So um, when my colleague had told me that Code Cadima was a horror game that has made countless members of our staff jump when playing the game, I should have taken that as a hint. I should have said "Hey there William, you should probably not play this game because you are easily scared if the setting is right. Look don't get me wrong; I haven't been scared of a horror movie since original Amityville, or the first Exorcist. Like, I do like a good scary movie, but I don't get scared, I just like watching them. But there is something about horror games that get me every time. I mean, I am aware of what the answer is, and I'm going to share that answer with you here on why I believe Code Cadima is a pretty damn good game.
Code Cadima has proven that you don't need fancy graphics to be a scary game. The graphics are really mediocre. They aren't the greatest at all. Environments are bland, reminding me of the old school FPS games like Doom, Quake 2 or Duke Nukem. But the amount of work they put in on camera angles is greatly noted. What I mean is, when the thing that is chasing after you appears, they give you some pretty nifty particle effects and amazing camera movements that kind of makes the experience more, sinister. So though the graphics aren't great, that is completely okay because they make up for it for little tricks of lighting and camera work that adds to that sense of fear or anxiety. Do I think they need to update the graphics? Not really no, but maybe clean it up a little. Make it crisper or make the lightning effects more defined maybe. But not too much. You don't want to ruin this unique ascetic that works for this title. Unlike games like Resident Evil or Layers of Fear, with their high resolutions, great artwork, this game feels, unique. I always believed unique is good. The team did a great job making this feel different with lower graphic styles.
The sound is what truly made this game though. From the moment you got out of your car, and listening to the sounds of outside, I already felt the anxiety kicking in. I felt the tense and thick air of fear enveloping me. When your graphics aren't the greatest, you put all the focus on the audio. Code Cadima didn't fail. If you're not playing games like this with headphones, then something is truly wrong with you. The full feeling of listening to the ambient noise, the silence and then the heightened music that showed you that "you better get out of here fast" was perfect. From the moment I went in and the moment I turned off the game, I felt the muscles in my chest clinch. I was concerned for anything and everything around the corners of this factory. This is what good audio does in a horror game. This is what great audio does for horror games period. You cannot, in any fashion, say you're a horror game if your sound quality is just poor. Not happening. You need perfect audio to create the psychological effects on the gamer, to cause them stress. The developer, Kickcreator's Game, delivered on this.
Gameplay is what you expect. First Person View, running around a map to solve puzzles while a big bad is chasing you. Looking for the secrets of the past. Using minimal supplies to do all of this. There isn't anything fancy about this project. It does feel like they followed a general blueprint of how to make games like this. Game felt safe and though the other two things were good and amazing, this area the game could use some improvement. Granted now, this is an alpha, and I always have to put that in my articles, to remind people that these are alpha games, they aren't the final product. Anything and EVERYTHING can be changed, altered, improved, added, subtracted and divided. But sadly, if it wasn't for the other two things, I probably wouldn't have enjoyed this game. The flashlight mechanic is okay, making you sparingly use it while running around, but honestly, eh. It's nothing amazing to talk about. It is truly hard to innovate or making something standout in games like these if you aren't working with a Capcom budget. It's the sad truth. I honestly couldn't tell you what I would add to this area to make it different, but I mean, Kickcreator's Games may have things in the works that I don't know about. So, who knows?
Code Cadima won't be a big title. It will be a great title in smaller circles. People who like to play horror games. I do feel like that with the graphic design choice, it will be popular in these circles and attract people when they see the crazy electronic bear thing. That attracted me to this title after all. I just don't see it getting a massive following. Again though, we still in alpha, so much can and I'm sure will be changed and added. The next time this game comes around, I probably won't play because I'm not about that high anxiety life, but I will definitely be listening to my colleague's adventure in this title. I didn't dislike this title at all, just could feel that it needs more work in the gameplay department. That was its weakest link. It wasn't weak enough to make me dislike it though. I really want to nail that thought home. It gave the effect that it was supposed to give, fear and anxiety. So that worked perfectly. Just got to add something else. Something that I just can't put my finger on. Just missing one key part and it is in the gameplay area.
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