Leak

If there were any standard recipe for the modern psychological horror game, it would be this; the first-person player in a nightmarish, isolated setting must eliminate a plaguing evil, and minimalist mechanics follow to piece together the puzzle slowly. I guess asking Leak to be slightly more original might have been too much, as that seems to be what we're getting with this title.

But then again, the game hasn't been released yet, so maybe some thrills and spills are in store! However, we have played Leak's prologue of the demo, which gives us a glimpse of what's in store for this seemingly typical psychological horror title. Is there any hope of the experience being a bit more compelling outside of the standard genre formula? Let's run a preview to find out.

Magic or Science?

The prologue of Leak sets up the game's story, setting, and general mechanics and convinces us whether it's a title worth pursuing on release. The premise dances on a fine line between the supernatural and science, where the player fights with morality about his past, finding that previous evils are catching up with him in unexplained ways. Is it psychosis, or is there a ghostly burden falling upon him?

The storyline sets up the mechanics, in which the player must solve a mystery about his missing wife, again playing with ethics and morals to accomplish that feat. You'll explore, interact with objects, and find essential assets that give clues about what's happening and how to move forward. It quickly answers that Leak follows a classic psychological horror game recipe.

But a couple of elements can at least pique player interest. The first is that the visuals are well-done to set up for any jump-scares or uncomfortable emotions. The second is that the movement mechanics matter. Rather than being left free to explore at your own pace, environmental factors come into play, meaning you can't stay in a snowy forest too long before freezing or succumb to evil spirits standing in one location for too long.

Those introductions at least break the formula to keep the challenge alive and let players feel more urgency in their playthroughs against the already desperate narrative. Overall, everything about Leak is hardly original. Still, this game feels like a coat of polish rather than most rushed psychological horrors.

Taking a Leak

Surprisingly, one can come off of the prologue with enough to want to play the full release. The narrative isn't original, but you still want to see what happens. Minimalist mechanics have enough potential to create more challenges than just a walking simulator. Leak is no Phasmophobia, but it isn't an absolute copy-paste job, as we might have expected.

Round-Up - Pros & Cons

Pros:

• A coat of polish that redeems overall gameplay
• Movement mechanics provide a challenge
• Fantastic visuals

Cons:

• No release date yet
• Little in the way of originality
• The story sounds familiar to other genre titles