itch.io

Completely honest review, also spoilers so watch out. Gameplay and tone were great for a game this short. The gameplay parts were great, though they were kind of short in a way that made me sad because they would end just as I was getting into it. The tone was cool. I really liked the wartime setting and the mystery of why you were doing what you were doing and wondering why the digging helped the war efforts.

The ending was sort of, not great. It expanded on the part of the game about the note leaver guy who worked your job before you, which honestly was the least interesting part of the story.

Actual spoiler part seriously, don't read if you haven't finished the game. The drills aren't drills, they're just people in the holes being forced to dig. I shouldn't have to tell you why this is really dumb, but all the small details fall apart even more if you think about it for more than a minute.

The game's setting never tells you WHY you're digging, just that it's part of some war revenge plan which is great, it's cool and ominous. Are we digging for some method of attack? Are we waking up some subterranean monster? Are we going to blow up the earth? It's a good mystery, I was hooked. I could understand not getting an answer to the overarching mystery if there was some other interesting mystery, the notes raise questions about the drills but it wasn't even remotely the most interesting thing going on which is a let down.

From the start you're asking why am I doing this, and you never get that why, instead you get clues to a mystery you aren't interested in that is raised afterwards in a far less interesting somewhat overused manner via 'note guy'. Like, you want to know what you're digging for, the holes are super deep dark pits, into the abyss so when they give you the option to go down there to do maintenance I was excited, first I get to start the gameplay routine mix-up segment awesome! Second I get to see what the situation in the abyss is, maybe I'll get to see what's down here and get some clue to this over arching mystery. Just what are my employers planning? How will this help in this mysterious war? But no, unfortunately you get given a 'sucks to be your character' answer to a mystery that just wasn't even that engaging, which in the process lets you down, both because there's no extra content segment and you're never going to get answers to the actual engaging mystery.

Look, I could go on but I'd just be expanding upon the same points. The gameplay is great, I'm just frustrated because I can see just how much potential this game has to be something so much greater than a short 45 minute horror game, not even just in the story but in gameplay too. The game gives you just enough time to get used to the gameplay loop and mechanics before it ends. If it had been longer and used the very solid foundations its gameplay loop provides to do more I could have kept playing for hours, I would invest so much time into this, you would not believe.

Anyway, I would recommend playing this to anyone, just. Please! I need more from this, the sheer potential is maddening!