Clive Barker's Undying (PC) Review

Patrick Galloway. Soldier. Investigator of supernatural events. Irish hunk. He has been summoned back to his country from an old war buddy, who needs help with a problem that he was reluctant to explain in his letter. Why, though? Pat has seen his fair share of bizarre phenomena. After all, what can be weirder than Eastern warlocks, magic stones, and beasts that hunt you down from another dimension? How can a "family curse" be any worse? Well, it just so seems that it can. The hero disembarks in a deserted port, and gazes upon the distant mansion of the Covenants - enshrouded in such darkness that it feels as if the protagonist has just arrived at Dracula's castle in Transylvania.

Entering the mansion makes it clear that the Unreal Tournament engine this runs on has seen a decade or two. Despite the flaws here and there, though, the view is great. You can almost "smell" how old these walls are, and feel the humidity in your skin, as if you are truly there, under the heavy clouds that hide the night sky. Now, while there are lots of beautiful vistas to enjoy, not all locales have seen equal care. Some are downright dull. Walking towards the room of your friend is such an occasion… but then a man appears only to vanish again. Moments later the man reappears; skinless, he feints an attack with the hooks that are attached to his flesh, and scares the bejesus out of you.

This first-person shooter can indeed be scary, but not through jump-scares or gore. There are some "traditional" horror elements to be found here, sure, but these are actually the weakest part of the whole thing. This is mainly a game of atmosphere, and if there's something that Clive Barker's Undying excels at, that's definitely atmosphere. Note that it is a relatively slow burn, which builds its unsettling mood without any hurry, with plenty of "calm," moments where it's just you, the sound of your own two feet, the wind that blows through the windows… and the howling of creatures in the distance. There's plenty of interesting, and deeply engrossing reading to be spooked by as well.

Apart from the odd cut-scene and environmental storytelling - mainly through a spell that peeks into the past - you'll mostly learn about what's going on through journals. Written by Barker himself, rest assured that you'll enjoy every single sentence of those. What is actually happening here, though? Well, the story revolves around a curse that started when the Covenant children once read an incantation, while inside a circle of monoliths called the Standing Stones, distorting their minds and bodies in unimaginable ways. The task given by your friend, Jeremiah Covenant, has you searching for their whereabouts, despite them being… well, dead for quite some time now.

In essence, this is a hunt for four (plus one) bosses, which all have their own theme, both in terms of level design and atmosphere, as well as enemies confronted. Expect many of Clive Barker's staples, plus some Lovecraftian vibes... but take away the weird sex usually involved in the author's works. Secret cults, and forbidden knowledge revolving around the supernatural? Check. Otherworldly, dreamlike dimensions that defy logic, as well as physics? Check. Demonic creatures that relentlessly hunt you down? Check. Lack of consistency? Double check. Yeah, Clive Barker's Undying's direction and pacing is a bit all over the place - and the best example is the way the chapters have been handled.

The first of the Covenant children that the player will hunt down is Lizbeth, the vampire-like cutie that has unleashed the game's cannon fodder (and coolest foe), the Howlers - which, by the way, were Rottweilers before their transformation into gargoyle-like beasts, so it's not like they were pushovers before. By far the best chapter, it kind of loses its footing when it begins to side-track, both times to offer a useful weapon. The realms you'll visit to do so are great and all, but they sort of break the pacing in a very non-immersive way, by having you stop the chase, and make you question why you are back into the past killing monks, instead of Howlers in creepy mausoleums.

The rest of the chapters are even worse, sadly. The second Covenant in line is a pirate of sorts, so this part lacks the atmosphere of the Lizbeth segment, as you are now killing middle-eastern magicians inside a lame underground lair, rather than monsters and undead inside ancient crypts - and it's a surprisingly short segment too; the third takes place in a weird, alien realm Patrick briefly visited before, and it's more about simple platforming and puzzle-solving; the fourth almost ends before it begins; and, finally, the fifth, although not bad, is the worst of the bunch, as it is a linear, repetitive level that forgets the storytelling aspect altogether - and please don't ask questions about the finale...

Unbalanced is the key word here, and sadly that continues with the actual gameplay. As an example, take the first hour or so, which is all about fighting the dog-demons mentioned before. These fellows go down easily, but can cut your flesh like it's nothing. They are fast, attack in packs, and can make some quick and long leaps - in other words, battles against them can get enjoyably tense. Sadly, they can also get annoying, due to a damage system that either has them dying in one shot, or eating bullets like it's nothing. Their sharp claws also seem to cut a bit further than they should, which will lead to plenty of aggravation whenever a sidestep doesn't really manage to avoid a hit.

Then there are those aspects of the game that, while not bad, feel kind of underutilised, or simply didn't spend enough time in the oven. Patrick is able to wield a weapon on his left hand, and spellcast with his right. So, he has revolvers, shotguns, and even ice-spitting canons, working in unison with blasts of ectoplasm, energy shields, shrieking, exploding skulls summoned from the bowels of the earth (what you've read), and more, but the way they've been handled force players to mostly stick to just a few of them, and only use the rest in those situations when they sort of have to. Again, it's a matter of inconsistency, lack of balance, as well as polish. Sometimes using these is awesome. Sometimes it's… ok.

Concerning the level design, it will initially makes you feel that you can actually explore the large mansion and the surrounding landscape, but in reality this is full of linear paths with tons of doors and gates that have Patrick say "Stuck. Won't budge" every time he tries to open them, killing the mood after 10 or so repeats. In practice this lowers replay value of the game, which wasn't really that high to begin with. It is a shame, really, as some of the best areas are those that are bit less constricting. Surprisingly, and even after all these issues, this remains a pretty exciting journey. Players who'll manage to stomach the cons, will get to enjoy some pretty strong pros.

At its worst, the story is very poorly handed, not realising its true potential. At its best, it's a riveting tale that gets more interesting with every passing hour, making the player thirsty to learn more of the world and its characters. Some parts of this mystical odyssey could use some fine-tuning, yet, from the dark corners of the Covenant estate and the bleak archipelago that surrounds it, to the flying ruins swimming in the red skies of Oneiros, and the endless waterfalls and clouds of the Eternal Autumn, this is an audio-visual treat. In the end, this is an experience. It's one that's extremely rough around the edges, but an unforgettable one, nonetheless.