The debut game from hands-on one man developer Wheeler Whale is an observation and ‘spot the anomaly’ game set in the 1980s. Paranormal: Night Shift is intended to capture the feel of haunted house movies from decades past, according to developer Jordi. Find out if it lives up to its billing in our Paranormal Night Shift review.
In Paranormal: Night Shift, you play as a paranormal investigator who must visit the Sheffield family house after reports of strange goings-on throughout the residence.
Was that a face?
As you play you must identify and report anomalies by navigating the security camera-screen layout. This type of mechanic has been used extensively in this sub-genre, most notably Five Nights at Freddy’s. The anomalies that occur vary in size, and change each time you play.
One playthrough may see you observing a piece of floating furniture, while the next may just see you needing to identify a small and – seemingly – insignificant item change colour or location. All changes are reported simply by holding the mouse button down until a message of recognition comes from your off-site partner, Gary.
Special attention must be paid to Gary and his commentary, as he informs the player that there are more anomalies even when the player can’t see them. This proves extremely helpful, as missing the multiple anomalies and allowing them to compound, results in climactic consequences.
On your first play, the game is incredibly difficult. However upon revisits, the differences become more and more apparent. The end goal is to, of course, survive the night and rid the house of the presence haunting it: this is much easier said than done as the presence is aware of your existence and will try everything it can to rid the house of you, whatever it takes.
There’s a chill in the air
The atmosphere in Paranormal Night Shift is palpable. Paranormal Night Shift develops and evolves its atmosphere through the clever use of lights and camera trickery. The décor of the haunted house is average and run-of-the-mill. It could conceivably be one that you see yourself living in or visiting if you live in the UK. It is this very feeling of ‘everyday’ that makes the game so successful at suspense building, and eventually terrifying the pants off of you. Each of the rooms present in a standard laissez-faire fashion, with bedsheets being left untucked, plates left unclean and toothpaste tubes strewn about the sink.
Wait… did you hear that?
The lack of music throughout the game only serves to build further tension. This feeds into the environmental paranoia as every creak, crackle, and click instils fear in you as you play. The occasional interruptions by your partner serve to remind you that you aren’t truly truly alone. However, it also reminds you that you are at the mercy of the ghost that haunts the residence.
We need an Exorcist
Paranormal: Night Shift is a perfect love-letter for horror movies of yore. The challenging gameplay, immersive atmosphere and spine-tingling feel of the narrative make it a needle that thoroughly stands out in the haystack of observation games. From start to finish, Paranormal: Night Shift keeps you on the edge of your-seat and doesn’t release its icy grip until the very bitter end.
