Rock Sq. Thunder was fashioned in 2020 and is a reasonably new firm within the gaming trade. Taking a look at its historical past, it has solely launched one recreation, The Lightbringer, which took gamers on a phenomenal journey crammed with puzzles and platforms. Wanting on the gameplay of The Lightbringer, it was instantly clear that the builders had actual expertise and potential. Quick ahead to 2026, and Rock Sq. Thunder is teaming up with writer Feardemic to develop a survival horror recreation with a concentrate on stealth and sound. The sport is known as “I Hate This Place.”
After I first noticed the gameplay trailer for I Hate This Place, I used to be instantly intrigued. The artwork model was lovely, with an attention-grabbing isometric structure, and fell into one among my all-time favourite genres: survival horror. I needed to decide it as much as see what it was all about, however after enjoying by way of the brief 9-hour story, I definitely had some ideas.
I Hate This Place combines components of the paranormal and science fiction, with a concentrate on stealth and crafting mechanics. The survival horror style has been booming over the previous few years, however there have not been many movies made in an isometric model. So I Hate This Place positively will get bonus factors for daring to be totally different from the remaining. Nonetheless, whereas the gameplay premise is cool, the execution fails and misses its full potential in some ways. This is not to say that this recreation is unhealthy. From a gameplay standpoint, I really feel like much more might have been achieved.
Clumsiness, stealth, and crafting
From the get-go, you will discover how clunky the controls in “I Hate This Place” are. I performed it on the PlayStation 5, and it was clear that the controls have been made with PC gamers in thoughts, with consoles being an afterthought. To goal the gun, push the R3 analog stick ahead to disclose the reticle, then transfer the analog stick to maneuver the reticle and lock on to your goal. This merely feels awkward and I am unable to assist however surprise if it could have been a wiser option to have the reticle all the time out and routinely lock on to enemies. It feels prefer it was designed particularly for a PC mouse.
This awkward aiming and capturing methodology, mixed with different questionable controller layouts like dashing on L2, consuming and therapeutic being the identical button, and crouching being designated as each circle and L3, simply does not really feel proper. The worst half is that the sport does not provide any rebind choices in any respect. This implies you will be caught with these controls all through your whole playthrough. Positive, you get used to it over time, but it surely feels so totally different in comparison with different video games on this style that it finally ends up being extra irritating than it must be.
When you lastly get the hold of the controls, I Hate This Place’s gameplay begins to click on. To summarize, you will both sneak round big enemies to search out keys, remedy puzzles, or simply stand and combat with the minimal quantity of ammunition at your disposal. The previous might be the smarter method to play, as ammunition is an especially helpful useful resource, with capturing being a final resort and solely used when completely vital. A few of these monsters are scary when seen up shut, and their actions akin to sneaking up on you, throwing cans to distract you, or sprinting if you’re caught could be extremely intense and make for thrilling moments.
I Hate This Place has a robust emphasis on sound, and the sport makes that clear with small textual content at every step. For instance, strolling on onerous floor is pronounced as a “thud,” whereas strolling by way of bloody sludge is pronounced as a “squelch.” These indicators are supposed to act as a warning to the kind of sound being made, and if it is too loud, it’ll alert close by enemies, forcing them to combat you head-on or flee to security.
A number of occasions my coronary heart dropped after I was close to an enormous monster and I unintentionally made a sound that I should not have made. This mechanic provides a pleasant contact to typical stealth gameplay.
When not sneaking round terrifying monsters, gamers will spend a big period of time constructing their residence base. This consists of acquiring sufficient supplies to construct buildings akin to gardens to develop greens, stoves to cook dinner meals, and workbenches to craft weapons and ammunition.
You possibly can edit the bottom and transfer these buildings to create your required structure and enhance your crafting effectivity and productiveness. As gamers discover the world of I Hate This Place, they’ll discover blueprints of their residence base that unlock further crafting objects, increasing their arsenal and rising their probabilities of survival. I assumed discovering the blueprints was the very best a part of the sport.
When not sneaking round terrifying monsters, gamers will spend a big period of time constructing their residence base.
