The Resident Evil series has single-handedly redefined and refined survival horror in recent years. However, as the venerable series continue to push the genre forward, a growing number of indie games are looking back to the survival horror of the late 90s for inspiration. Crow Country joins the ranks, offering a reverent nostalgia to the past. Veterans won’t encounter anything they haven’t seen, but the experience is comforting in its eerie familiarity.
Developer SFB Games clearly understood its self-imposed assignment. Crow Country’s grainy, low-polygon presentation faithfully evokes the PS1/N64 era while still maintaining a unique charm thanks to its doll-esque character designs. Thankfully, the studio refrains from copying more archaic elements such as static camera angles of the time, opting for a more preferred 360-degree camera and free movement instead of tank controls. The presentation adds a nostalgic twist to the game’s setting, an amusement park called Crow Country.
As Agent Mara Forrest, you arrive in search of the park’s missing owner, Edward Crowe, and quickly find him overrun by strange monsters of an unknown species. Despite the game’s spooky vibes, scaredy-cats shouldn’t worry. Crow Country is nowhere near as terrifying as its Silent Hill/Resident Evil influences. This might be disappointing for horror fans – I count myself among them – but I didn’t mind. Outside of some decent jump scares, the game is more about establishing an interesting, oppressive mood, and that’s enough for me. The creatures look appropriately flawed and haunted, despite being strangely beautiful thanks to the art direction. The writing has a nice sense of humor that contrasts nicely with a dark and generally enjoyable mystery highlighted by a cool story twist.
A variety of firearms, such as a pistol, shotgun, and if you search hard enough, blasting monsters with a magnum feels substantial, and the attached laser sights add a modern touch. do Avoiding enemies to conserve ammo is relatively easy, and the game does a generous job of keeping your clips full. This speaks to Crow Country’s potential for wide reach. It’s unchallenging in terms of combat and inventory management, making it a great introduction to the genre for newcomers or a good option for those looking to play a lighter on usually tough gameplay style.
Another aspect in which SFB Games adheres to Crow Country’s old-school approach is exploration and puzzle solving. The game’s elaborate puzzles are generally clever and well-designed, but the real challenge is keeping track of more than two dozen notes that contain clues or solutions. This is because you can only see these messages in save rooms, which creates a lot of backtracking for the employee to double-check memos. The game’s condensed level design means the save room isn’t usually too far away, but running around felt less convenient as my notebook sprawled out. To minimize this, expect to jot down notes or take photos of clues with your phone.
Furthermore, deliberately cluttered environments easily hide useful objects and clues, meaning things are easier to miss. Expect to hug the walls of each room to thoroughly comb their interactive elements (although the game keeps track of how many secrets you find). As a long-time fan of the genre, I didn’t mind this nostalgic style, and it never became a real deterrent. Consider this less criticism and more PSA for those hoping for a smoother experience.
Speaking of save rooms, the game’s deliberate lack of autosaves means that losing progress between your last visits results in death. I was initially burned by it, dying before reaching the first save room and replaying the first 20 minutes. Again, your tolerance will vary; If you’re diligent about saving, losing progress pieces is rarely a problem. But if you don’t like to deal with that, Crow Country might be too faithfully retro for you.
As reductive as it sounds, Crow Country is a good “one of them” when it comes to delivering a classic survival horror experience. Familiar elements and tropes are well executed, and the short five-to-six hour runtime is perfect for its small scope. I enjoyed reliving the golden years of the genre through the eyes of Crow Country. Playing it feels like cozying up under a warm, bloody blanket.