So this is a game that is seriously hiding under your nose – if you are looking for a decent horror game, this is one you need to look at! Honestly I am very surprised this game has not taken off in the reviews on Steam.
Mirror Layers is a first person social horror game – you co-operate with other players via social media in the game to solve challenging puzzles. Your tasked with exploring and collaborating in an effort to unravel the mystery behind Apartment 12.
As you can imagine, the deeper you go, the more brutal the game gets. This game was created by the mastermind behind IMSCARED – a really great horror game from many years ago (2016). The game had so many creative puzzles and a lot of creepy things as well as, you know, the monster…
Gameplay
Let me tell you something. This has a unique game mechanic that I’ve never experienced in a horror game. When you enter in the apartment it’s nothing, just a plain room, but when you get into the mirror world of that apartment… That’s when you need to worry about every detail in the game. As you can no doubt foretell, I learnt that lesson the hard way when the monster in the mirror chased me in pretty much every room.
While said monster is coming after you, your best best is to hide, because until he leaves you are stuck in the mirror world (you can’t go back when he is chasing you)!
There are a lot of creepy things in the game – in fact, at one point, I got what has to be (one) of the biggest scares of my lifetime. Seriously, I had to get off my chair and take my headset off, and I rarely ever do that.
Puzzles
Now in the normal world (not the Mirror World), there is a computer in one of the rooms and that will be your “help” as there is social media on there. On there there are “real people” talking on the chat, offering hints and help. Also, the deeper you go in the game, the more new rooms opens up. There is a mirror next to it whatever items you find can be put in the mirror and then into the computer.
For example, if you find a coloured key with a shape and it doesn’t fit your lock at the start (because it’s a different shape icon) – you can do everyone a favour and actually put that key into the computer. Then, and this is super cool, you can attach it as a file for people to download and get from their own mirror! This is incredibly unique and original – kudos to the developers for adding this mechanic into the game!
With that being said, not everyone will have a key for the room lock so you will need to look for people that have the file attachment for your right key. There are later puzzles with the computer where you put an item in there and on the computer you will need to right key to click the item on the computer and explore on the text and solve the puzzle.
The puzzles, well, what can I say – they are absolutely mental! Some of the puzzles took me hours to solve as everyone’s game is not the same so when it comes to puzzle solving you’re on your own – From the computer to the mirror world puzzles this game has some incredibly creative puzzles that will force you to think way outside the box.
Visuals
Mirror Layers will not “wow” you or overwhelm you but it is still pretty. The reverse world in the mirror world is a great touch as it gives you an uneasy feeling when in the mirror world… However when you are in the normal world its very calming and nice. The monster is quite creepy and looks like some meat sacks skewered on a blade… but it still frightens you.
Sound And Audio
You know what makes a good horror (game)? Sounds. When you are in the mirror world holy heck I was on edge all the time because I would hear noises, start worrying about the monster, all while there are people whispering to you in the game (expecting to freak you out). The sound and audio is top notch.
Overall
I was blown away with this game – from the creative puzzle solving to literally soiling myself every step of the way, this game is a lot of fun. It is also quite long, the story is great, and definitely worth a try. Honestly, this game is not mentioned nearly enough, there are few reviews out there, and if you do pick up a copy – get ready for the ride of your life!