Scorn Review

Details:

Developed by: Ebb Software

Published by: Kepler Interactive

Initial Release Date: 14th October 2022

Platforms: PC (reviewed), Xbox Series X/S, Playstation 5

Genre(s): Survival horror, adventure

Modes: Single player

Scorn is a weird one. It’s designed to be off-putting in more ways than one. The gore might be a turn-off for some, but for those who can push past that will have to deal with heavily obtuse gameplay mechanics, that almost feel as if they were crafted to push you away. And yet, that is entirely the point. The trials and tribulations the main character must go through in this hellish world are also tests for you, the player, to assess whether or not you have what it takes to make it through. It’s weird calling this game a test, but that’s basically what it is.

Even writing about it now, I can’t tell whether or not I “enjoyed” Scorn, but it’s also a game that I am bound not to forget any time soon. In that regard, I can call it a success. But I also know that this is far from a game for everybody. When playing through the first puzzle, I just knew that this specific section would immediately send people away. I stuck with it, and what I came out of was something I haven’t really experienced before. So let's talk about it.

It's difficult to articulate how I feel about Scorn, but it's easy to state just how marvelous its set pieces are. A work of art.

Journey Into Madness 

Scorn makes it apparent pretty early on that it’s not going to reveal many of its cards. You wake up attached to a wall and manage to free yourself. What you’re greeted with is an alien-looking building that’s dark and decrepit, with no signs of life or any activity whatsoever. Alas, the main character has a goal in mind, one he neglects to share with you but is pretty dead set on. There’s a place he wants to go to; it’s calling to him, and you must get there through any means necessary.

Thus begins your journey. You’ll be exploring multiple areas, both inside and outside the building, as well as venturing into new locations that I won’t get into to avoid digging into spoiler territory. There isn’t really a story per se, but there are things happening, and it leaves basically everything up to interpretation. Even the location is vague. Is it a planet, is it hell? Who knows. I have my own ideas, which is why I don’t want people to think that the way I view it is the way it is meant to be viewed. 

That being said, even my perspective changed dozens of times. At first, I thought I was playing as some kind of janitor or maintenance worker, and that was quickly thrown out of the window. You could spend your entire playthrough trying to figure out what on earth is going on, but you’ll never work it out. Not until you’ve finished it and digested it.

You'll spend plenty of time looking for signs to explain something, even the smallest glimmer of a hint. But alas, you'll get nothing.

This is one of the main reasons why Scorn can be so divisive. Many people want more out of not just a game but a story too. They want answers. They want reasons for the madness they are witnessing. But, just like madness, there’s nothing to make sense of it. You’re left with an increasingly dark experience that doesn’t let up and never forgives.

In truth, there are many ways you could explain what the journey you take means. You’ll find countless explanations online, and they’re surprisingly varied. It is a game that is meant to be interpreted differently, so how much you will enjoy the “story” of Scorn is entirely dependent on your willingness to draw your own conclusions. 

This isn’t a dig on people who can’t be bothered doing that. You would be completely justified in angrily uninstalling the game after completing it, thinking you’ve wasted your time and refusing to even acknowledge any of it moving forward. There is no reward. No final hurrah that sends Scorn out with a bang. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. It’s anticlimactic, but for a very specific purpose: to represent the world in which all of this takes place. Everything is dead, or dying. There is no hope here. Do what you can, and maybe it’ll be enough.

One of the most memorable screenshots I took of this game, which pretty much encapsulates the overall mood of the experience.

Suffice to say, it isn’t a cheerful game. Shocker. It is, however, incredibly profound. Almost immediately, it makes you feel small and insignificant. What you are seeing is not supposed to be comprehensible. It’s messed up, and it isn't explained why everything is the way it is. 

Through Scorn’s ability to develop intrigue and encourage players to draw their own conclusions, I can easily call the game a triumphant success. Alas, where I and many people may see that as a merit, there will also be plenty of those who view it as a colossal disappointment, and both of these sides of the compass are irrefutably correct. 

Nothing is ever crystal clear, is it?

A Dying Nightmare

Let's delve into something much easier to talk about, shall we? Let’s talk about the visuals. They are absolutely reprehensible and disgusting. Plenty of locations, both small and large, are sickening and make you wonder who in their right mind could imagine, yet alone create something as despicable as this?

They’re also fantastic and disturbingly beautiful to look at. There are set pieces that are absolutely awe-inspiring to look at, all of which are enhanced by perfect lighting and visual effects that make the world of Scorn unlike anything you have ever seen.

