PixlBit

The first chapter of The Game Kitchen’s experimental point and click horror title, The Last Door, was intriguing and more than a little scary for me. I couldn’t wait to jump into the next chapter, and fortunately I didn’t have to wait. Would the second chapter, Memories, continue to build on the strong foundation that the first chapter began, or would it begin to fall in on itself? So far, so good; chapter two brings a longer gameplay experience and takes the threads from chapter one into some truly creepy territory.

After the stunning conclusion to the first chapter, protagonist Devitt decides to revisit the boarding school that he and his recently deceased friend attended. When he arrives, he finds that it’s no longer a school, but some sort of hospice run by The Church. Things are not going well, and a caretaker is seen hastily digging graves for recently deceased patients.

Chapter two of The Last Door is very dialogue heavy, which is a big departure from the previous episode. Devitt is able to talk to and interact with most of the people in the former school, which leads to a lot of clues for solving puzzles. This is crucial, as this chapter has a few less than obvious puzzle solutions and a lot more inventory items to contend with. This led to a bit of frustration on my part, but the puzzles are still grounded in reality much more than your average point and click adventure game.

With all of that dialogue, the niggling issues I had with the translation of the script are more pronounced this time. Again, the somewhat awkward wording of certain phrases didn’t get in the way of my ability to complete the episode, but it did take me out of what’s shaping up to be a fantastic little horror story.

The pace is also slower this time around. It takes longer for things to come to a head, and with all of the people around, the game lulls the player into a false sense of security. This only heightens the suspense when things start to go off the rails, and Devitt begins to remember some of the terrible things he saw as a student. Chapter two ends with the type of cliffhanger that TV writers would love to have for their season finales, and possibly the most aggravating part of this game is going to be the wait for the third part.

The Last Door continues to impress me, and I look forward to seeing what’s coming next from The Game Kitchen. If you’re a fan of horror games that delight in playing with your mind, this is a game worth seeking out and talking about.