PixlBit

Like I promised myself, I wanted to do blogs during the Halloween season, or the cliche name of Spooky Month that I decided to give, so let's start with the most unorthodox entry of my planned blogs where we talk about Limbo since I just finished the game recently on Steam.

When you look at Limbo, it isn't a game you asociate with the season. Doesn't have the scenery or theme you look in Halloween, nor can't fully be considered Horror. However, I always seem to take it as something that almost feets the season, since it tackles its own kind of horror described in one single word: Opressive.

Though not stated unless you read the plot description on Steam, in Limbo you are a small nameless boy looking for his sister in a sepia tone land with the title of the game. The thing is, except for moving, jumping and pulling/pushing objects, you have no other control action, so you are basically defensesless. This is when the word opressive takes important, because the Limbo is that, an opressive world hell bent in killing you.

Long falls, drowning and boxes on head are the least of the brutal ways you can die (even if they are still gruesome). Bear traps, spikes, electrocution, sawblades, crushing blocks and all assorted enviromental hazards are on par with the course, but not even the living will protect, as Lord of the Flies-like children will also try to kill you, brain slugs that can only make you go in one way sometimes appear and be needed to take them, wasps appear once and are lethal and of course the most important of all, the giant spider that basically acts as the only boss of the game and is actually determined to fest on you.

Run for your freaking life!!

If you think all of that is bad, the effects of the deaths get enhanced with the gory ways you can die. Despite the black and white graphics, head dismembering, bone crackings, intestines flying and body beaten to a pulp after being crushed are still as irksome like they would be in color, and the fact that it comes all from a kid, it makes the opressive feeling even more notable and makes you want to protect him even more.

Don't be surprised if you get paranoid while playing this game.

There's also other ways the game enhances the opressive factor. The very pretty environments and atmosphere give a sense of desolation and dread, which work very well with the sepia tone and honestly couldn't work with any other style. The music also gives some needed dread in certain parts and works effectively, though in calm parts it changes to beautiful tones.

As you can see, even if not Horror on the way you expect, I consider Limbo fitting for those reasons alone. I would say though, that the second half of the game in the factory, though still with dread and opression, isn't as effective as the first half in the woods.

So yes, here's my first game of this season. Very atypical, but hey, Sonic had an atypical choice too.

Any opinion of the game? Wanna know my opinion of the game in general? Maybe how I see the plot progression? Ask away!