Game Review: The Quarry

Supermassive Games have had a very interesting run of games over the past 10 years.  Starting out back on the PlayStation 3, the studio was known mostly for smaller scale projects up until their big AAA outing in Until Dawn on the PlayStation 4.  That game in a lot of ways put Supermassive Games on the map when it came to interactive video game experiences akin to that of Quantic Dream titles. Where Until Dawn differed from those games however was it's more deliberate focus on horror; a theme which has become the key blueprint to the majority of all of the games the studio has put out up to this point. 

The reason I talk about Until Dawn is because of it's relevance to their latest title; The Quarry. The Quarry is a interactive horror game which follows a lot of the same core principles that Until Dawn became so famous for. You have a group of 9 playable characters who are put into a consistent series of deadly situations in which your actions or inactions can be what decides if they live or die. I honestly feel the reason Supermassive Games stuck to this formula so much in this game and in the Dark Pictures games is because of the success of Until Dawn, it was easily the best selling game the studio put out and is still talked about as one of the best horror experiences you can get on the PS4.  So with all that success and history behind them, it made sense to build upon the legacy of that game with this spiritual successor.

The Quarry follows a group of teenagers who are working as camp councillors at Hackett Quarry during the summer season. Just as the season wraps up and the kids leave camp, the councilors prepare to head home when they find themselves stuck for one more night. Unbeknownst to the councillors however, this night is the worst night they could have picked to be stuck at Hackett Quarry, as something wicked and feral looms between the trees. As the night progresses the kids must learn to survive the horrors that stalk them both inside and out before the dawn of the next day. There's twists and turns layered around every corner and the mystery of Hackett Quarry is one these kids will not soon forget....if they're even alive to remember it. 

I really dug the narrative element of The Quarry for the most part, even if it does tackle a horror trope I'm not the biggest fan of personally. I think what makes this game's story so much fun to follow is down to it's tone and setup. This is a game which wants to pay homage to all the previous horror-slashers of it's time like Friday the 13th and Sleepaway Camp and this game nails that ambition really well.  It's layered in all the charm and humour you would expect of a horror movie of that setting with a notable cast behind it's characters.. Despite it's packed cast though, it's hard not to feel that some characters feel underutilised tin comparison to other characters in the game. There's definitely some stand outs though and it's nice to see some familiar horror genre actors pop up in this game like David Arquette, Ted Raimi, Lance Henriksen and Ariel Winter.

I think the narrative's core strength works to reflect the weakness in some of the gameplay though. Don't get me wrong, for the most part the gameplay can be really fun and it offers all the familiar aspects of interaction and choice you would find in Until Dawn or Dark Pictures. I think the issue is these interactive elements can feel notably limited in the scale of the story. I felt the other Supermassive Games had a much more consistent offering of interaction spread across their runtime and The Quarry suffers from a notable lack of it. The interactive stuff that is there is fun and distinct enough not to ruin the overall impression of the gameplay but it was hard not to feel like you were watching the story play out more often than actually engaging with it. What is here though is still serviceable and I did enjoy how fun the interactive elements were when they did pop up;.The choice element especially can impact the narrative in a lot of surprising ways

I think the Quarry despite a few minor stumbles still displays the value and charm behind why these type of games have gathered such a large audience over time. There's a charming sense of style and tone embedded in the game's horror and it's hard not to appreciate how extensive the choices you have can influence the story considerably.