Observer: System Redux [Xbox]

I never played Observer the first time round, back in 2017. I liked the look of it, but being that it was listed as a “psychological horror game” coming from Bloober Team - the devs behind Layers of Fear - my inner scaredy-cat put me off. I’ve been trying to push myself to play more horror games, and have been working my way through Observer: System Redux for a while, finding it a little bit easier to manage than typical jump-scare filled tales, but definitely feeling all of the psychological elements it was throwing at me.

Set in a futuristic Krakow, Poland, after an event known as the ‘nanophage’; a digital plague that led to the loss of thousands upon thousands of lives, leading to war and the decline of society, with rampant drug and hologram addiction taking hold. Addicts would be relegated as Class C citizens and sent to live in squalid, deteriorating apartments. You take on the role of Daniel Lazarski; an elite investigator known as an Observer, who - due to a neural implant known as a Dream Eater - has the ability to hack into the minds of others to extract information and evidence to solve crimes. After receiving a call from his estranged son, Daniel traces the call back to a grimy apartment building, finding multiple bodies as he probes the building for information. What happened here? Like really, what the fuck happened here? So off you go, in search for clues.

There’s no doubt about it, Observer: System Redux is a phenomenally gorgeous game, with insanely detailed environments that are almost beautiful in spite of how dirty, dystopic and in total disrepair everything appears. As you explore each area, taking care to pick out every detail you can focus on to further your research into the case and unravel as much of the mystery as you can. As part of Daniel’s abilities as an Observer, scanning the minds of people - dead or alive - leads to some of the most visually unsettling, hallucinatory segments I’ve seen in a game. Things are far removed from reality here, allowing for all manner of strange and eerie situations that provide information, as well as just shake you to your core. These parts are probably the most ‘horror-y’ of the events of the game (aside from the mangled corpses lying around, of course), as due to the psychological element there’s not much in the way of a threat - with these sections being the only cause for concern if you’re trying to unlock the Unbreakable achievement for completing the game without dying.

Due to Daniel’s Dream Eater augmentation, he must take a regular dosage of a medication known as Synchrozine. Running low will cause visual fragmentation, impacting your ability to effectively search for clues. Thankfully, there’s a decent amount of Synchrozine to be found as you progress, so it’s never too much of an issue - as long as you actually pick it up. You’ve got access to three different vision modes (aside from the standard) that alter your view to highlight any hidden clues on your travels; with EM vision for electronics, Bio Vision for any biological matter and Night Vision, for when it’s really dark and you could use a helping hand (or eyes). The voice acting is impressive, with the late Rutger Hauer in the role of Daniel. His performance is outstanding, and he definitely fits the role perfectly.

With around 8-9 hours of captivating gameplay, I actually had a really great time with Observer: System Redux, despite my apprehensions as a jelly-legged mess with horror games. There’s a deep, interesting story here with plenty to be uncovered as you dig. There are tonnes of clues all throughout the gameplay, with some being easier to miss than others, so making sure to make full use of all of your vision modes and abilities will help to ensure you find it all on your first playthrough. There are two endings available, so a second run is needed if you want to unlock all Achievements (with the second one requiring the opposite of the choices you made in your first playthrough), but I’d definitely recommend going in blind for the first run, in order to get the most enjoyment and surprise out of the game. At £24.99 on the Xbox Store, it’s a great price - especially if you’re a fan of the psychological horror genre, so I’d highly recommend you give it a go.

In the end, we decided to give Observer: System Redux the Collecting Asylum rating of 8/10.

Have you played Observer: System Redux yet? What did you think of it?
Let us know in the comments below!

- V x

Thank you to EvolvePR for the Observer: System Redux Xbox review code!