About S.W.A.T Simulator:
S.W.A.N.: Chernobyl Unexplored is a memorable title with an interesting Sci-Fi twist on the Chernobyl disaster. Developed by Polish studio, Volframe, I was pleasantly surprised at not only how well constructed the game is, but how haunting and atmospheric it can be. Blending the truth between factual and fictional events, with scientific experiments gone wrong, parallel dimensions and more, my interest was piqued from start to finish. Pros + Fusing fact and fiction surrounding the events of Chernobyl to create an engaging narrative. + Excellent tension-building and ambience without relying solely on jump scares or chase scenes. + Considerable number of notes to give background story as well as factual documents on Soviet scientists etc. + Developers are actively responding to feedback and implementing improvements. Cons – Aimless wandering during the “combat” sections, waiting for the lightning and batteries to respawn. – Quite short for a hefty price tag $AU21.50. Story Set 9 months after the real Chernobyl catastrophe, a dedicated team of researchers from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology began receiving peculiar signals and anomalies from the radioactive area. This location had been entirely evacuated shortly after the disaster, thus the presence of these beacons signified that there may still be people needing help. This instigated an immediate expedition to the site. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2479773246 These mysterious signals were found to have come from the S.W.A.N (Syndrome Without A Name) Institute near Pripyat. This institute, led by Professor Kaydanovskiy, was involved in questionable research on the neurological and psychological symptoms surrounding never before studied medical conditions. My Thoughts Although the story is not something entirely new to the horror scene, I quite liked the blend between fact and fiction. It was not explicitly stated where the historic truth stops and when the Sci-Fi element begins, which made the game more appealing for me. Capitalizing on the Chernobyl event is nothing original, but continuously integrating factual information such as notes about famous Soviet scientists and then switching to the plot of government coverups of experiments, differing dimensions and ghostly beings really kept me interested. I believe it is also important to note that all of the in-game dialogue and notes are written in excellent English with little to no errors. For horror Indie enthusiasts like myself, you will know that this is indeed a RARE feat for developers outside of Western countries. The ending (without spoilers) was also a nice touch and somewhat unforeseen. However, given the current price, I would have liked to see the story fleshed out a bit more, with more detail about the specific experiments and maybe more of the patients turning up to haunt players. Giving the game a sense of danger as well as adding more variety. Gameplay S.W.A.N is quite a linear game with little actual danger to players, making it more of a walking simulator but with some minor puzzles and a handful of “combat” events. Majority of the game is spent wandering around the facility, picking up notes and absorbing the excellent, eerie atmosphere. At times, there is another path to travel, usually leading to an extra background note but overall, there is only one, clear designated path. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2479773125 Puzzles This may vary between individual players, but I found the puzzles to be exceptionally easy. Almost all of the code sequences can be found in the same room as their locked counterpart, which provides little challenge. There is slightly more thinking involved when having to control the light, deciding which areas to turn on and off to encourage the ghostly presence away from your route. I was not too bothered by this and personally prefer more logical puzzles like the game features, as opposed to outlandish riddles and continuous running back and forth. Yes, they are simple, but it allowed me to really soak in the story and my surroundings, without retracting from my immersion. “Combat” and Action Scenes Interestingly, gameplay is broken up into different sections and does not solely rely on exploration and note reading but does incorporate action scenes to remind players that there are imminent threats which can result in death, if not careful. Although these sections are in my opinion, the weakest component to the game, their inclusion is appreciated, nonetheless. Players will find themselves in the “Memory Wasteland”. This is one of the parallel dimensions whereby the “Mind Reader” gun is utilised. Without going into too much detail about the background behind this equipment, it is used to destroy thought particles. While in this dimension, parts of the floor begin to disappear and mysterious beings will chase players around the map, albeit very slowly. These enemies are extremely easy to avoid, as long as you keep moving. I never had to pay them any mind and just focused on gathering “ammo” and locating the thought particles. Perhaps one of the most disappointing aspects of the game was having to run around a confined area, waiting for these lightning particles to automatically respawn, all the while having to be on the constant look out for batteries. Without charge for the equipment, you cannot gather the lightning particles. Sometimes, up to 8 of these lightning units would be required to proceed to the next area. While you are on the forever hunt for lightning and batteries, there is a foreboding creature roaming around aimlessly. Yet, it poses no threat to players so I paid it no attention, but sometimes there are spirits which will randomly spawn and chase the protagonist. To eliminate them, players must use one of their preciously gathered lightning fragments. This became incessantly frustrating as I was just running around in circles, checking the same rooms over and over, waiting for the items to respawn. So naturally when I have to waste one of my resources, it only prolonged my endless and monotonous hunt, which was frustrating, not frightening. Graphics & Sound The game is dark and gritty, with the darkness only being alleviated by a small flicker of a torch to guide the way. Scare scenes are decently implemented through the classic flickering of lights, changing environment when players’ backs are turned and so forth. The outlines of the patients and figures are hazy, showing the faces as warped, disfigured, and contorting when in view. Communistic propaganda is scattered on the walls to resemble the historic period in which the game takes place, depicting the presence of the USSR. I quite liked this addition to the game as it really cemented the era in which the events take place. The posters are also never repeated and stood out, being the only colourful aspect to the game. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2479773386 Characters are fully voiced, and the soundtrack adds tension. Although the notes must be self-read, there are cassette tapes to find that depict some of the experiments taking place, giving further background story. Conclusion S.W.A.N is a great little horror that manages to achieve a lot through minimalistic methods and scares, whilst avoiding relying on tiresome mechanics such as jumpscares or endless chases. Although some of the action scenes leave more to be desired, the story is well constructed and finds its own niche place, merging fact and fiction. Whilst I enjoyed my experience, at $AU21.50 for approximately 4 hours of gameplay, I recommend this to all horror fans, at a decent sale. 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