Out of Sight

To say that the majority of younger video game fans can probably count the number of second-person titles they have played on their hands is perhaps an understatement. We very rarely see games using a visual perspective where the camera shows the player's character instead of operating as the character's eyes or over their shoulder in third-person, but that wasn't always the case. Over the years, there have been many great examples of second-person video games and these each are clearly respected in The Gang's horror adventure Out of Sight.

This is a second-person video game because of one of the two different camera styles it uses. The first is a typical first-person perspective but the second is one where you as the player can see the main character Sophie from a fixed point of view, in a similar vein to how players would remember navigating Raccoon City Police Department in the original Resident Evil 2. Out of Sight's gameplay works like this because the protagonist Sophie is a young child, who is looking to escape a twisted and tormented mansion, with the caveat that she cannot see... or rather couldn't. One fateful day, Sophie awakens and realises that her sight has been restored but only through the vision of her companion teddy bear, which she can use to navigate the mansion, avoid hazards, and solve environmental puzzles by placing the bear down in different places and operating like a Resident Evil security camera or in first-person while being carried like traditional eyes. It's a fascinating and actually very effective gameplay style that we don't see utilised in many places elsewhere.

Credit must be given to The Gang for their rather seamless implementation of the first and second-person perspectives used in Out of Sight. The ability to swap between carrying the bear to more easily identify and navigate your surroundings but then popping it down to interact with the environment and solve minor puzzles, like finding and picking up a key to open a locked door or manipulating crates to open pressure pad-sensitive hatches, all of this works very smoothly. It also enables a new dimension to the puzzles in question, forcing the player to literally tackle them from a fresh perspective, which can be a little mind-boggling, even if the majority of the puzzles are quite succinct, straightforward, and made to be overcome with general ease. The same then applies to the unsettling horror and the ways that The Gang's attempts to invoke fear, typically by utilising the two stalker-like foes; the creepy mother and the ruthless caretaker.

In a Hello Neighbor-like fashion, in Out of Sight, Sophie is constantly running for her life from terrible and cruel adult villains who actually have a very macabre plot they want to see realised. I won't tread into spoiler territory but let's just say that Sophie has one last chance at seeing the sunrise in this story... These villains aren't exactly scary but they serve their purpose as threats, constantly surprising you with chase sequences, twisted intentions, and unsettling appearances that feels very Little Nightmares. The way that The Gang uses these villains to constantly challenge the player is a highlight, asking you to avoid them both in first and second-person perspectives and also in moments that remind of Crash Bandicoot escapes, running towards your viewing angle while this menacing threat bounds along from behind. Again, it's all very unique and unlike what we know and expect particularly from the horror genre, which seems to have settled as of late on action-survival or cheap jump scares being the most effective vehicles for conveying fear.

Out of Sight impresses mostly in its ingenious use of perspective, but its visuals and atmosphere are certainly nothing to sneer at. The mansion is frightening and dark with many haunting rooms to explore. The constantly creaking floorboards and the footsteps and deep breathing of the searching villains always keep you on your toes as you navigate hallways avoiding mouse traps and other hazards that could betray your location. It's perhaps a bit too typical horror at times with set pieces and moments that from a mile away scream some sort of a trap or trick, but in many ways this is also one of the most honest tells that Out of Sight is an effective horror game too.

What I did find a little less impactful was the story, which perhaps left a bit too much in the hands of environmental storytelling and not enough revelations and titbits in relation to why Sophie is here, why she's in danger, who these villains are, and how she can now see. Rather most of this is left to the player to figure out or briefly covered at the last moment of the narrative, if it's explained at all. Also, as much as it's pleasant not getting stuck on a puzzle, backtracking and searching every available nook and cranny for a clue, I do think that The Gang could have taken a few extra risks with its puzzle set up, as the majority of the challenges are rudimentary and very easy to overcome, so much so that you often don't need to think at all. Perhaps having the villains be more effective and active is a way to offset this, seeing them pressuring the player into acting faster and less comfortably.

But all in all, for a small scale and short atmospheric horror adventure, Out of Sight actually works quite well and stands out for its unique premise. The Gang's attention to detail and refined gameplay are some of the highlights in this unsettling story that will engage horror aficionados who are less inclined to enjoy loud and 'cheap' jumpscares and more of a deep-seated nerve and fear, like what Little Nightmares has been so skilled at doing for years. The gameplay and the puzzles work without a hitch, even if they're not as complex or intricate as what we've come to know from staples like Resident Evil, and the villains, while not comforting, lack some of the pure and somewhat primal fear that icons such as the Tyrant or the Xenomorph can present. But still, as an overall whole, Out of Sight is a capable, effective, unique, and enjoyable horror game that is worth checking out for all fans of the genre.