"Song of Horror", alpha demo gameplay impressions

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Last night, I played Protocol Games third person story-driven survival horror game “Song of Horror” for over two hours (you will find the game play video further down the page). So I´m going to share my thoughts, opinions and impressions on the alpha demo of “Song of Horror” with you here and now (the game made me think about a combination of “X-Files“, Slender Man and old school “Silent Hill“, “Resident Evil” and “Alone in the Dark”). So let´s get the show on the road shall we? Well, for starter, the setting and the atmosphere are really scary. As you get the great pleasure to explore a haunted house which is full of paranormal terrors.

And It didn´t take all that long before I started to feel (and experience) all the horrors of “Song of Horror” either (I actually caught quite a few of them on camera as well). In fact, as soon as you step inside of the house you immediately get this feeling that you´re being watched (or that something is very wrong with the house in question). So yeah, I got paranoid after just a minute or two while playing the game. However, in this case paranoia is a good thing. As you constantly have to be on your guard (your ears and your flash light are your very best friend in “Song of Horror). And why is that? It´s because there is “something” really evil in the house that wants to do you harm. And as far as I know, you can only hide and run away from these horrors (not fight it) in the alpha demo.

song of horror some light in the darkness

The flashlight is your very best friend in “Song of Horror”.

Nevertheless, I would still feel somewhat unsafe, even if I could have fought the darkness that exists within the house. As the evil spirit (or whatever it is) has a teleport-like ability which allows it to teleport all over the place. I´m not exaggerating either, as the “thing” literally stalks you around where ever you may go. So no matter where you run or hide, the creature will always be one step behind you. And that forces you (the player) to think and act really fast in order to stay alive, let´s just say that there is no time to waste. So you have to pay very close attention to the things that really matter, things such as clues and useful items (as far as I know though. There is no use for any of the items which are to be found in the alpha demo, as the items are simply there for demonstration purposes). Speaking of which, the detail levels are very high in “Song of Horror”, and the graphics look great (the game runs on the Unreal Engine). And that makes the game even scarier, as everything feels more authentic and real.

I wouldn´t recommend you to play “Song of Horror” if you´re afraid of the dark.

I actually got quite surprised over “Song of Horror´s” advance in-game physics, because when I picked up a kitchen towel I could, in fact, fondle around with and inspect it with a very high level of details and realism. It was a pleasant surprise for sure, as it “might” be something that could turn “Song of Horror” into a truly unique survival horror game (if that feature is used and done right). For example, I could imagine solving some really cool and advance puzzles or combining items with the help of the in-game physics engine.

I´m also quite sure that Protocol Games could create some really scary things with it´s help as well (just imagine that girl from “The Grudge” crawling down the stairs in the haunted house in “Song of Horror” for example, that would be creepy to the max for sure!). With that said, I´m rather impressed by “Song of Horror so far. However, there is something’s which I would like to address as well. And “hopefully” it´s something which will help Protocol Games to make an even more awesome horror game. Before I do that though, I would like to mention a cool feature which I forgotten to tell you guys (and girls) about earlier.

And that would be the “Song of Horror´s” flashlight function, because you control the flashlight via your mouse (you can point the flashlight in any direction you want, as the character in the game will tilt his or her hand in the direction that you point your mouse towards). Sure, it may not be a “big” thing, but it sure added a lot to the gameplay experience, in my opinion. As the flashlight feature allows you to cast light in a 360 degree angle (you will probably have a great use for that in the full version of the game).

I don´t know why, but this particular picture made me think about “The Evil Dead”.

Anyhow, this would be my feedback (which is based on the alpha demo of “Song of Horror) to Protocol Games:
1. The controls (keyboard + mouse) are somewhat stiff for PC in my opinion
2. There need to be more randomized jump scare moments
3. Take more advantage of the setting in the haunted house (use more psychological horror elements, flickering lights, scary shadows, sounds, things that move, etc.)
4. A map would be nice (at least I couldn´t find one in the game)
5. Some more scary and creepy atmosphere music would be nice

Well, that was at least everything that I could come up with at this very moment. Nevertheless, “Song of Horror” has a lot of potential with no doubt. So “if” Protocal Games play their cards out right, then they “might” create the next big survival horror title for sure. With that said, don´t forget to check out our gameplay video of “Song of Horror” down below!