This is SUCH a unique fusion of genres, so I have massive respect for the devs for going all out... but I think the gameplay wasn't too fun for the first half. Although, I'm also nearly certain more horror fans will enjoy this than golf fans will, and I fall in the latter category.

That being said, the golf mechanics were surprisingly decent! The horror elements just became frustrating to me as the motivation of the player felt a bit too vague. When you come across [spoiler thing], why would you keep playing a round of golf? I think there are hints that the player-character is a bit psychotic, but it's not totally clear what the meaning of it all is, which is probably okay! It just makes it hard for the golf fan in me to enjoy.

I will say the second half this game kinda kicks ass, and frankly I wish more golf games would attempt something as bold as what this game does. Easily puts Super Rush to shame in terms of breaking the golfing mold, but I think the possibilities of the horror-golf genre, as well as the golf genre in general, are still out there.

(btw, I totally found out this game because of Jacob Geller, but I didn't actually watch the video yet)

It was just recently that I discovered this game through the activity of others buying it on steam. It looks intriguing, has a nice style, it seems polished even for the normal price of €10 and it’s 90% off. It was an easy buy. I’ve already completed it 100% after 3.5 hours. While I don’t regret getting it, I feel mixed about the package. All that I noticed still holds true but there is more behind the surface.

The gameplay is mostly going from room to room, find & examine notes, read them and create a memory out of them after you’ve found enough. You get to learn about a family from 300 years ago. It might help with saving humanity after a big collapse that wiped out most humans. Exploring rooms is similar to classic Resident Evil, only without the puzzles and fighting. You can find the notes on your own but you can also use the scanner that shows everything you can interact with, similar to how it works with The Thaumaturge (based on the demo I’ve tried of it). The map shows you whether you’ve read all the memories in each room and the collectibles you’re missing. There are also some very rare points where you can pick up items you need to reach new rooms but this is very automated. Sometimes you can’t pick up the items until the game tells you and shows you where they are in the map. Even when you get a code to unlock a door you don’t input the code yourself. Most of the game is lots and lots of reading. It’s not a novel but it’s still a lot. Exploring rooms and going to the next rooms offers a tiny bit of break in between.

As mentioned, the game has a great style, performance is fine, there is good attention to detail with objects and text, it sounds good whenever there is music (it happens in rare instances), I haven’t experienced any bugs, the game auto saves whenever you enter a room and you can always save manually. The writing is pretty decent and I was interested to know more about the family. The controls are fine whether it’s with mouse and keyboard or controller. I appreciate the quality of life options such as showing you the total collectibles on the map and which rooms you’ve seen the memories of. All in all, it’s a relaxing game that won’t frustrate you in any way.

That said, I would have liked a bit more gameplay. Some puzzles would have added a lot to the game and it would have been fitting too. Then there is the fact that there are no achievements. I prefer no achievements instead of having annoying achievements that ruin games but they can be motivating when they’re done right. I could have easily seen achievements related to the story, certain optional interactions and all the collectibles found etc getting added. And lastly, I’m not sold on some of the characters/interactions. There are 4 female and 3 male characters for the most part. Somehow, all the female characters are brilliant with their work, they’re obsessed with it and they’re often the boss in the relationship. There are multiple notes detailing their accomplishments and what they do for a living. The male characters on the other hand care more about the sentimental things, love is a higher priority to them, they often have more supportive roles and you don’t know much about their careers (one of them or their company is hinted at being involved with the collapse). There are certain dialogues that double down on the things I mentioned. If only 1 or 2 female characters were obsessed with work and same with 1 male character, then it would have been easier to accept. But the game is so one sided and unbalanced, that it affects the believability of the story. It’s a big deal when it’s the game’s focus.

I’ve been hesitating on whether to give this a positive or negative because of the characters. I went with positive in the end because the story is still interesting and it becomes less obnoxious near the end. The ending was satisfying and emotional. The game could have been better with more gameplay and achievements but what’s there is good enough if you enjoy reading. Give it a try if you’re willing to play it with the right expectations. The price is very cheap at the moment too, so there isn’t a lot to lose.