Review By Jon Donnis
I was asked to review Re-Turn - One Way Trip and provided a code by Renaissance PR.
This is a side scrolling 2D Puzzle Adventure Horror Game, you play as a girl called Saki, you are apparently camping with some friends, and when you wake up in the middle of the night, your friends have disappeared, and you have to find out what the hell is going on.
The controls are super simple and this is an easy to play game, this is not a platforming game as such, so you won't be jumping to avoid enemies etc, instead you will move around methodically, collecting items and trying to solve puzzles which then allow you to progress through the game.
As you play the game, the action is mixed in with beautifully drawn cut scenes.
As you move around you will see a magnifying glass icon appear if you are near to something that can be interacted with, that may be a child's drawing, or a knife, or all manner of items that you may need to continue the game. After some wondering around you will find an old abandoned train, and once you go inside, this is where the game really starts, and you will spend most of your time in the train.
Since this is a horror game, despite the cute 2D graphics, there are adult elements here, and once in the train you will have to not only solve puzzles but also deal with suddenly finding yourself in a different time line, a time when the train is full of passengers and staff. So as you play you will move between the past and the present, all the while trying to find your missing friends as well as understand how the train came to be abandoned.
The puzzles themselves aren't that hard and much of the time to progress you just need to walk back and forth looking for the magnifying glass icon to appear so you can examine an item. Some of the puzzles are a bit tricky, and one time I simply couldn't figure out how to open a lock, and I think I just got lucky in the end, instead of using any true puzzle solving skills.
The Good
The 2D pixel art graphics are perfectly fine, but the true star of the show is the sound track, it really does help build tension, I found playing with headphones on was the best option. The game will also easily run on pretty much any computer, so no worries about having a fancy graphics card.
The Bad
The game itself is relatively easy, but you will find yourself walking backwards and forwards a lot, not really achieving anything as you try to find the next clue, this can feel a bit tedious at times. There is also only one save point in the game, that is on the train.
Summary
A simple game that does deliver some good horror elements. I score this game 7/10
Review By Jon Donnis
Releasing first on Steam for PC and Xbox One, Re:Turn will launch on 14th October priced at £9.99 / $11.99 / €9.99. The game will also be coming to PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch in the coming weeks.