That is just about the fundamentals of I Hate This Place’s gameplay. It does not get any extra difficult than that, and the package deal as a complete could be very easy and barebones. That is not essentially a foul factor, however I am not going into this anticipating a deeply partaking survival horror journey. There are some intense encounter moments and cinematic sequences, however general it seems like a recreation about simply going by way of the motions and checking containers.
evil lurks within the evening
I Hate This Place’s survival gameplay loop consists of leaving your base, the ranch, finishing numerous quests, after which returning to your base to craft provides. Gamers will encounter numerous enemies in nature, areas of curiosity, characters with necessary info, and memo logs that may assist increase the story and lore of I Hate This Place. The exploration has been fairly lackluster and I have never actually come throughout something that surprises me or makes me actually curious to analyze additional.
As talked about earlier on this overview, the ranch is your secure haven and your property base. It is harmful to go away your ranch, however the recreation features a day and evening cycle, so you possibly can plan the very best time to discover. Trekking through the day is far safer because it’s simpler to see your environment and enemies, however some key missions require you to discover at evening.
Exterior of some main missions that require nighttime exploration, I did not discover any actual advantages to leaving your property base when it is darkish. This was actually disappointing. Benefits akin to elevated provides and upgrades that solely seem at evening might have made higher use of the day/evening cycle. That is merely not true. The truth is, should you go away the ranch when it is darkish exterior, you will get no actual reward to your bravery and solely end up in a tougher scenario.
Benefits akin to elevated provides and upgrades that solely seem at evening might have made higher use of the day/evening cycle. That is merely not true.
With no clear cause to discover at evening, I discover myself continually resting in mattress (I can relaxation at any time when I would like) and altering the time to morning. Gamers can simply make the most of this mechanic, contemplating that there isn’t a impact over time because of sleep, apart from a slight enhance in starvation. This makes the day/evening cycle really feel pointless.
scavenging for survival
As talked about earlier, gamers should handle their starvation whereas exploring the map of “I Hate This Place.” All actions akin to strolling, working, and swinging a bat put on down the hanger bar. Due to this fact, it is very important hold meals akin to chips and greens in your stock to replenish your starvation bar. In any other case, your stamina will take an enormous hit. As soon as your hanger bar is depleted, you will not have the ability to run and can find yourself swinging melee weapons at a snail’s tempo. Luckily, with a bit of preparation upfront at your property base, you will by no means run out of meals.
Which brings me to my subsequent level. The useful resource financial system in “I Hate This Place” is fairly unhealthy. There appears to be little ammo regardless of the place you discover, however there are many methods to search out meals. Personally, I feel it could be higher if it was extra like the other. Extra ammo and fewer meals. The hanger bar is a pleasant characteristic, however when there’s little danger of it going to zero, it feels extra like an annoyance than a pretty mechanism. For reference, I used to be in a position to go away the ranch with 10 soups (one of many cooking recipes). Every soup fully fills the hanger bar.
Apart from the hanger bar, your greatest concern might be discovering ammo, or at the very least discovering appropriate supplies to make ammo. I could not assist however really feel that the builders have been being too strict on this regard, as I had a number of hassle discovering the supplies wanted to craft gun bullets, particularly within the early recreation. I perceive that shortage is critical in such a recreation, however there’s a positive line. Sadly, I Hate This Place feels prefer it crosses that line within the ammo division. On the plus facet, there are many therapeutic provides, throwables, and naturally meals.
As a result of lack of ammunition, you usually die and end up having to go off the crushed path to search out the supplies you want. Detours are positive in a majority of these video games, however I usually discovered myself working round like a decapitated hen and never making any progress as a result of I could not discover ammo or supplies. This alone added a number of hours to my playthrough, giving the phantasm that the sport was longer than it really was. It is likely to be a matter of talent, however I think about myself fairly adept at survival horror video games.
“I Hate This Place” had loads going for it, with a novel setting, an attention-grabbing isometric structure, and craft at its core. Nonetheless, it by no means reaches its full potential and all techniques are lackluster, leading to an general underwhelming expertise. The useful resource financial system is damaged, the day/evening cycle feels pointless, and the console controls are so irritating that you find yourself with a headache-inducing expertise slightly than an fulfilling one. The thrilling nature of the survival horror style shines by way of, particularly within the stealth gameplay and paranormal environments, and there are some nice moments, however these moments rapidly fade. In case you have nothing else to play and are on a funds, I like to recommend I Hate This Place to survival horror followers, however I am not going into this recreation anticipating the following massive factor.