Crisol: Theater of Idols

I play a lot of horror demos during each and every Steam Next Fest, and more often than not, games that I am unaware of make their way into my Wishlist. Crisol: Theater of Idols was a strange case that went the other way as Blumhouse’s latest game looked superb, but the demo emphasised an unkillable stalker enemy that felt at odds with the gunplay and atmosphere of the game. I kind of took my eyes off Crisol after that, but I am very happy to declare that I was wrong to do so. Having now spent the past few days absolutely immersed in the world of Crisol, I consider it to be one of my favourite...

A first-person survival horror game with a story steeped in Spanish history, folklore and religion, Crisol: Theater of Idols may borrow from the likes of Resident Evil but it manages to stand out thanks to its creepy enemies and clever blood bullet mechanic.

It is a pleasure to encounter games that make me remember my youth, and Crisol: Theater of Idols is the kind of game that makes me fondly remember the 90s. In a world of constantly-launching and failing live service games, forced multiplayer, battle passes, and other ways to milk the player dry, this is a single player game that you can play on your computer by yourself, which feels like a damn miracle to begin with. It’s also weird in the way that big titles aren’t allowed to be anymore,...

Let me get this out of the way: I might not be the biggest fan of Blumhouse as a studio (I prefer outings of theirs like Vengeance or BlacKkKlansman over, say, Paranormal Activity), but I really appreciate their production model, giving totally creative freedom and a wide theatrical distribution to up and coming filmmakers on a tighter budget. I was really intrigued with how well their production model would fare after the announcement of their videogame publishing label, Blumhouse Games, whi...

Crisol: Theatre of Idols is a good, but flawed, and often tense horror experience that’s absolutely worth stepping into.

Despite some of its frustrations and limitations, I mostly liked what Crisol: Theater of Idols is going for. The world is thoroughly conceived, impressively full of surreal detail and dark atmosphere. The game has at least one interesting combat trick to mess with, too. A sequel or big update might smooth out some rough mechanics, but as it stands, Crisol: Theater of Idols is worth a look for fans of first-person shooters or action-adventure games with puzzles, mysteries, and exploration.

Crisol: Theater of Idols is a solid horror FPS that does something interesting with its weaponry and health mechanic, featuring a fascinating world with creepy enemies.

Crisol isn't a perfect survival-horror game, but that's not to say that it's not a solid time overall. I really enjoyed Crisol's combat and though the levels are a little bloated, the game still delivers a fairly solid rendition of the classic survival-horror gameplay loop. Genre fans should definitely make sure to give it a look.

Crisol: Theater of Idols is a deeply polarizing game. While the game utilizes Spanish folklore to create a fantastic story with great characters, and is filled with fun mechanics that make its gunplay feel great, the issues with the frame rate, repetitive exploration, and lack of tension are enough to undermine the overall experience. As such, while I definitely recommend playing the game for yourself, it's not one I'll be replaying any time soon.

For a genre as tried and true as survival horror, I'm a big fan of fresh settings. I enjoy perspectives that I don't get to see very often and that's certainly the case with Crisol: Theater of Idols. From developer Vermila Studios and publisher Blumhouse Games, Crisol presents a unique central gameplay mechanic, some creepy enemies, and an intriguing narrative, albeit one that's dragged down by some irritating characters.

Neither great nor terrible, Crisol: Theater of Idols lands with a wet, inoffensive plop precisely between the two. It largely fails as a horror and struggles as a shooter, but stands solidly as a curiosity that follows its own rules.

Crisol: Theater of Idols is indebted to its horror-shooter forebears, but it can't match their coherence and tension, even at its best moments.