Downward Spiral: Horus Station

With choices between flat or VR, solo or co-op, and Explore vs. Engage, Downward Spiral: Horus Station can be tailored to the player's preference. I found the solo VR mode to be an amazing VR experience that amply demonstrated the incredible immersion value of VR in a spooky, broken space station. The Engage mode, which translates to "you get shot a lot" when playing, was not as compelling - the shooting aspects weren't all that good and served only to detract from the somber, creepy mood.

No summary available

Downward Spiral: Horus Station is a first person atmospheric puzzler. Its main draw is its fully three dimensional movement system as, on this doomed and dead space station, things have gone very wrong - including gravity. Downward Spiral delights in giving many options to players to experience it how they choose. Floating through Horus Station’s dormant corridors, the player must solve puzzles and fight hostile security drones to reactivate its systems and ultimately resolve the astronaut’s lonesome dilemma.

Despite Downward Spiral: Horus Station’s faults, there’s enough here to show promise in 3rd Eye Studios. With a game or two more under its belt, the team could definitely deliver something great. Downward Spiral’s environmental storytelling works if you’re willing to look for it, but if you miss too much information, it’ll be hard to work out what you’re doing – or even why you’re doing it. Perhaps in VR, wandering around in zero gravity will be a little more fun, but the combat will probably still disappoint.

Finnish developer 3rd Eye Studios has borrowed and plucked a wealth of talent from both the video game and movie industry in order to help craft its debut title, Downward Spiral: Horus Station, but it hasn’t really worked. Boasting of past projects like Alan Wake, Quantum Break, Trials, and films Gravity and Prometheus may turn one or two heads, but the final product will leave a lot to be desired. Downward Spiral: Horus Station is an incredibly middling experience that is almost completely devoid of any excitement whatsoever.

Downward Spiral: Horus Station is a unique take on zero gravity that feels fairly true to what it would be like. The trouble is this makes for a dull experience when not in VR. While everything feels as though it fits well, the trouble is that the abhorrent camera speed makes the only real challenge looking at things. The combat isn’t hard, but still manages to be frustrating. In VR the experience may well be completely different, but without that hook, the game is an easy pass.