Before the Night (Nintendo Switch) Review

Before the Night starts off relatively innocently. Lisa is an ordinary human, owned by her equally normal rabbit. The animal world where they resided together looks almost exactly like the human world: Lisa is not kept in a hutch but in a loving house with a bed that the two of them shared. Her desire to reunite with Alice seems reasonable, if the whole idea of bringing the owner back from the dead can be overlooked. The tale is told in three ways; there are normal cutscenes and monster free levels that provide essential background information and there are the fully playable chapters. All three types combine to tell Lisa and Alice's life story.

Upon opening players are greeted by a simple menu system which sadly does not allow previous levels to be replayed without restarting the game. The PC origins where a mouse was used are evident, as although Lisa moves about using the joystick there is a directional arrow facing whichever way Lisa is moving. It is a redundant element of the design which would have looked better in the 2D style graphics if it had been removed for the console version.

Most of the action is running around, with some crouching behind both permanent and temporary hiding places to avoid being caught by rabid bunnies whose touch can kill. While played on the easiest setting the player starts with four life hearts, the hardest of the five difficulties has merely one heart, requiring even more stealth as one touch will mean instant death. Upon being killed the level is automatically restarted but unfortunately all items gained from that and other levels are permanently removed which was frustrating at times, even though each level contains all that is needed to surpass it. The difficulty can be changed during game play, and there are three save files that each hold a separately play through.

At the start the levels are mostly easy to navigate, with normal enemies who can be killed with collectable weapons like a hammer, and the occasional demented lupin which nothing can kill so hiding in bushes when it scurries near helps avoid detection. Later on, the difficulty increases as those bushes can disappear after a few moments. The level exit often requires a specific number of what are best described as beacons to be unlocked, which can require creative thinking; Killing ordinary creatures provides unusual materials that are needed to unlock some doors or to swap items with NPCs needed to reach said beacons. The combination of the sometimes serene and sometimes highly atmospheric music with the sound effects as creatures move about absolutely heighten the intensity of the drama. Turning off the effects makes it less frightening but then it is impossible to know how far away the invincible enemy is as it wanders off screen when it hasn't detected Lisa.

The puzzles are predominantly easy to solve, with the hardest part avoiding detection by all who wish Lisa harm. There are some harmless NPCs who look cute and occasionally provide help. Part way through the ability to 'hop' which is more a fast side-step appears with an extremely cute outfit change, making it easier to evade the ever-increasing number of obstacles set on doing Lisa harm. The so-called Flowers of Life, once touched, can cause the entire level to change in atmosphere and summon the unbeatable Foe.

The story itself is extremely well written, getting more macabre as time passes. The dark humour is hilarious, especially when events like neutering pet humans is explained in both the procedure and the after effects. From Lisa's view much of the adventure is morbid, she has one goal which she never strays from but the tale is not as simple as it first seems, and by the end it was quite hard to discern what was true and what might have been imagined. The initial major enemies have a reason behind their terrifying behaviour, one which is intrinsically linked to Lisa. Gameplay time will vary depending on skill level in figuring out the puzzles but should average five to ten hours, and some may be limited to playing during actual daylight to reduce the scare factor.