Introduction

Welcome to the turbulent underworld of Agony, a survival horror adventure where you’ll find that hell is not so much a fiery pit as a realm packed with indecipherable puzzles and painfully obtuse mechanics. With visions of gore that would make even the bravest shutter, Agony hopes to immerse players in a hellish nightmare that rocks the foundation of gruesome imagery and dull gameplay mechanics — a real gem in the so-called horror genre!

Gameplay

In Agony, you play as Amraphel, a tormented soul lost in Hell, seeking to escape from the great Red Goddess (spoiler alert: she’s definitely not taking you out for ice cream!). The gameplay offers players the ability to possess other poor souls and demons, but reminiscent of doing chores at home, the experience often feels more like a punishment than a joyride. Engage in hide-and-seek with the locals (read: demons), spend more time crouching than standing, and put your brain to the test by figuring out convoluted puzzles that trigger more headaches than actual solutions. Add to this a unique positioning where you manage to be both utterly terrified and bored stiff, and you’ll start to see how Agony can become a hellish reality for players. Surprise! Hide behind that wall, hear that creepy noise, but wait…nothing happens? Right, what a twist!

Graphics

Graphically, Agony claims to be a visual masterpiece thanks to the impressive Unreal Engine 4. However, the success of that claim lies heavily on the perspective of beauty being in the eye of the beholder. While the game beautifully depicts the grotesque nature that Hell embodies — think disturbing imagery mixed with a never-ending horror show — it also leaves players questioning whether the environments are too busy or painfully monotonous. Alas, even the best graphics can’t save you from feeling as if you’re stuck in a place designed by a gory artist with a penchant for chaos and very little regard for fun.

Conclusion

Overall, Agony emerges as an ambitious yet disappointing endeavor in the survival horror genre. Its engaging plotline and intriguing mechanics get buried beneath layers of inconsistent gameplay, excessive stylization, and outright frustration. Critics have dubbed it as an art piece, and while it may trauma and torture some players, there are just as many who argue that sometimes, less is indeed more. If you're interested in a game that hits the highs of horror while ensuring you never want to come back for seconds, Agony might just be the perfect candidate. For most, however, this underworld odyssey will leave you wondering whether Hell truly is a place on Earth or just a poorly designed video game.

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