Update to Reflect the Patch: so like a day later the dev adjusted the small things that I mentioned, making the game a bit more immersive. I still think the game needs a few more memorable moments because not much really happens in between, but I am removing the negative rating as a result. If you can find a way to add a few more interesting things during the story, I think the game will be decent. Original review below...

Ironically I could not tell you how it compares to the original game, but I have played a few similar titles, and as a horror game I thought this came a little short. To be fair I don't think the gameplay is the problem, more so the actual vibes, even though you have all of the things that I wanted, you didn't give me much in terms of anticipation. The game can be completed in about 40 minutes, not including a few hidden locations.

I think the biggest mistake you made is not giving the game proper feeling of suspense and building the tension, you can see monsters like 30 seconds into the game, and at that point the anticipation is just not there. Instead of having that feeling of uncertainty I felt like I was playing a simple dodging game and following a generic set of locations without context, only rewarded by a generic conclusion.

Another thing I found disappointing is that the artifacts for the main coordinates were always the same object, so you not really rewarding that sense of exploration and discovery, especially since you actually get to look through the camera in real time. On that note, I thought looking for those hidden locations was a bit more interesting than the actual game, at least the landmarks had different designs, even though I couldn't tell why some of the achievements would not work.



(+) I thought the cabin UI was a bit more friendly than similar games, it was easy to follow where I was and follow the coordinates, as well as doing exactly what I wanted.

(+) The texture and models had a nice retro feel to it.


- I wish there was a bit more feedback in terms of events impacting the cabin and the character, the only thing I remember you doing like that was the shake which was nice, but not much else. So again, you just moving from point to point without much happening in between, but if there was some actual progress to the cabin or the character like damage or panic, it would be more interesting.

- Not something you can really fix at this point, but adding a bunch of monsters randomly just took away from that suspense, I can see there are weird things that can kill me, I mean how bad can it get after that, you not really building the atmosphere and anticipation doing so, maybe if these things were more gradual. You should have made every coordinate object look unique as well.

- If you wanted to maybe salvage this game a bit, I would say expand on those hidden locations, maybe you can find some caves in those walls with different environments, maybe even add more things to do in the cabin, capitalize on that feeling of exploring on your own terms. Perhaps even another ending if you do something else.

- I had a weird bug with looping sound effect, not sure how I got it, maybe has something to do with enemies targeting you and thinking they are stuck in kill animation.


Overall Thoughts: 6/10

The game itself is fine, more so it lacks the suspense and contextualizing that exploration from the perspective of the character, you constantly dodging things every minute or so, feels too much like you playing the game, and the ending is not that much different from that. I think if you focused more on the exploration and the actual experience of navigation the environment, maybe exploring caves and ridges, perhaps you could separate yourself from those games that did the same thing with better immersion.

Short exploration over the surface of a dead planet.

The story is light and not really important. You play the role of a researcher who must gather information from the so-called "silent zones". These are nearly dead planets with severe radiation levels that no human can survive on. So the only way to see what's going on there is with the assistance of a rover.

The game takes you inside a little rectangular station from which you may operate the rover. Your assignment is to visit and photograph six sites; the coordinates are displayed on the screen, so there is no guesswork required. A few bonus locations give you an achievement, but you need to stumble upon them because they don’t have any coordinates.

Four keys let you turn and move forward or backward. The only other thing you need be concerned about is the rover's cooling system. It's unreliable and constantly breaks down. Unless you reset the system, the rover will stop and move slowly.

The station has several screens. There are movement keys, a camera that displays what is in front of the rover, a map with coordinates, and a few other panels with cooling status and frequency. You don't have to worry about hitting anything or getting trapped because the planet is barren with the exception of the occasional rock on the path.

There is only one dangerous creature roaming about that requires you to stop the rover. It is represented on the map with a red triangle. However, being devoured is not a problem because the game saves each time you take a photo.

This is a short experience that can be finished in less than one hour. It’s fine, but doesn’t create a very tense or scary atmosphere.

Silent Breach is a game that attempts to follow in the footsteps of similar titles such as Iron Lung and Voyager-19. The plot centers around scientist Alex Raine using a rover to explore a desolate planet known as a Silent Zone that has been encompassed by an unknown mist. This mist has radically changed the environment, and it is up to Alex, and by extension the player, to uncover the mystery. .


Silent Breach stands apart from these other titles, letting the player see a live monitor of their surroundings rather than driving blind and using pictures to take in their surroundings. This works both in its favor, allowing for a more seamless method of traveling, but detracts from the suspense due to negating the "fear of the unknown" that previous titles capitalized on.

Creatures are seen rather quickly into the game's play time, reducing that element of the unknown that worked so well for other titles. Additionally, the one hostile creature is easily avoided and ignores the player's rover if they remain still. This makes the creature act as more of a impediment to game play rather than an outright hostile threat. This, once again, detracts from any suspense and build-up. The only entity that truly filled me with intrigue is the seemingly invisible and intangible red triangle that stalks your ship without any real explanation. It clearly has a barrier around it, making it seem like a physical object in the game, though entirely invisible. .

The developer has recently updated the point-of-interests that the plot centers around photographing. Where there were previously copy-pasted markers that provided no variety, there are now several different kinds of POI's to encounter. However, these markers do little to add to the lore, and do little outside of simple discovery. No changes in the environment, only one mildly scripted event, and no additions to the player's understanding of what happened or happens inside a Silent Zone, nor do they add to the mystery surrounding these cosmic zones. For a character sent to study and understand the Zone, startling little is actually revealed. . I suggest adding more to better utilize these locations and to add incentives beyond "the game requires it to progress".

However, I believe the biggest mistake game wise is that the player is remotely controlling the rover, and is not actually on the planet. Adjusting this would already greatly increase the stakes and suspense. That is what makes other titles compelling: only thin pieces of metal separate the player from whatever monster lies just outside.

Overall, the game feels rather bare bones at the moment. Adding more lore or incentives for exploring the map would be beneficial, adding in more components to game play (such as vehicle upgrades, forcing the player to get out of the rover, etc.) would help.


Silent Breach picks an aesthetic and theme and sticks with it. The grungy green lighting mixed with the Lovecraftian mythology do help ground it in its own right. The background ambient soundtrack works in its favor, though the repetitiveness of it does wear thin the longer the game goes on. The interior of the Space Station's control room is rather roomy and nice, though the aforementioned improvements wouldn't hurt.

Overall, Silent Breach is a good title for those looking to get other titles like Iron Lung or Voyager-19 by helping players get accustomed to the control schemes they'll be dealing with in the other titles. This is also more approachable for players who want a more atmospheric game than the more horror elements present in similar titles. I'll recommend this game simply on the fact that it is an easier title to play through, and on the hope that the developer(s) will make improvements in the future.