Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story

Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story is an indie survival horror game released in 2020 for Windows, and due for release on the Nintendo Switch in January 2021.[2] The game features a blend of Chinese folklore and Cyberpunk themes, while drawing gameplay inspiration from the Fatal Frame and Clock Tower franchises.[3][4]

Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story
Developer(s)Susaku
Publisher(s)Top Hat Studios
Director(s)Benjamin Widdowson[1]
Platform(s)Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita
ReleaseAugust 25, 2020 (PC)
January 7, 2021 (Switch)
Genre(s)Point-and-click adventure, survival horror
Mode(s)Single-player

Gameplay

The world can be explored via pointing and clicking to reveal elements and solve puzzles. The main character has cybernetic ocular implants, which allow for zooming in on important areas for a closer look.

Plot

Set in 2083, Neo Hong Kong, heroine Mei-Lin Mak must explore the ruins of Chong Sing Apartments, discovering the history of its 14 lost souls, as well as her own family's past.[5]

Release

The game was released for Windows on Steam August 25, 2020, but temporarily pulled the next day for bug fixes and difficulty tweaks.[6]

Censorship controversy

Following the game's release on Switch there were calls on social media to censor the game, that led to the developer getting death threats over the game's artstyle which is said to be "a dystopian cyberpunk future where hyper-sexualization and body modification was commonplace-." Top Hat Studios issued a statement refusing to censor the title.[7][8] Though TheGamer questioned whether the statement was instead a manufactured controversy, noting the game received an influx of reviews following the statement. Most of which they said were from people who barely played the game and contained statements in opposition to "social justice warriors." The Gamer also argued that the art-style present in the game is outdated and that therefore justifies criticism of it. Top Hat Studios using posts from Facebook Twitter and emails provided evidence for some of its claims showing calls to review bomb and mass-calls to censor the game.[9]

Reception

On Metacritic the Switch version game holds a 60 rating based on 4 reviews indicating "mixed or average reviews"[10] In a review for the PC version for Noisy Pixel Azario Lopez said the game was " a call back to classic survival horror adventures that seemed to cater so much to the developer’s needs that it left out the most important part: The player" and that " The story will rarely make sense, and the haphazard nature of the puzzle design force many moments of aimless backtracking."[11] While TheSixthAxis was more positive with the Switch version of the game saying "The range of influences shown helps make what could have been just another horror game feel truly unique."[12] While Cubed3 said in a review of the PC version "fails as an adventure game."[13] While Finger Guns said in a review of the Switch version that "For a game about spirits, Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story is pretty soulless. A by-the-numbers backtracking horror game in the vein of Clock Tower its structure and content feel lackluster and a little disappointing if you went in expecting cyberpunk themes."[14]

Reference
  1. https://twitter.com/benwiddowsonart
  2. "Sense - A Cyberpunk Ghost Story for Nintendo Switch - Nintendo Game Details". Nintendo. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  3. Bashir, Dale (August 26, 2020). "Futuristic Spine-Tingling Horror Awaits in 'Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story'". IGN. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  4. Wilson, Mike (August 19, 2020). "Cyberpunk Horror Arrives August 25 With 'Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  5. Romano, Sal (August 18, 2020). "Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story launches August 25 for PC, this fall for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PS Vita". Gematsu. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  6. Lopez, Azario (August 26, 2020). "Horror Adventure 'Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story' Pulled From Steam to Address Gameplay Bugs". Noisy Pixel. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  7. Life, Nintendo (2021-01-02). "Top Hat Studios Issues Statement Regarding Demands To Censor Sense - A Cyberpunk Ghost Story". Nintendo Life. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  8. "Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story Publisher "Categorically Refuses" Censorship Ahead of Console Release". Twinfinite. 2021-01-01. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  9. "Top Hat Studios And Cyberpunk Anime Game "Sense" - Anti-Censorship Or Viral Marketing?". TheGamer. 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  10. "Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story". Metacritic. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  11. "Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story Review - Doesn't Make Sense - Noisy Pixel". noisypixel.net. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  12. "Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story Review – TheSixthAxis". Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  13. "Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story (PC) Review - Page 1 - Cubed3". www.cubed3.com. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  14. "Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story Review (Switch) – Digital Ghosts". Finger Guns. 2021-01-07. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
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