Stygian: Outer Gods is a survival horror game in the classic style of Resident Evil or Amnesia: The Dark Descent. It challenges players to uncover the mystery of a town fallen into ruin just after the end of the First World War, with the machinations of cruel witches and uncaring eldritch gods preparing to plunge the world into the cataclysmic Black Day. While the game shows promise, there are some very clear performance issues in the current Early Access build, which will hopefully be patched before the full launch.
Stygian: Outer Gods is a new installment in the same Lovecraftian universe as Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones, a much different-looking game that shares many of the same concepts and aesthetics. This prequel allows players to influence the events of the Black Day—the main plot of Reign of the Old Ones—and explore the game’s universe further before the inevitable apocalypse portrayed in the 2019 title.
Stygian: Outer Gods draws heavy inspiration from Lovecraftian fiction and the broader genre of eldritch horror. Beings from beyond human understanding, ancient prophecies, and other cosmic horror tropes—which make the player feel like a speck in a cruel and uncaring universe—permeate the story. Occult rituals and unknowable magical forces are central to recovering ancient artifacts unearthed by the residents of Kingsport, all in an effort to release an ancient god and prevent global catastrophe.
I really enjoyed many of the themes in Stygian: Outer Gods. The game kept me invested as I moved from place to place, with a strong emphasis on environmental storytelling. This aspect did much of the narrative’s heavy lifting, as I found the actual written dialogue and notes throughout the game did a somewhat underwhelming job of delivering the story. Characters often speak in riddles or rhyme, which—and I’m not sure if this was intentional—left much of the plot feeling unclear, outside of the rare segments where things were plainly explained. Using metaphor and riddles to tell a story is normal for a horror game, but it’s less fitting when characters with personal ties to the protagonist try to convey basic information in the same cryptic manner. When information is presented clearly, it’s often brief and rarely expanded on later.
I generally didn’t enjoy most of the character-to-character interactions. While the monster animations and combat are excellent, conversations often left characters feeling stiff—a feeling made worse by their strange and short dialogue, which is often text-only. When characters do speak aloud, poor lip-syncing often gives the scenes an unintentionally comical tone that clashes with the otherwise solid voice acting.
The gameplay in Stygian: Outer Gods is great. Combat is straightforward—perhaps to a fault—but that works fine for a horror game. Weapons are typically direct upgrades over previous ones, with small factors like swing speed influencing whether you keep something or toss it for a better option. Enemies look great, though sometimes a bit visually uninteresting or generic for a horror setting. The game’s puzzles are challenging enough without becoming frustrating.
The unique perks are fun, especially the “speak to the dead” option, though I wish there were more of a reward for using it. Getting gameplay-relevant information from corpses would make the perk feel more valuable—especially when you have to choose it over occult or lockpicking skills, both of which are extremely useful for interacting with the game’s many locked chests and boon totems.
Stygian: Outer Gods looks incredible, thanks in no small part to the game’s engine. While I found the gray color palette a bit dull at times, it makes the game’s whites, oranges, and blues stand out strikingly. The visuals do a lot to support the horror and atmosphere, but they might also be the cause of the game’s biggest issue—one that needs to be addressed before launch.
Stygian: Outer Gods runs on Unreal Engine, and while I appreciate what Unreal has done for game development, games built on it are often poorly optimized. One major issue I encountered in the current Early Access build was severe frame drops that only occurred when outdoors. The issue disappeared instantly once I was beneath any kind of roof—even an open shed or stable—or when in indoor areas like the mine. The game ran perfectly indoors, but being outside caused my frame rate to progressively get worse and worse the longer I played. Strangely, this only happened in the game’s main setting of Kingsport, not in any of the outdoor dream segments.
Overall, Stygian: Outer Gods is in a decent place for an Early Access title. While I’d like to see some minor improvements to storytelling and character animation, these are relatively small issues that don’t seriously impact the experience. The far more serious problem is the severe optimization and frame rate drops in outdoor areas—locations where players will spend a significant amount of time. These issues absolutely need to be fixed before launch.
Pros:
- Great Lovecraftian setting
- Decent, straightforward horror gameplay
- Fantastic visuals
Cons:
- Subpar dialogue and character moments
- FPS and optimization issues that must be addressed before leaving Early Access
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