DeVuego LATAM

On the surface, Varney Lake is just more of the Pixel Pulp adventure we got from the excellent Mothmen: 1966. Yet Varney Lake's story of childhood interrupted by a chance encounter with a vampire is a more captivating one.

‘Varney Lake’ nos trae una aventura gráfica basada en textos conversacionales. Tomaremos decisiones, jugaremos a minijuegos y disfrutaremos de unos diseños retro mientras descubrimos los secretos de esta clásica historia de terror y ciencia ficción ambientada en la década de los 50 en Estados Unidos. Una narrativa que engancha, con diversos personajes, aunque nos duela que la duración sea tan breve. Si te gustan las historias de vampiros, las literatura pulp y los juegos retro, pero retro de verdad, ‘Varney Lake’ no te va a decepcionar. Han seguido un estilo extremadamente continuista después de ‘Mothmen 1966’ y nos quedamos con el mismo resultado: nos gusta mucho, pero queremos y necesitamos más cantidad y duración. Esperamos con ganas el final de la trilogía con 'Bahnsen Knights'.

Varney Lake tries to be a compelling thriller that obviously wants to keep its players guessing. The narrative lacked in its ability to keep me entertained and wanting to know what actually happened during that summer. What kept me interested was the way it looked, sounded and made me feel. It pulls off the "pixel" elements but very much fails to live up to the exciting, suspenseful narrative of the pulp fiction genre. If you're into game and audio design, or love the pixel artstyle , you may be able to forgive this, but if you're looking for a narrative that will have you clicking your mouse for more, best look elsewhere.

After about 2 hours when the credits come, you can only really judge whether Varney Lake has been worth it and the 10 Euro rolls out of your pocket or whether you give a lot for that money in return. As far as I'm concerned, the story is a lot more accessible and interesting than that of Mothmen and I think casual players will find this game better than its predecessor. Although there are references, you do not necessarily have to have played the first part. However, there are fewer options that really influence the story.