I Hate This Place Review: A Flawed Descent into Comic Book Horror
Survival horror games often promise a descent into hellish realms, but the indie title I Hate This Place attempts to carve its own path by drawing inspiration from comic book aesthetics. Unlike mainstream giants such as Resident Evil or Silent Hill, this game adapts a lesser-known comic series with an 80s horror vibe reminiscent of Stranger Things. Despite its unique premise, the execution leaves much to be desired, resulting in a tragically undercooked experience that struggles to engage players.
Plot and Setting: An Opaque Supernatural Mystery
The story follows heroine Elena and her friend Lou as they attempt to summon an evil deity known as The Horned Man, hoping to uncover truths about Elena's mother's death. When Lou vanishes mysteriously, Elena's search leads her to an abandoned bunker, where she encounters savage blind monsters and eerie environments. The narrative, however, feels disjointed and unclear, with motivations that remain opaque throughout. Players may find themselves wandering aimlessly through forests with day-night cycles that add little to the atmosphere, questioning their objectives and the game's direction.
Gameplay Mechanics: Stealth, Combat, and Crafting
Presented in an isometric view, I Hate This Place initially impresses with its comic book art style, but gameplay quickly reveals significant flaws. Stealth is a core element, requiring players to crouch-walk to avoid noise-sensitive monsters. However, this is hampered by environmental hazards like broken glass and visceral obstacles that squelch underfoot, often attracting unwanted attention. Combat proves frustrating, with enemies acting as relentless bullet sponges that require excessive ammunition to defeat. Weapons, such as a snub-nosed revolver or sawn-off shotgun, feel feeble due to the detached viewpoint and poor damage mechanics.
Crafting becomes a central focus, allowing Elena to build production lines at her aunt's ranch to manufacture weapons and bullets from scavenged materials. While this system offers some depth, it undermines the survival horror tension by providing an overabundance of resources. The crafting mechanics feel oddly out of place for a teenager supposedly investigating a friend's disappearance and a mother's death, adding to the narrative dissonance.
Technical and Artistic Shortcomings
The game suffers from multiple technical issues that detract from the experience. Dialogue is stilted and unnatural, exacerbated by subpar voice-acting that lacks emotional depth. Controls are clumsy, particularly the throwing mechanics used to distract enemies, which are unreliable under pressure. Fixed camera angles make exploration fiddly, and noise-making traps are often invisible from the isometric perspective, leading to unfair encounters. Despite atmospheric sound design with effects like THUDs and CRUNCHes, these elements fail to compensate for the overall lack of scares and immersion.
Side Quests and Pacing
Side missions in I Hate This Place feel half-baked, often petering out without meaningful rewards or closure. This contributes to a sense of aimlessness, as players invest time in tasks that yield little payoff. The game's pacing is mercifully short, with credits rolling in under eight hours, but this brevity highlights the underdeveloped nature of its systems and story. While stealth games are less common today, this title's haphazard implementation makes it difficult to derive enjoyment from its promising ideas.
Verdict: A Missed Opportunity
In summary, I Hate This Place is a crafting-oriented survival horror game that falls short due to weak combat, clumsy controls, and a poorly executed narrative. Its comic book aesthetic and atmospheric sounds are positives, but they cannot salvage the sub-par gameplay and storytelling. With a score of 4/10, it serves as a cautionary tale for indie developers aiming to blend unique inspirations with genre conventions.
Release Details: Available on PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X/S, and PC for £24.99, released on 29th January 2026 with a 16 age rating.
