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Game Title: Cryostatis - Sleep of Reason
Published by: 505 Games
Developed by: Action Forms
PEGI Rating: 16+
Release Date: 27th February 2009
Asin: B001CSPU68
Platform For Review: PC
Genre: First Person Shooter
Players: 1 player
Features- Terrifying first person survival/horror action gameplay
- Mental Echo ability that lets the player change a character's past
- Highly detailed levels based on a real Russian ice-breaker
- Battle powerful enemies that have been transformedby the cold
- Historically-authentic weapons
- Unique weather system with realistic ice, frost and snow with advanced character/object physics
Manufacturer's Description
There's a chill in the air with spooky survival horror Cryostasis.
Taking place in the Arctic Circle in 1968, players take on the role of Alexander Nesterov, a Russian meteorologist sent to investigate the final hours of the North Wind, an old nuclear ice-breaker shipwrecked in an icy grave.
The freezing cold has turned the inhabitants of the ship into freakish frozen monsters that will hunt down anything warm and destroy it. Thankfully, Alex possesses a unique 'Mental Echo' ability, which allows him to relive the final memories of the dead and change their actions in the past.
But, can Alex discover what happened on the North Wind or will he also become the latest victim of the terrible cold?
Total Format Description
Cryostasis is a great game, although it'd be better of as a film than a game, because the storyline is fantastic, but let down a little by the game itself. Essentially you are in a horror film, playing the main character, it'll make you think of Dead Space, it's in that kind of area, but Cryostasis is more psychological.
You play the main character Alexander Nesterov and play in the present and in the past in a way which allows you to actually change the course of events from time that has already past. You are a meteorolgist who has been sent to investigate the North Wind a Russian icebreaker shop that has had a bit of a bad time of things. When you arrive there is a bit of nasty storm going on, so you can't actually see a great deal of what is going on, which adds to the atmosphere. Ironically, the same storm makes your body get cold, something you have to keep in check, with the body warmth gage, that kills you if it runs out, as you freeze to death, so you find yourself making use of every fire, lightbulb, hot pipe and pretty much every heat emitting object you can, to warm yourself up.
Not only is it your warmth that you have to keep a close eye on, you also have to watch your health, the locals can be damned vicious at times, this is one of the things that lets this game down though, while your having chunks cut out of you by the local axe weilding nutter, your frantically trying to get your weapon sorted and it is a pain and often results in sticky endings of the red and bloody variety. Of course, you may actually get a buzz from the tension of that and enjoy the game more as a result, I know I did.
One of the main things i'd say you should do playing this game, is close the curtains, turn the lights off, turn the sound up and prepare yourself for a frightfest. I seriously add emphisis to turning the sound up, every moan and groan, creak of doors, blow of the wind will have you more and more on edge and when something unexpected happens, you may just want to make sure you have some spare underwear within easy reach.
The game offers a great story, which like Dead Space, I think would make a great movie, it's genuinely scary when played as mentioned above, but due to the poor FPS aspect, repeating scenary at times and the need for a super computer to run it in full eye candy mode. Well worth playing all the same.
Total Format Scoring Details For Cryostatis - Sleep of Reason
Graphics
The graphics are very very smooth and very easy on the eyes and they flow very very well on a powerful computer, for personal purposes i'd give graphics a 9.0 but that's because I have a machine that can handle all the settings turned up high, most people trying that are going to find their machine is crippled as the life will be sucked out of it with the overheads that the graphics throw at the hardware. Don't get me wrong though, the graphics are still lovely on the medium none machine killing settings.
Sound
The fantastic atmoshperic sounds and background noise are what make this game. You can see a lot of effort has gone into making the effects work so well. Doors creaking, monster approaching and grunting as they get closer to you and a whole host of little things that show great attention to detail, the sound is done extremely well for Cryostasis and deserve a high score.
Gameplay
The gameplay is pretty good, but as has been mentioned on just about every site i've seen do a write up for the game, the first person shooter aspect of the game is what stops it from having a higher score. It should have steered clear of that aspect of the game, because it is the one major element that lets it down. Everything else is pretty damn good though, if not a little repetitive at times, but because the game has a really good storyline, which fans of game stories will seriously enjoy, the game still scores well for this bit.
Lastability
This area is what lests the game down. You play it, you complete the story campaign and erm, that's about the end of it really, when there are so many other FPS games out there that already offer stuff like fantastic multiplayer modes, your not going to give this game much of any kind of look in once you've played and completed it, unless you fancy going back and doing it over again in case you missed something, the vaste greyness and repeating scenary will most likely stop that from being high on your agenda.
Overall
The power hungry graphics, repetitive colouring and scenary and somewhat lacking first person shooter aspect of this game are a bit of a let down, on what is an otherwise extremely good and graphically ambitious and enjoyable game with a great storyline. It's well worth playing and it is a game that Total Format recommends you play, but with some nice patching from the developers, it could go from just being a good game to being a great game.
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