The British video game developer Supermassive Games is best known for the Interactive storytelling horror titles Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology. Following the success of its collaboration with Bandai Namco, the studio has teamed up with 2K to once again hark back to the horror genre by creating a classic thriller. This time, The Quarry will include a cast of familiar faces. It certainly takes a long time to get going, and then it's hard to keep it going with such a large cast spread out across so many different plotlines. If anything seemed to be moving forward for a long time, it would abruptly shift gears, jumping between people and plot points, creating an unsettling sense of impending doom that would never entirely subside.

The Quarry is primarily a slasher, a genre characterized by its use of an often-masked murderer pestering and killing groups of people. While the game also incorporates many aspects from other subgenres of the horror genre, resulting in a jumble of concepts that, despite the game's bizarre premise, it worked pretty well. The idea of interactive games is not at all new. It emphasizes decision-making, with the odd fast time event and, in this instance, limited exploring component. Every deed has consequences, and in most cases, in addition to determining the connections between characters, those repercussions also determine whether or not a character lives or dies.

The events of the game take place in Hacket's Quarry, the location of a summer camp for teenagers. This is where the game's characters first come into contact with one another in their roles as freshly arrived camp counselors. When the group is forced to remain at the lodge at Hacket's Quarry for one night longer than they should have due to a car breaking down, what was supposed to be a season filled with summertime fun quickly transforms into one filled with violence and horror. A series of poor choices and ineffective communication of warnings lead to a terrifying night that involves local hunters, ghost tales, and a mysterious creature that poses a danger to life.

In The Quarry, we will be in charge of managing nine primary characters. The story will be seen through each character and the perspectives of each of these individuals. There are several possible destinations in the end, and they shift based on whether we find everyone still living when we get there if we find them all dead, or in some other exponential spot in between. Since 70% of the game will be based on scenarios that alter according to the results of the choices, these final minutes will only take place in a few select locations. In most cases, the characters will discuss a particular topic, and two different choice paths will become apparent throughout those dialogues. These paths will influence the direction of the events to follow, either to a larger or smaller degree.

Keeping in mind that we influence nine people as the game begins, we can determine how many different paths the tale may take. For the most part, your reaction to this first chapter will rely on your patience with the group of teenagers you're trying to rescue. The story follows a somewhat similar path to Until Dawn. This occurs against the backdrop of an interpretation with several odd plot twists, some of which are unexpected and others relatively predictable. Counselors are a mismatched bunch of teenagers who sound like they've swallowed a Wiki, ranging from somewhat annoying to downright annoying. When the blood begins to flow, the characters become a lot more entertaining to hang around with.

While getting frustrated with the outcome of a wrong decision taken earlier is easy, The Quarry has included a new feature intended to alleviate this form of annoyance. The Death Rewind mechanism provides us with three lives, each of which enables us to take control of a recently deceased character and go back in time to the moment when they made the choice that ultimately led to their demise. One good aspect of this approach is that it forces us to make the difficult decision of prioritizing the people and things that are most important to us.

If I save a character's life right now, would I eventually miss out on the opportunity to save another that I find more appealing? These choices may become a Damocles sword while adding depth to the experience. When we have the power to make the ultimate choice, the price of life takes on a more tangible quality. If you don't pay for the game's special edition, you won't be able to use this mechanism until after the game is complete. This isn't very pleasant since the special edition obscures what is probably the only new element in terms of the gameplay.

The game also introduced various tarot cards in the scenarios we will uncover. These cards will be helpful for the decision-making that will take place shortly. Therefore, while investigating the possible outcomes, it is essential to check every angle to come across one; these steps are required, so one does not go aimlessly down the path. We will use the cards when transitioning between the game's ten chapters. There's the option of using simply one card or none at all; the choice is determined by whether someone desires a pleasant or unpleasant surprise.

Each chapter of the game has a reasonable length; the first lap alone will take up at least eight hours. The game will essentially put players in charge of steering characters through the various dialogue options for the first few hours. There are many very fantastic stand-out performances. It's rather enjoyable getting to know the characters and their backstories since the cast is undoubtedly good. Even listening to the murmurs of ominous locals if enjoyable who seemed to be mumbling something strange to themselves. To counter that, though the cast is strong, some of the dialogue is tedious and pointless in many cases. Also, a few big-name castings hardly appear, which is a bit of a pity given the talent involved.

The Quarry, however, doesn't provide many discussion points regarding the actual gameplay. Things like pressing a button repeatedly or playing a quick-time event might make you anxious when the situation becomes intense. In this sort of game, the quick-time events might be the difference between life and death—a split-second decision to make the difference in many high-stakes situations. If you miss one of them, you'll be out of luck for the rest of the game. Move the stick in one direction or hit a button, and you'll have plenty of time to accomplish it either way.

Although, compared to Until Dawn, these sequences seem to have been simplified and made more challenging to mess up. They also can be turned off entirely in the preferences menu, which is a helpful accessibility tool for anybody who may need it. During moments of exploration, the game forces the player to manage both the stiff movement of the character and the ungainly torch glowing simultaneously.

Perhaps this was done on purpose to provide an element of challenge. It is not unnatural for a horror game to have challenging gameplay, which adds another layer to the sensation of powerlessness and dread that the player is experiencing. However, if this was a decision made intentionally, they may have taken things a little too far in The Quarry. Specific sequences and forced camera angles were challenging to manipulate, and the surroundings were often quite gloomy, neither of which helped to make the exploring experience satisfying. However, it did make things more frightening.

The Quarry has a distinct overarching storyline and several subplots, not all of which are cohesively connected, leaving the player at times with considerable uncertainty to advance the story ahead. Similarly, the game brings new characters with a reasonably developed narrative and encourages us to get to know them. Regardless of our choices, the new character must make an appearance at a pivotal time in the game if they are going to play a significant role in the action. Because of this, the situation's outcome seemed irrelevant sometimes, even though it occurred at the most dramatic part of the story.

The variety of multiplayer options from previous Supermassive titles is welcomed as usual. Couch co-op is a lot of fun since you can have as many characters as you like for each participant in the room. This most recent feature is pretty intriguing since it means streamers can interact more directly with that audience. In addition, a Movie mode lets players watch the narrative unfold without having to do anything other than picking one of three outcomes: everyone survives, everyone is killed, or a unique outcome can be chosen.

The technological leap in The Quarry compared to the Supermassive Games titles that came before it is not too stunning but noteworthy. Though, unquestionably, the game has excellent graphics, especially the characters are pretty convincing. The visuals and the music are notable due to how the environments, characters, and color schemes were created. Even though, in terms of visuals, Until Dawn was released in 2015, it is apparent that this game has the potential to have more to offer, especially considering that it is coming out on new-gen platforms. Furthermore, the game's audio design meets the fundamental instrument of horror movies, which, despite their visual authenticity, does create the environment Supermassive Games wanted.

The Quarry may not be quite as memorable as Until Dawn. Although it shares many stereotypes with Until Dawn, the game remains an entertaining watch despite its resemblance. Unfortunately, the gameplay and general layout of the game haven't made the leap expected by the fans of this genre. The narrative doesn't provide anything too exciting, and the lack of direct influence over the characters' movements creates a bleak experience. It's undoubtedly a game that keeps you on the edge of your seat with its combination of mystery and dread. On the other hand, it's far from bringing any revolution to this genre in terms of gameplay elements.
 

Azfar Rayan (@AzfarRayan)
Editor, NoobFeed