I can give a thumbs up to Withering Rooms because i feel like for the amount of content, the $18 sale delivered. Mind you there are a few critiques i have. First and foremost, the ambiance and environment of this game is fantastic. Always making me feel spooked out as I wait for the next enemy to pop out and curse me even more into madness. Nostalgia also plays into a factor, really honing in on the ps2 era of silent hill and the like. The rogue-like mechanics with perma-perks and leveling keeps the game fresh and forces you to constantly think about what you are next steps are. The narrative is also a set of writting. This game has scratched a horror itch i've been wanting itched for a bit of time. And the length of content is quite exceptional for how incredibly small the team was.

However, the one thing that falls short and i believe was overlooked in one way or another, was the combat system, which is a bit concerning because the game had been in early access for a while, but hasn't really met much change. The combat is what you'd expect of a hack and roll gameplay. However, longevity in your run is very dependent on caution and understanding of when to back of. Because as soon as you die, you lose out on everything not marked as saved (which is limited for a while). It is here that the game because almost unagreeably hard, as you dont have the ingredients to make healing items, the coin to buy wares and potentially some items that made the run easier. With the rooms also shifting its enemies and content, it very much becomes a run and grab so you dont have to lose health to make health items that only give you a little back. One other issue aside from this is the notion of iframes and dark souls-esque declarations, but the attack range or the duration of the attack is too long. Or is too quick. Quicker than the player. Many times i found myself having the best gear set up, but having the battle boil down to the amount of healing items i have, dictate the outcome of the battle. Regardless of skill and dodging, and knowledge of the fight. I really think the team needs to revisit either the way the player can work to mitigate or negate full damage, or the enemies attacks need to be reworked. Not nerfed, but definitely revised.

I'd give this game a 7/10.

High quality horror indie game with obvious influences from soulsborne games, Silent Hill, Silent Hill 4, Clock Tower. A must get if you are a fan.

I'm reviewing this game to give it another positive review. I swear to Vishnu himself I'll present some more detail later, but this game is orders of magnitude better than I could have possibly imagined. The story is great, the mechanics are great, I take every crippling death with dignity. To the developer: I hope to everything sacred you're currently kicking ass through another amazing project.