There has been a surprising lack of horror games on the App Store. Yeah, sure we have had our fair share of gory, gruesome, and downright sickening games, but nothing that has gone out of its way to properly freak you out. That’s until Prisoner 84 came along where you play as an in-mate trying to escape your spooky hell-hole of a prison whilst disposing of other psychotic prisoners and mysterious spine-chilling monsters you can’t explain.

However it is not all about killing, and a big part of the game is puzzle based, trying to find your way out of the prison by finding key cards and objects that unlock new rooms. As you progress, you will steadily find out more and more about yourself and you start to wonder, who’s the insane one?

Gameplay 7/10

Make no mistake, this isn’t a Silent Hill or F.E.A.R. and despite its best efforts isn’t as terrifying, but what can you expect on an iPhone? Nonetheless, the game was spooky enough but after the first half-hour or so you get used to the terrain and become more confident in your surroundings. I was disappointed in the lack of rehearsed scares in the game and there were only a few points where I truly jumped out of skin from a surprise attack. Instead, the enemies are mostly static, and only advance when you are very close. This takes away from the scare factor as you almost always know when and where the other prisoners are.

Other foe such as floating heads (yes, floating heads) and spiders are more effective but I believe could still be improved.

I also found the game lacking in explanation and instructions and it took me a while to work out that to open the Level 1 doors you need to use the Level 1 key card, not at the door, but at a subsequent computer somewhere else.

That reflection just makes me want to cry (with happiness)

To expand, the level is massive, which is a good thing, but it was easy to get hopelessly lost. To try and prevent this the developers have added a map in each sector. However these do nothing to help me as one, these maps can only be found at computer terminals, which have a habit of not wanting to be discovered, and two, they only show a map of that sector whereas what I really want is a map of the whole prison. I don’t care if it is a simple hand drawn sketch but the numerous different identical sectors really get me lost and confused. So much that I completely lose track of what I am meant to be focusing on.

Furthermore, the game does little to help when stuck and most of the time you are given little information on what to do next. Even though this helps keep the game non-linear, I sometimes became totally lost on what to do.

Overall the game was scary at first, but soon became a bit repetitive in respect of the enemy placements and lacking in real fear.

Graphics 8/10

I was pleased to see the fully 3D environment and the attention to detail is astonishing. The reflections off the glass floor are amazing and gave the game an authentic feel. The levels are very well executed and add to the spooky atmosphere which helps make the game unnerving. On the other hand the character models need be improved and I was disappointed with the jagged edges and unrealistic textures.

Also, when fighting a prisoner, each hit reduces them to a skeleton. I found this incredibly unrealistic and took away from the games authenticity. I did not encounter any lag in the game which was good.

Controls 5/10

The controls are cumbersome and definitely need to change. To control your character you have a d-pad (opposed to a joystick found in most games) and I found movement to be unresponsive. You use your right thumb to pan round (or you have the option of a second D-pad which is just a double no-no for me). Furthermore, to run you need to double tap on the direction button. I found this unresponsive also, having to frantically double tap the forward button to get it to work. This isn’t helped by the fact that your walk rate is annoyingly slow.

Use interactive touch controls to activate doors and open lockers.

To shoot you just tap on the provided button which I felt worked well. When using the pistol (as opposed to a shotgun you receive in later levels) you have 12 bullets in one mag. To kill a prisoner you have to use 6 bullets. Knowing this, I felt I focused too much on making sure I used just 6 to kill a prisoner and have another 6 in the mag to kill another rather than having to reload whilst he is running at me. This stunted my enjoyment of the game a little bit and also avoided those ‘OMG, I need to reload and that deranged prisoner guy is running at me’ moments.

Sound 9/10

The sound is very atmospheric and I especially loved the sound of blistering winds when you are outside. There is no music whilst playing which could be considered bad in any other title, but actually adds to the eeriness of the game. The music in the menus is brilliant and I almost wish that they had been included in the game. The sound effects are very quiet in comparison to the startling sound of your gun firing and I would have preferred the sound effects to be loader so I can appreciate them more and so that they are more effective. Despite the quietness, the sound effects that exist are actually very detailed and the different types of footstep noises depending on whether you are treading on water, blood or a cold concrete floor work very well.

The scream emitted from the floating head whilst it attacks sends a chill down my spine every time but I wish there were some sound more freakish sounds like it, for example, when a prisoner is attacking.

Menus 10/10

The menus are simple and fit well with the theme of the game, whilst allowing you to continue straight where you left off almost instantly. The options are responsive and clear.

The atmosphere is eerie and very spooky

Longevity 7/10

As mentioned before, the map is huge! There are also many collectibles to acquire such as special suits with abilities, for example, the Stealth outfit gives you infinite ammo. These are great to discover and is a reason to come back to Prisoner 84 once completed. There are also hidden heads and tokens to collect.

If you make your way steadily through the game then this will last you a long time, but don’t be surprised if you get stuck, and without some form of help or clearer instructions, you might be put off the game entirely. Nonetheless, Prisoner 84 offers a load of replayabilty and if you properly get into it, will last you a considerable amount of time.

Cost 8/10

$2.99/£1.79 is a great price for such a large game, but a few modifications are in order to fully justify its price point.

Conclusion 54/70 – 4/5

Prisoner 84 has given a good stab on what seems to be such an impenetrable genre, especially on a portable device. The atmosphere is engrossing and freakishly scary at first, but this game hasn’t quite hit the mark in terms of actual fear. Nonetheless, Prisoner 84 has great potential. Fix the controls and a few navigational tidbits and this could be a top seller. Check it out.

Prisoner 84 on the App Store.