortunate tale of life inside its walls that represents the woes of many real people. The story meanders a little too far into obscurity and can become confusing, and some long load times scupper things further. While you won’t necessarily have fun in the traditional sense, it’s worth playing if you’re at all interested, as it contains some striking sequences that will stay with you long after you finish.

While The Town of Light is rough around the edges, both in technical and narrative terms, it does at least provide a different kind of horror compared to the current market. It's one based on a grim, bleak history of the treatment of mental health issues, and that makes for an unpleasant, yet fascinating experience if you can stomach both the subject matter and the low quality of the game's performance.

Sticking with The Town of Light’s slow, meandering storytelling and linear exploration in the early chapters does pay off eventually, but if the dark and often distressing tale of Renee and the happenings in World War II era insane asylums doesn’t interest you, there is very little to see that wouldn’t be even more of a turn off.

The Town of Light has an interesting premise, but, however worthy an enterprise it is, the story is just too confused a journey to leave a real impact.

The Town of Light's setting in a real-world mental asylum was a clever idea but sadly, its poor graphics, mind-numbing pacing and general clunkiness mean that it doesn't take full advantage of its potential.

I hate to be so harsh on a game with ties to incredibly traumatic real-world events, but The Town of Light feels like something that was produced as some sort of virtual reality tour and was later cobbled into being a videogame by adding an undercooked story. As it stands, this experience isn’t cementing nor commemorating a dark chapter in Italy’s history as elegantly, interestingly nor effectively as it seems to think it is. And the narrative, with its overabundance of awkward sexual scenes, lack of meaningful suspense and story that left me confused does nothing to validate the painstaking care that must have gone into recreating the asylum.