Urgh, this was supposed to be easy to talk about. It is, but in this context, you have to understand that even using negative adjectives is a complementary description of this game’s world design. Your familiarity with this kind of art and approach to environmental storytelling will also influence how you look at it. For me, it’s horrific, but its scale fascinates me.

Some locations look like they are straight out of a Giger painting. It is criminal that Scorn doesn't have a dedicated photo mode.

If you are a fan of the works of H.R. Giger or Zdzisław Beksiński, then you’ll almost certainly be right at home here, as Scorn’s world is a perfect representation of their art pieces. You’re very much living in a realm of their creation. Their unrelenting and oppressive nature has been captured to an exceptional degree.

No expense has been spared into making everything around you feel incredibly isolating and daunting, to the point where you always feel on edge. That’s before you even meet the creatures that reside in this world, who are equally unwelcoming.

The “lifeforms” you encounter are very much built with their environment in mind. If I were to divide Scorn’s main forms of inspiration, I would allocate the environments to H.R. Giger and the creatures to Zdzisław Beksiński. You can tell from the get-go that you shouldn’t go anywhere near them, and even the ones that aren’t hostile to you reek of death and decay. 

Even you, the main character, are pretty disgusting, if we’re being frank. You’re a humanoid who's missing a lot of skin, and all clothing is nowhere to be found. Still, you’re probably the most pretty aspect of this game, so at least you’ve got that going for you. 

It might not be the best shot of him since he's covered up, but in all honesty, he doesn't look much better once he's out.

It should be a foregone conclusion to say this, but Scorn is not for the faint of heart. If you don’t like gore, you should avoid this like the plague. I myself am not a fan of this sort of thing, but what kept me hooked was just how compelling the world was to me, and I think it’s because it’s something I’ve never really imagined before. 

Of course, I’ve seen the works of both artists already. I’ve played Vomitoreum, an indie, retro shooter inspired by Beksiński’s art. I’ve visited the H.R. Giger museum in Gruyères, which was an uncomfortable experience to say the least. I’m familiar with it all. But actually being in one of those art pieces and seeing firsthand the horror put on full display is a whole different league. 

Scorn is a quiet game, something that adds to the discomfort. Which is why every time you do hear something, you’re immediately put on edge. A metal creak in the distance is enough to leave you twitchy, and I lost count of how many times I physically cringed when I moved something that resulted in making a loud noise. You’re in the belly of the beast, and you’re reminded of that every step of the way.

Safety is an impossible luxury in the world of Scorn. Danger can strike at any moment.

Eventually, there will be times where your worst fears come true, and something in the world reacts to your input. This place you are pondering through is not as dead as it seems, and the game becomes a fight for survival. This is also where Scorn will start to lose a lot of people.

Struggle to the Top

The gameplay of Scorn can be divided into two categories: combat and puzzles. One of these aspects is more fleshed out than the other. I’ve already mentioned earlier that one of the first challenges you have to beat is to solve a somewhat convoluted puzzle that’ll have you conducting trial and error until you get it right.

How long you spend on the puzzles is entirely up to you and how clever you are. There is no handholding. You’ll encounter a problem that needs fixing. It is up to you to figure out what it is you need to do and then how you actually go about doing it.

Some people will love that. I liked it quite a bit, even if I did have to use Google the odd time (I gave them a fair shot!). But there will be plenty who don’t, and who maybe weren’t expecting to have to deal with these when buying the game for the first time.

Conceptually some puzzles are simple, but the way they are crafted is anything but. You're almost guranteed to be stumped on one.

For what these puzzles are, however, they are brilliant. They remind me of the puzzles you would encounter in Observation, the sci-fi game made by the same developers of Alien Isolation. I took issue with some of those due to how random they felt in their incorporation, but this isn’t the case with Scorn. Yes, it’s not explained to you why you have to solve these challenges, but you figure that out as you are doing them, and there is something so fulfilling in that.

They’re also completely unique, with no repetition whatsoever. Some are more exciting than others, yes, but they each bring their own aspects to the table that make them feel distinct and refreshing. They’re mostly environmental, opening doors, activating trams, or operating a minecart system, with a couple being on the more morbid end of the spectrum.

I wasn't a fan of this one personally, but it is a prime example on just how varied these puzzles can be, in ways that you don't expect.

A few might be a bit too obtuse for their own good, but they succeed in being incredibly well-thought out and are capable of challenging you in a multitude of ways. More importantly, they all feel like they belong in the world of Scorn. You’re lost in a puzzling place; it only makes sense for there to be problems you need to solve.

