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S.W.A.N.

4IGN Logo Brutto Molto breve, con fasi d'azione da dimenticare e una trama molto pasticciata: c'è poco da salvare in questa zoppicante passeggiata horror. di Stefano "Stef" Castelli
S.W.A.N. Game Cover
47%Game Brain Score
story, atmosphere
gameplay, graphics
65% User Score Based on 31 reviews
Critic Score 35%Based on 2 reviews

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S.W.A.N. Game Cover

About

S.W.A.N. is a single player survival shooter game with horror, mystery and science fiction themes. It was developed by Volframe and was released on April 26, 2021. It received negative reviews from critics and mostly positive reviews from players.

After the disaster in the Chernobyl nuclear plant, a secret research facility - the S.W.A.N. Institute gets out of control. Already dangerous phenomena became an even bigger threat and the corridors of this facility, forgotten by its own government, have seen incidents out of touch with reality. S.W.A.N. (Syndrome Without A Name) is a science fiction FPS puzzle horror game, which takes place a fe…

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S.W.A.N. screenshot
S.W.A.N. screenshot
S.W.A.N. screenshot
S.W.A.N. screenshot
S.W.A.N. screenshot
S.W.A.N. screenshot
S.W.A.N. screenshot
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65%
Audience ScoreBased on 31 reviews
story8 positive mentions
gameplay4 negative mentions
  • Strong atmosphere and eerie sound design effectively build tension and immersion.
  • Interesting and original storyline blending historical facts with sci-fi and horror elements.
  • Engaging puzzles and varied gameplay elements beyond typical walking simulators.
  • Gameplay is repetitive and includes tedious resource collection leading to frustration.
  • Controls can feel clunky and unintuitive, with some technical bugs affecting experience.
  • Story delivery occasionally feels convoluted, overwritten, or overly reliant on exposition.
  • story
    35 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story blends factual elements from the Chernobyl disaster with fictional horror and supernatural themes, creating an intriguing and atmospheric narrative that engages players invested in lore. However, it suffers from convoluted writing, occasional over-reliance on notes and exposition, and some clichés, which can make the plot hard to follow and unevenly executed. Overall, the story is appreciated for its concept and mood but is considered imperfect and secondary to the game's horror experience.

    • “There were some annoying parts but mostly it was a really nicely made game that made you want to know more of the story and what is happening and what happened in the past.”
    • “A fantastic horror game - a very original story and heavy atmosphere are doing the job to both intrigue and scare you.”
    • “Capitalizing on the Chernobyl event is nothing original, but continuously integrating factual information such as notes about famous Soviet scientists and then switching to the plot of government coverups of experiments, differing dimensions and ghostly beings really kept me interested.”
    • “The story gets convoluted and hard to keep track of.”
    • “The story notes and dialogue are overwritten at times and delivered in a ham-fisted way; the ending twist is not very original, highlighting problems with the writing.”
    • “It's unfortunate when paired up with the at times unbelievable and unnecessarily convoluted story.”
  • gameplay
    18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Gameplay received mixed feedback, with some praising its blend of exploration, puzzles, and action elements that create a tense atmosphere, while others criticized clunky controls, repetitive mechanics, and unclear explanations. Although it offers unique scares and intriguing puzzles, some players found progression frustrating and certain mechanics underutilized. Overall, it appeals to fans of atmospheric horror but may feel uneven or obtuse to others.

    • “This game does a lot of plot dumping with the entity called the 'phenomenon' and some of the mechanics aren't quite explained very well, but overall I had a ton of fun with this game.”
    • “Interestingly, gameplay is broken up into different sections and does not solely rely on exploration and note reading but does incorporate action scenes to remind players that there are imminent threats which can result in death, if not careful.”
    • “I'm just 50 minutes in and already love the atmosphere and gameplay, cool logic puzzle stages and scary jumps.”
    • “Shooting mechanics are pretty clunky.”
    • “Gameplay gets a bit repetitive at times, and the lightning ball collection becomes onerous as you have to keep spending the lightning you collect to fend off enemies, often feeling like you're making no progress, especially with death setting you back to before the section altogether.”
    • “Some of the mechanics aren't intuitive, but once you understand what the game wants you to do it becomes incredibly easy, almost too easy.”
  • atmosphere
    14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is widely praised for its haunting and immersive atmosphere, combining eerie sound design, a radioactive wasteland setting, and supernatural horror elements that effectively create tension and intrigue. Fans of story-rich, atmospheric horror, especially those interested in Chernobyl-themed environments, find it particularly compelling and unsettling. Its atmosphere stands out as a strong point, often compared favorably to other notable horror titles.

    • “A fantastic horror game - a very original story and heavy atmosphere are doing the job to both intrigue and scare you.”
    • “Developed by Polish studio Volframe, I was pleasantly surprised at not only how well constructed the game is, but how haunting and atmospheric it can be.”
    • “Majority of the game is spent wandering around the facility, picking up notes and absorbing the excellent, eerie atmosphere.”
    • “Scu has got you covered with a grating atmosphere and lingering threats.”
    • “R’s radioactive wasteland of anomalies and also the plaguing atmosphere of Metro.”
    • “This game is kinda similar (disappearing hallways, moving walls, some scary moments) but the atmosphere is different.”
  • music
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music is highly praised for its atmospheric sound design and emotional impact, enhancing the overall experience by effectively building tension and complementing fully voiced characters.

    • “Atmospheric sound design and music (very good).”
    • “Soundtrack’s an unspoken hero because it really gets the feels going.”
    • “Characters are fully voiced, and the soundtrack adds tension.”
  • graphics
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics are generally considered subpar, featuring grainy visuals that contribute to a slow-moving, walking simulator experience.

    • “It's just a slow moving walking simulator, with grainy subpar graphics.”
  • optimization
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game suffers from poor optimization, particularly for 4K resolution, resulting in clunky controls and a lack of smooth gameplay.

    • “It is not optimized well for 4K.”
    • “As a horror game, it had some good scares, but the gameplay is pretty bland, controls feel very clunky and not optimized.”
  • stability
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's stability is hindered by annoying bugs that can force players to restart lengthy segments, detracting from the overall experience despite its well-executed horror ambiance.

  • grinding
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users criticize the grinding aspect as monotonous and tedious, feeling that repetitive tasks like hunting thought particles and balls of lightning serve more as padding than meaningful gameplay.

    • “But having you repeat the same monotonous, tedious hunting of thought particles and balls of lightning to advance just screams 'padding'!”
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35%Critics’ scoreBased on 2 critic reviews
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4h Median play time
4h Average play time
4-4h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 1 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

S.W.A.N. is a survival shooter game with horror, mystery and science fiction themes.

S.W.A.N. is available on Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and others.

On average players spend around 4 hours playing S.W.A.N..

S.W.A.N. was released on April 26, 2021.

S.W.A.N. was developed by Volframe.

S.W.A.N. has received negative reviews from players and negative reviews from critics. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

S.W.A.N. is a single player game.

Similar games include Perception, The Hat Man: Shadow Ward, Get Even, ARAYA, Infliction and others.