Developer: Joe Fender & Luke Fanning
Publisher: Straight Back Games
Platform: PC
Tested on: PC
Devour – Review
If you are looking for a co-op horror with a good story and strategic gameplay, then you have come to the right place! Screaming alone is one thing, screaming as a squad and running as if your lives depend on it, is another. Luckily, screaming and running is not the only thing you can do in this game. Playing strategically while depending on one another to achieve the main goal is crucial. Devour is all about the thrill of not being caught, but at the same time using the necessary tools to complete your goal, either alone or with your team. Sadly, even with the right atmosphere and a good concept, Devour is not winning any trophies.
Story
The story is about Anna Puerta, a cult leader of ‘The Watchers of Azazel’. At some point, Anna became so obsessed with summoning the Goat demon Azazel, that she would give anything to achieve this goal. This included performing different ghastly rituals inscribed in ancient texts. Mysteriously, Anna disappears, and the members of the cult believe that maybe she has succeeded with the summoning, yet at the same time, something might have gone terribly wrong. As a member of the cult, you have to go to her house and solve the mystery that will soon pop up.
The story is presented with a short cinematic narration by a woman explaining what might be the cause of Anna’s sudden disappearance. The events take place in Anna’s house in Coyote Valley, California. With the help of spread-out diary pages, the player is further introduced to the story of what really happened to Anna. The game has a fairly progressive storyline. The more one focuses on the main objective, the faster the pace of the game will be. There are no monologues or dialogues, as the game and its story are purely serving the purpose of surviving. The game has that campfire horror charisma to it.
Graphics
The game has pretty basic graphics, best being described as ‘nothing too fancy’. We tested Devour on an old 540m mobile graphics chip and it still ran pretty fluidly. The game can be considered dated by modern standards, but this also makes it accessible for some. There are several settings that might boost one’s graphical performance if turned off, but we reckon it’s best to start looking into buying a better PC if that is the case when playing this game. Outside of the already dated visuals, the game also needs a bit of bug-fixing and a heavy layer of polish. We noticed bugs with windows disappearing and other things you’d expect from a project, not a full-blown release.
Sound
The sound did give a certain horror experience when wearing headphones, but not as much as other recent horror titles. What sparked our interest were the ambient sounds coming from the surrounding habitat. Yet, there is also room for improvement here too. There was no transition between the two ambient tracks being played in the background when the player is outside in the open. One track would end with a slight pause and then the next one would play immediately without any subtle transition. Nearing a closed door or window would also pause or stop the ambient track, making it feel like somebody just pressed the pause button. While being chased by enemies, the background tracks do give a great horror vibe, where one’s adrenaline levels start rising.
Gameplay
Devour is a co-op horror survival game. It can be played either in a single-player format or multiplayer, with up to 4 players. The main goal of the game is to burn 10 locked-up goats at the demon summoning altar, while running for your life from different enemies. These ghoulish monsters will spawn progressively after a certain count of sacrifices. To defeat the enemies, the players are given flashlights with a UV switch, albeit with a cooldown. The UV light will burn the basic goons, but it can also stun the main enemy that lurks around the house.
The main enemy will be enraged each time a goat is sacrificed. The aforementioned UV light will only serve as a temporary stun. While our above description might make it seem as if all the goats are easily reachable, this is not the case. You’ll also have to find keys. Finding keys means opening new rooms, thus finding more cages filled with sacrifices. Sacrificing 10 goats will mean the end of the game. Straws of wheat will lure goats at the location the wheat is dropped and from there you’ll simply have to pick up the goat and handle the task at hand. For healing, there are medkits scattered across the map, allowing you to recover when needed. The spawning of items is infinite, which is a plus for longer matches. When playing in multiplayer, players can set objectives for each other. Working as a team can be fun, but to win, a proper strategy is key. Playing the game in a team kind of resembles the Mystery Machine gang from the old Scooby-Doo series. The controls are pretty basic and feel native to the touch. Jumping did feel somewhat awkward, but as it also reveals your position because of the noise that accompanies this action, it’s not really used in the game.. The game also provides partial controller support.
Conclusion
Devour is a co-op survival horror game that has a proper campfire horror story behind it. That being said, the quality of the graphics allows you to run the game on a glorified toaster, meaning it’s often not hat much to look at. The soundtrack was sufficient for the experience, but its somewhat half-assed implementation took away from the game’s immersion. The gameplay has a great idea behind it, allowing you to experience proper horror in a multiplayer format. The main goal is clear and using the right strategy can mean a win for anyone, be it alone or together. That being said, while certainly amusing for a while, especially with friends, the game does become a bit bland after a while and never truly taps into its hidden potential.
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