Detention is one of my favourite horror games, a gorgeous 2D adventure with surreal-horror vibes and deeply rooted in Taiwanese history and traditions. The game was developed by Red Candle Games and highly praised by the critic (and also by me, here is my review: Detention review: a surreal-horror poem). Devotion is the second game of the studio, an even more horror game, deeply rooted in 1980s Taiwan, released on STEAM back in February 2019, and again achieving very positive reviews. As you probably are aware, the game got attacked for political reasons, and was retired from the store. Before that happened, I didn’t have the time to try the game, but I am glad to say that finally the game is back and can be bought from the official Red Candle Games shop.
But let’s forget about the past insanity to talk about the game itself. Devotion is a first-person horror adventure focused on puzzles and on experiencing the tense atmosphere. The game is almost entirely set in a building, or better an apartment, in 1980s Taiwan. The game will tell a story in a complex chronological order, starting from 1980 and jumping back and forth between 1985 and 1986. Devotion is a surreal maze with complex storytelling, where notes, symbolic scenes, and TV shows with real actors portray a familiar drama rooted in Taiwanese society.
From the gameplay point of view, Devotion is a classic first-person adventure. The player will explore the house solving different puzzles, never too difficult, and often based on using the correct item in the correct place. A lighter can be used to discover the darkest places and hidden items. Especially in the beginning, the game is quite linear, but will open toward the half to more complex puzzles, connecting different rooms in different times, where each puzzle will affect the past or future. Those sections are a bit affected by the walking speed, which is often very slow, especially when backtracking in different locations. But the game will always have new surprises, and a 2D platformer mini-game with a very nice art-style could be behind the corner.
The plot is like a spiral, a series of complex events connected by notes, symbolism, and cryptic scenes, which will unveil a complicated familiar story that will mix with mysticism, religious fanaticism, and social pressure.
The graphic is really gorgeous, and every room is full of details and environmental storytelling. From pictures to books or drawings on the walls, the claustrophobic corridors of the old apartment are a constant discovery for those who appreciate details. The shadows are intelligently built to enhance the spooky atmosphere of each room, and the sounds are the last element for the perfect atmosphere. Sometimes, it is a laugh, a cry, or the wind, but the sound-system is constantly there both to guide the player and to build an oppressive atmosphere. The apartment is the real core and protagonist of the experience, a mutable place rich in details and information. Just by pointing at a specific element, the game will provide lore about that element, it could be a specific lucky-charm fish or a wall to measure the height of kids.
The apartment is like an ever-changing nightmare, reflecting the surreal nature of the game. Sometimes, just by turning a second, the place will completely mutate, generally in a more disturbing way. The flat will evolve in dozens of different ways, sometimes to reflect the different timelines, other times to tell a specific event. And on few occasions, it will change to terrify the player.
Devotion is a masterpiece of surrealism and symbolic scenes. The same corridor will suddenly shift in a colorful world of children’s drawings, or a carousel of clapping dolls. Also don’t trust items and puzzles, because you will never guess which visionary scene will play after solving it. Because in Devotion, nothing is like its appearance. But every disturbing and creepy scene is there for a specific reason, it has a strong purpose and it encodes the symbolism of the story. One of the most interesting experiments is the use of creepy dolls to tell the story. This has the double meaning of providing a more horror atmosphere, but also creating, at least in the beginning, a detachment from the events of the game. But this will not last long, and a weird sense of empathy will emerge. For example, the child doll will be a very creepy detail in the beginning, but after listening to the crying of a child and seeing the doll covered in needles, it will be impossible to don’t feel sad for what the doll is representing. And this will clash even more when the game will start to use real actors to portray scenes on the TV, or pictures of real people on the walls, shrinking the distance between surreal and mundane. It is worth saying that Devotion is a very intelligent game, which knows how to tell a story, pushing the right buttons and using the correct abstractionism.
Devotion is a game that will sneak under your skin, a deep, dramatic, uncomfortable, and terrifying experience. The game is scarier than Detention, building a constant oppressive atmosphere made of feeble sounds and mutable environments. Every new sound is highlighting a possible change in the environment, and potential new scares around the apartment. A doll may be changing position, or the nice lights that were hanging in the house could be now eyeballs. There is no limit or expectation on what could happen each time the player enters again in a room. The atmosphere itself is oppressive and claustrophobic, like the tight corridors of the building, and will get more disturbing the closer to the final revelation. Some scenes are particularly intense, especially for how mentally challenging is to accept what is happening. Devotion also perfectly portrays enduring a tough situation, such for example having a panic attack. The game has also few but effective jump scares, and an unexpected chasing sequence, which for sure are adding even more terror to the already effective formula.
Devotion is a window on 1980s Taiwan as much as Detention was for 1960s. Every detail from the setting is part of the Taiwanese culture of that time, and the apartment is a self-contained micro-world full of information. The building itself is based on a real-life edifice, while the lore collected around the houses will help to understand, for example, the situation in schools or hospitals, or will portray interesting traditions that many foreign players don’t know. For example, it was very interesting to discover here how reaching one year for a baby is an important celebration, where different items are set in front of the baby, from a pen to an onion, and the item that the child will select will determine his/her career. Religion is a fundamental element in the twisted plot of Devotion, enriched with a multitude of traditions, items, and legends. Since religion is approached with a very critical eye about fanaticism, the developers created a fictional religion trying to use anyway religious elements common in Asia, creating a new and believable fictional cult.
In general, the overall experience is intense and well-balanced experience. The ending is effective and touching, but, at least for me, a bit rushed toward the end, and I was left watching the last scene thinking “is this the ending?” Devotion is not a long game, around 3 hours, but the experience is well-packed and complete, feeling anyway satisfied and enriched by the overall journey.
Devotion is finally back to be enjoyed by everybody. An intense and involving journey that will scare and move the player, a beautifully portrayed experience that truly embraces the words “surreal and creepy.” Detention and Devotion are two games to be played side by side, offering surreal-horror experiences in different times, but always touching mature and informative topics, often rooted in Taiwanese history and tradition.
Devotion is available DRM-free on the official store of Red Candle Games, which can be found HERE.
Surreal and Creepy 