Welcome to the Attic, let’s investigate some murder scenes!

Condemned: Criminal Origins was released to Xbox 360 in 2005 as a launch title, but it still remains in my mind as one of the greatest horror games I’ve ever played. It relies heavily on melee combat, when you’re not running away scared. You spend your time in various locations, but they all have a few things in common. Abandoned? Check. Decrepit? Check. Crazies running around? Check! That for me is probably one of the scariest parts of this whole game. Sure there are some mind-fuck psychological moments, but few things make me jump out of my seat like a lunatic scampering from one open doorway across to another right in front of me, with nothing to protect myself but a piece of wood with some nails in it.

You play a pretty average FBI detective in serial crimes unit named Ethan Thomas, and arrive on a scene in the beginning game with a partner. You quickly get separated and are pretty much on your own the whole game after that. Aside from Rosa… Ah, Rosa. Her voice is like an angel’s over the phone. She aids you along the way and gives hints at what you are supposed to do. But that’s not to say it’s very easy to get stuck. I can’t remember really getting frustrated with this game. But I don’t remember it being easy either. It strikes a very nice balance in the difficulty department. The controls are very basic, yet fluid enough. I never felt like it was clunky or hard to maneuver around.

I can’t speak for PC controls, as I have only played it on my 360. It was added to Steam in 2012, so why not add just one more to that stack of shame? Yes, that’s right. I see your giant stack and I am judging you. You greedy PC gamers, you.

One of my favorite aspects was the crime scene investigating. This is handled in a way you don’t expect with such a scary, survival horror game. You arrive at numerous dead bodies that you investigate along the way. Scared shitless? That’s no excuse, soldier! Now stand up straight and scan that dead person! There are a few different tools you can use, which is cool because it makes you feel like a real investigator. You have use of a UV light which will make things such as trauma points on the victim glow, a laser light that will show evidence around the crime scene, and even snap photos of the cheery settings.

Typically I give up too easily on survival horror because it’s too difficult or frustrating. This game had me dying for more until the very end and has stuck with me all these years. I highly recommend this to anyone looking to play a good survival horror game that isn’t Silent Hill or Resident Evil.

Stay scared,
Dark Princess