Review: Eresys [PC]

Developed and published by Ares Dragonis Games, embark on a dark and Eldritch path. Search for the ancient texts and grab the power to fight against the evil from beyond the stars. Journey alone or with friends and survive the horrors of Eresys.

Once Upon a Midnight Dreary

You are part of a cult. A deranged former member of your cult has opened a portal on a secluded Island. This act of madness has unleashed otherworldly horrors and twisted monsters onto the island to cause a massacre. You are sent out by your elders to venture to the island. Your mission: to gather the sacred pages that had been scattered, gain the favor of their false god, and use the book to banish them. You will act on your own, or with the aid of your fellow cultists in order to achieve these dark goals. Such is the prelude of Eresys.

I would like to make an observation. I feel that a lot of the disliking of Eresys that I have seen from other sources, is mostly because of the art style. The art style is by no means bad, and I feel like it is being unfairly compared to other games. The sound design of the game is extremely well done, both in and out of stressful situations. It also boasts one of the most intricate and well design hub worlds I’ve seen in a long time. Some people may think the overall design is lacking, but honestly, I think it is atmospheric and well put together.

What is and isn’t Eresys?

At first glance it might be easy to disregard Eresys as another ghost hunting game. But the truth is it’s so much more than that. In fact, I would go so far as to say that this game is more akin to Slender and the Eight Pages meets Amnesia. Rather than go to a random location and look for a ghost, play the part of a cultist. A good cultist however, as we find out that bad cultists exist in this game. We need to scour the island, find a bunch of pages, and get rid of the evil entity. While doing so, we will be needed to avoid being spotted by horrific monsters.

There are a lot of other things you need to be aware of on your nighttime adventure. Other than looking for pages, you need to use the lantern to keep the monsters away. Most of the creatures will avoid you if you hone the light in on them. However, this is only most of the time, as there are some monsters who are attracted to the light. You are given a map that fills in with points of interest as you explore, these locations as far as I can tell are indifferent places in every game. This is the only real combat in the game, with you also being able to collect limited scrolls to stun monsters.

Behold my unholy Machinations

There are also moments in the game where enemies just don’t kill you. At one point I was staring at a tentacled monster, watching my vision blue and crack and then… Nothing. I didn’t die, or take damage, just motion sickness. Then I walked away, and it didn’t follow, and my vision went back to normal. Only to be rushed from nowhere in another time with no chance to react. Just, growl and suddenly, game over. Having gone insane not be a way to die, or really anything is a real disappointment. Instead, we focus on jump scares.

Eresys isn’t without plenty of faults. The AI that controls the monsters feels buggy at times, causing safe houses to end up being a death trap. And while the style is atmospheric, it is very easy for things to get almost too dark to see. The aberration effect that happens when you see too much can become very overwhelming. The map is also very big and for a solo play-through, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Especially because most of the area is just wide-open spaces with nothing to do but keep walking.

Final Thoughts

Eresys is an interesting fusion of ideas. Some might make the assumption it’s a Phasmophobia clone, but it’s really so much more. While the solo experience is rather daunting, the multiplayer aspect will make this game shine. It is by no means perfect, and it could use some much-needed TLC. But Eresys is not a bad game.

Eresys is available for PC through Steam. Review code provided by Dragonis Games.