P
athologic 2 is
“supposedtobe
almostunbearable”
accordingtodevs
IcePickLodge,whocreated
theobtuse,near-
unplayableoriginal
Pathologic, andpurgatorial
horrorgameTheVoid.
Pathologic 2 challengesyou
tosurvive 12 in-gamedays
ina townthat’sgoing
completelytohell.Disease,
paranoia,mobjustice,and
paranormalhappenings
unfoldinrealtimeasyou
plodthroughbrown,foggy
districts,invadingpeople’s
housesforscrapsand
occasionallymeeting
importantfigures.It’sa
deliberatelyexhausting
experience.Aneggisnot
justanegginPathologic,
it’san“emptyillusionof
possiblelife”.
Thesurvivalsystems
constantlygetinthewayof
a fascinatingmysterygame.
Whenyouchattokey
figuresinthetown,they
dropmotesofinformation
thatforma growingwebin
yourjournal.Emptynodes
implythere’smoreto
exploreina givenlineof
enquiry.
Itmanagestobequitean
atmosphericgame,evenin
spiteofrigidcharacter
models,staticfaces,sparse
andrepetitiveinteriors,and
anextremelyclumsy
first-personcombatsystem.
Thegameisalwayspushing
backagainstyourattempts
toexplore,butthereare
delightfullymacabreideas
hidingawayincornersofthe
town,likegurglingtreerootsthatdrinkbloodand
giveyouherbsinreturn.Asa
surgeon,youcanextract
organsfromanycorpseand
thensellthemtoa particular
buyerforfoodandmedicine.
It’sa slog,andthat’sthe
pointofit.Thesufferingof
yourcharacterandthe
townspeopleisreflectedin
thetormentofever-hungry
survivalbarsthatdriveyou
totheftandmurder.One
charactertalksabouthow
herclientaskedherto
designthetown’slayoutto
bedeliberatelyconfusing
andannoyingtonavigate,in
ordertostretchpeoplelikea
springsothat,ina position
ofdistress,theymight
discoverdeeperwellsof
creativity.
ThoughI admiretheway
thegamekeenlyrejectsthe
ideathatgamesshould
alwaysbesatisfyingfun
factories,I justdon’tseethe
worthinwrappinga good
mysteryinlayersofirritant.
To mS e n i o rVerdic t
Agruellingmysterygamethat
smothersitsbigideaswithdour
survivalmechanics.$39| PC,PS4,XB1| WWW.PATHOLOGIC-GAME.COMPathologic 2
The grim reaper reigns supreme in these glum streets.
Samurai
Shodown
Gettin’ blade.
$70 | PS4, XB1 | SNK-CORP.
CO.JP/US
A return-to-form for
SNK’s decades-old 2D
fighting franchise, Samurai
Shodown is a Street Fighter
IV-style reinvention that’s
instantly accessible to
newcomers while also
providing enough depth
for veterans. Unlike many
other popular fighters, the
weapons-based Samurai
Shodown isn’t all that
focused on combo systems
and juggling – instead,
attacks are swift and
powerful, forcing players
to proceed with caution in
their offensive approach,
lest they leave themselves
open for a devastating
counterattack. While the
game is simple enough
for button mashers to pick
up and play, additional
complexity comes from
the ability to deflect and
dodge attacks, and also
in choosing the right
moment to unleash a
furious Super Special
move or Lightning Attack,
which has the capacity to
kill your opponent with a
single, well-timed blow.
The game’s tutorials are
very good and players can
also sharpen their blade-
wielding skills online or
against the computer
in a variety of modes,
including one where you
can fight against CPU
‘ghost’charactersbased
onuploadeddatafrom
otherplayers.
Stephen Lambrechts