PROZE: Enlightenment
- April 25, 2019
- SignSine
- 4h median play time
PROZE: Enlightenment is a narrative-driven first-person psychological horror game. Players unravel a complex story as they explore an abandoned research facility, deciphering cryptic messages and solving puzzles. The game features intense atmospheric tension and a haunting soundtrack, emphasizing the psychological torment of the protagonist.
Reviews
- The game features a great atmosphere with nice graphics and sound design, creating an immersive experience.
- Puzzles are challenging and require players to think critically, providing a rewarding gameplay experience.
- The story is intriguing and keeps players engaged, with interesting character interactions and narrative twists.
- The game is plagued by bugs and glitches, including issues with saving progress and character animations.
- Many puzzles lack clear instructions or clues, leading to frustration and confusion for players.
- The controls can be clunky and unresponsive, particularly with certain VR setups, making gameplay less enjoyable.
- story32 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The game's story is generally described as intriguing and interesting, with good atmosphere and voice acting, though it suffers from disjointed elements and occasional bugs. While some players appreciate the historical background and immersive storytelling, others find it lacking in coherence and clarity, particularly regarding plot progression and puzzle integration. Overall, the narrative shows promise, especially for fans of exploration and puzzle genres, but it may leave some players wanting more due to its episodic nature and execution flaws.
“Awesome story, atmosphere, and excellent voice acting.”
“The production quality might not be AAA and it does have a few rough edges, but the game easily makes up for that by telling an interesting story in a very interesting way.”
“The setting is remarkable and the plot is satisfactory.”
“I was fine with the minor escalation towards 'action puzzling' at the end, and with the daft cold-war fantasy-fusion story getting left hanging in mid-air.”
“My biggest concern about this game is that it is just the first part of the story.”
“Sometimes in the game I don't even know what to look for (this is coming from an expert puzzle player). Story-wise, they sorta just gave you the plot in the first hour.”
- graphics19 mentions
- 84 % positive mentions
- 5 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the detailed and atmospheric visuals, particularly in VR, while others note inconsistencies in quality, especially with NPC designs and outdoor environments. Overall, the artwork is generally well-received, but some players feel it lacks attention to detail in certain areas, impacting the overall experience.
“Great graphics and sound effects are the only saving grace of this game.”
“I thought the graphics were great and the complexity of the game was just right.”
“Exploring a secret Soviet base from the 50's is inherently interesting, and the game generally does a good job capturing that aesthetic.”
“The graphics aren't great.”
“There are no graphical or audio options of any kind.”
- gameplay11 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 45 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by solid mechanics and innovative interactions, offering an immersive experience with visually appealing artwork and engaging puzzles. However, it suffers from issues such as a short playtime for the price, lack of proper controller support, and game-breaking glitches, which detract from the overall enjoyment. While some players find it enjoyable at a discount, others criticize the walking mechanics and the overall execution of the gameplay.
“It has solid interactions and mechanics with some novelty that I appreciated.”
“There are some great open locations, seen through various lighting and gameplay lenses.”
“Walking mechanics are strange at best, especially on a WMR headset like I have, where the angle of your head/left hand massively influences walking speed, and teleport just doesn't happen half of the time, but the puzzles are fun, the world is immersive, and the game looks absolutely great.”
“On the downside, $20 for 4 hours of gameplay?”
“Really, it feels like a lack of attention to detail on the mechanics, but the artwork itself is great.”
“No proper support for index controllers, boring gameplay, everything is super dark, idiotic story.”
- atmosphere11 mentions
- 82 % positive mentions
- -9 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive and engaging qualities, enhanced by excellent lighting, detailed visuals, and strong voice acting. While the atmosphere contributes significantly to the overall experience, some players feel that the puzzles can detract from the enjoyment. Overall, the game successfully creates a captivating sci-fi thriller ambiance that keeps players invested in the story.
“It's a 4-hour indie sci-fi thriller game with some exploration, challenging puzzles, and a great atmosphere.”
“Awesome story, atmosphere, and excellent voice acting.”
“Very atmospheric, smooth, and polished adventure.”
“The atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, lacking the tension I expected.”
“Despite the potential, the atmosphere fails to immerse me in the game world.”
“The lighting is inconsistent, which detracts from the overall horror atmosphere.”
- music6 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- -17 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its uniqueness and quality, contributing significantly to the overall experience alongside strong sound design and ambient effects. Reviewers highlight the effective integration of music with the narrative, enhancing the game's atmosphere.
“Story, music, and voice are good.”
“Great and unique sound and music.”
“Graphics, narrative, sound design, and music are really good.”
“The music is repetitive and lacks variety, making it feel monotonous after a short while.”
“The sound effects are poorly designed and don't match the game's atmosphere, which detracts from the overall experience.”
“The soundtrack feels generic and uninspired, failing to enhance the gameplay or evoke any emotions.”
- stability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game suffers from numerous bugs and game-breaking glitches that significantly impact the overall experience, leading to frustration among players. Despite these issues, many users express a strong attachment to the game's intriguing story and original gameplay, indicating a desire to overlook the stability problems.
“Although gameplay is original and very interesting, it is riddled with many game-breaking glitches.”
“There are even many obvious glitches that just make me facepalm as it's completely obvious for the developers to see.”
“Bugs... bugs... bugs... but I still love the game; some inner feeling tells me this is a very interesting story, and I want to play this game instead of the buggy and ugly things around.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players found the game to be a deeply emotional experience that resonated with them, highlighting a desire to share this connection with others. However, some users noted that the controls, particularly in free locomotion mode, could detract from the overall experience due to sensitivity issues.
“It truly was an emotional experience that I wanted to share with others.”
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy has been criticized for promoting an incomplete game that lacks promised content, leading users to recommend purchasing it only during sales.
“The game feels incomplete and it seems like they will never deliver the promised sequel; it's better to wait for a sale.”
“The monetization strategy is aggressive, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending extra money.”
“I feel like I'm being pushed to spend more just to experience the full game, which is frustrating.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players express a desire for improvements to enhance the game's replayability, indicating that current limitations hinder enjoyment and suggest that developer updates could significantly boost the game's long-term appeal.
- optimization1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's voice performance is adequate but lacks natural delivery, often sounding like actors are simply reading their lines rather than embodying their characters.