What’s not so engaging, however, is the combat. This is likely Scorn’s most glaring and noticeable issue that you can’t wave away with “worldbuilding” reasons. It’s not awful; it just feels sluggish. There are times where you won’t have much in the way of problems, but those instances are few and far between.

Let’s break it down a bit. The first weapon you obtain is basically a melee weapon. It’s still a gun, but it protrudes an attack that is capable of killing. Think of it as a “pokey stick thing." It’s very slow; you can only use it twice in quick succession before it needs to recharge.

Here is pokey stick thing in action. When it works, it works really well. When it doesn't, you look embarrassing, and then you die. Sad.

Overtime, you’ll unlock a rifle, a shotgun, and a grenade launcher towards the end. Each has their own advantages and circumstances for which they would be crucial. But they all suffer from one major problem: they’re too slow!

If it’s just one-on-one combat, or if there’s two enemies, then maybe you’ll be okay. But if there’s more than that, you will get swarmed unless you run away and try and pick them off carefully. In some cases, that’s fine, but bear in mind the vast majority of the game takes place in enclosed environments with very little wiggle room. If you need to reload or change weapons, an animation will play that slows you down, giving enemies plenty of time to catch up and attack you.

These little ones spit at you, and they are very annoying because they almost never miss. Smashing their stupid faces in is very fun.

Enemies are always faster than you. The only case where that isn’t true is if you’re sprinting. If you’re using a melee attack, you have to make sure you use it in such a way that either disrupts an enemy attack or is situated in a place where you won’t get hit, which is incredibly difficult. Ranged enemies are worse in this regard, as their attacks almost always hit you no matter what.

There is a significant lack of urgency in Scorn’s combat. It’s almost as if the main character can’t be bothered and wants to give up. I can’t necessarily blame them for that, but that doesn’t exactly make for engaging gameplay. I want to be reactive, but the game barely lets you be that, and if you take a lot of damage, good luck getting that health back, as health packs can only be found in designated areas.

There are a small variety of enemies that involve various risk factors, such as this grunt who will charge at you.

All of this is made worse by the repetitive nature of the combat. It’s fine for a while, even despite its shortcomings, but boy does it drag towards the end, especially when the number of enemies increases. There’s a boss fight in the final act that is just downright painful.

Taking all of this into consideration, it almost feels like combat was the last thing considered when developing Scorn. If it were revealed that Ebb Software didn’t have that planned from the beginning, I wouldn’t be surprised. The game is at its best when it lets the player be immersed in its unforgiving world, fixing problems and finding new pathways with the hope of some kind of salvation, all the while keeping a close eye for anything that might hinder their journey. Running and gunning don’t really blend well into that mix.

Final Thoughts:   

As of writing this review, it has been over a month since I finished the game. I needed the time to think and reflect on the experience. As I mentioned in the beginning of this review, when I completed it, I wasn’t sure whether I liked it or not. This might be one of the most complicated reviews I have written. I think that in itself means that Scorn did something right.

This is a game that’s meant to be talked about. There is no obvious meaning to its story, nothing to explain the madness that is happening around you. That is up to you. You determine how much you get from the experience, and that is not exactly an easy sell. Whether or not Scorn is a game for you is something you will have to see for yourself.

Pictures such as these capture what I will remember most about Scorn. Impressive, awe-inspiring, and unnerving set pieces.

For me, I don’t think it is something I will play again, and yet, I think it’s one of the most impactful games I have ever played. I highly recommend reading into theories and interpretations of what it’s all about, as some of them will completely transform how you look and feel about the experience as a whole. SuperHorrorBro’s video in particular I highly recommend.

It may fumble down the stairs every so often, and one almost wonders if it would be better if it didn’t have combat to begin with, as it almost feels counter intuitive to the game as a whole, but its world design and visual style do more than make up for it. At least for me. I can’t guarantee you will be able to preserve through all of it. Maybe you’ll end up like the main character and just not be bothered anymore.

If you’re a fan of H.R. Giger or Zdzisław Beksiński, then I would almost say you are obligated to give this a go. But if you are even remotely curious or just want something to creep you out and stay in your head for a long time, then Scorn is definitely worth your consideration. Whether or not you will stay for the whole experience is another matter. 

Rating:

Pros:

-Outstanding visual achievement

-Thought-provoking world

-Haunting atmosphere

-Engaging puzzles

Cons:

-Poorly conceived combat

Final Score: 9/10