REVIEW : The Quarry (PC)
Supermassive Games returns with The Quarry, a game tipped to be the spiritual successor to the brilliant Until Dawn.
Supermassive Games is now finding its groove after a somewhat uneven The Dark Pictures collection. With The Quarry, the British studio specialising in interactive horror games returns to its first love, inviting players to follow a band of lonely young boys living in a beautiful summer camp surrounded by mountains, lakes, and woods. In some ways, it’s a true Until Dawn 2, taking all of the codes that made the original opus so successful and expanding on them. Here is our favourite of the summer season.
The blow of the breakdown turns into a nightmare
The summer at Hackett’s Quarry summer camp is concluding. The kids have gone home, and the grownups are no longer subscribers. The animators of the camp enjoy this small exquisite setting nestled in the boundaries of northern New York State’s forests entirely to themselves. On the last day of summer vacation, at dusk, they have planned a small farewell party that could change everything. A final evening that will turn into a nightmare when strange and savage animals decide to join in the fun.
The Quarry, like its spiritual father, is a pure slasher influenced by the new wave of horror films. The inspirations of The Cabin in the Woods, Friday the 13th, Scream, and Evil Dead are felt directly, as the game places us directly in the bath. There will be no extra-long and sluggish introduction to set the groundwork for the plot and gradually increase the pressure. It creates intrigue right away with a wonderfully cinematic opening sequence that sets the tone for the rest of the adventure. All of the darkness that has engulfed the Hacketts camp has been softened by some adolescent intrigues centred on love affairs. However, Supermassive has realised the lesson: it is only a little part of the plot that serves primarily to form some bonds throughout the quest.
We’ll be careful not to reveal too much about the scenario and its mysteries, the discovery of which is one of the keys draws. The plot is completely engrossing, even if it is a little over the phone in certain places, and we find ourselves reading The Quarry in one sitting without being able to pick it up. The game brilliantly interweaves the narrative of this less-than heavenly realm with equally compelling sub-stories.
Until dawn
The Quarry’s plot is carried by a stellar cast. Lance Henriksen (Aliens), David Arquette (Scream) as the cool summer camp manager, and Ted Raimi (Evil Dead) as the genuinely terrifying sheriff star with rising American actors such as Ariel Winter (Modern Family), Justice Smith (Detective Pikachu), and even Brenda Song ( Dollface ). This much of the globe was motion-captured from every aspect for the occasion, merely to produce believable cutscenes and scenarios.
On this front, there is a significant improvement over Until Dawn, with less rigid and more lifelike animations that allow for some truly amusing moments. Again, it is the work on the protagonists’ renderings that impresses, even though it is less spectacular than its elder in its day. Nothing is overlooked: skin textures, eyes, and minor face characteristics. As a result, Supermassive Games provides us with ultra-realistic characters in terms of both aesthetics and motion. But it has a flaw: the few worries of lip synchronisation or deformed mouths are unforgiving.
What doesn’t kill you will make you stronger?
The Quarry’s gameplay hasn’t evolved much since Until Dawn, so there’s no revolution on the horizon. We usually stick to a pattern based on more or less Cornelian options, with some clever moral quandaries thrown in towards the end. The latter has also caused us to pause all the time. We watch the sketches, focusing on each of these camp monitors whose fates and connections we might change. Will Abby and Nick seize this last evening to formalise their flirtation? Will the conflicts between two people affect whether one can help the other? Some conversation choices may appear insignificant at first glance, but others may be vital later in the plot.
The decisions that must be made will be more direct and definitive, especially in the heat of battle. Hide, take a riskier route, race down the left lane to try to escape your adversary, or hold your breath at the appropriate time during a chase… There are various options, and the consequences can be severe. Supermassive Games, like its earlier works, will build a true web around our decisions by compounding the quandaries. They will progressively influence the adventure, even upsetting it at times, while sealing the fate of the camp leaders piece by piece.
Popcorn evening alone or with friends
We see you coming: how about the promise of 180 different endings? We’re not going to lie to each other since that’s what has most disappointed us. The Quarry does not hesitate to offer many branches that shift dramatically from one chapter to the next, but after the credits roll, we receive the impression that the sub-stories, specific courses pursued, and relationships lack a meaningful finish. It depends on the decisions, but from one game to the next, even after saving everyone and finding all the proof, we stay unhappy. Dare we say it was a touch hasty? The hundred or so announced endings expand on the branching and possibilities of each important path, giving the game real replayability. Aside from the linear moments, it is possible to have completely distinct segments, even if the first hours remain the same. We merely want to restart the game after the disappointment. To keep us going, it must be emphasised that The Quarry knows how to do it. We were not bored for a single second, and even though the ending is unexpected, the game fulfils all of its other promises. We want to experiment with other options, observe fresh deaths, change specific relationships, and so on. Supermassive Games also had a brilliant idea to include some new game modes. Starting with Cinema mode, you can revisit the title without having to play it and with predefined (everyone dies, survives, etc.) or personalised settings. It’s a great touch to land softly in front of The Quarry, and why not explore alternative paths without having to replay 11 hours of gameplay? However, it lacks one feature: the ability to fast forward or rewind, as in a real film. Local co-op is a more enjoyable gaming mode. Up to 8 players can participate in the adventure by taking turns playing one or more characters. You only need to pass the handle.
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