The newest Supermassive horror game, The Quarry, is now available for purchase on consoles and personal computers. Given that the developer’s previous games include Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology, it’s reasonable to question if The Quarry can stand on its own. The Quarry is Supermassive’s strongest game to date in terms of gameplay, but the plot and none of the game’s several different endings are satisfying.
The Quarry is a narrative about a group of teenage camp counsellors who are preparing to leave Hackett’s Quarry after serving there for two months. The party members have built deep bonds while playing together, which are visible in the game’s opening scenes. This category includes blooming relationships, unsatisfied romantic impulses and longings, and future hopes. When the counsellors realise that they are not permitted to return home, their situation worsens. This development agitates Mr. Hackett, portrayed by David Arquette, the camp’s leader. It is the player’s responsibility to keep the party safe while they investigate what’s going on in Hackett’s Quarry after dark.
There are a multitude of reasons to visit The Quarry. It has a teenage cast based on iconic slasher film clichés, suggesting that it was influenced by slasher film classics such as Friday the 13th, Scream, and A Nightmare on Elm Street. Each character’s biography and motivations are masterfully brought to life by the skilled cast that donates their talents to the game. The Quarry features Ted Raimi, Ariel Winter, and a variety of other performers. Each of the counsellors offers a unique viewpoint on the game and the cosmos, since individuals respond differently to similar experiences.
The ten-hour duration of this game cannot handle the amount of characters the player can control. Due to the fact that there are nine distinct camp counsellors to choose from, it is likely that a player’s favourite character is also the one with the least time to play as them. Due to this dilemma, characters like Emma, who show early potential but are subsequently demoted to a supporting role, find themselves in a difficult position.
Three of The Quarry’s many strengths include its beautiful location design, amazing soundtrack, and exceptional images. Additionally, the game’s playability is one of its greatest assets. The Quarry offers an extensive variety of explorable environments, all of which take full advantage of next-gen technology. In terms of the quality of its setting design, this game surpasses all other entries in The Dark Pictures Anthology. Due to its remarkable level of realism and attention to detail, this game has the potential to be among the most aesthetically gorgeous of the current generation of consoles. In a similar manner, the gameplay and design of the game have been enhanced over its predecessors. In addition, the menu has been revised to make it simpler to discover what you’re searching for and more accessible for individuals with impairments. Even if you don’t like horror films, you should play The Quarry to see how effectively modern game technology can replicate the mood of 1980s slasher films.
The Quarry strikes the ideal balance between corny humour and possibly absurd narrative choices when it comes to building an interactive horror experience set in a summer camp. The game’s origins as a cheesy horror film are one of its best features. The finest aspect of any Supermassive game is the ability to play as the teenagers who are typically slaughtered in films due to their own lack of knowledge and attempt to save them; yet, it appears far easier in this version. The “Don’t Breathe” instructions and Quick Time Events (QTEs) appear to allow less room for error, making it easier to navigate conflicts and protect the counsellors. Similarly, those who have played a few Supermassive games know which decisions will result in success and which will result in failure. Consequently, The Quarry may be the easiest Supermassive game to accomplish.
Not until the seventh chapter of the game are the Quarry’s gravest problems disclosed. In revealing the identity of the monsters before the major revelation, The Quarry not only commits the most severe error of any previous Supermassive Game, but also has additional character and plot flaws. The game’s progression is stalled for an entire chapter when the player is forced to connect with characters they haven’t spent the last few hours attempting to protect and save. If you do this immediately, the game’s flow will be entirely disturbed, and it may never return completely.
Although this is unpleasant, it is not as traumatic as The Quarry’s conclusion, which was disappointing regardless of the player’s choice. Due to the absence of a conclusion, the experience of completing the game is disappointing. Instead of a final battle between the survivors and their attackers, followed by a police interrogation, the game’s main adversary isn’t even attacking when the player is eventually triumphant in The Quarry, like in the conclusion of Until Dawn. Due to the fact that the game’s conclusion fails to connect any of the primary characters, players will feel especially cheated out of their last ten hours of gaming. This abrupt conclusion leaves players wondering what might have occurred if they had murdered a camp counsellor or loved one during their time at Camp Walden.
Tragically, the fact that the whole narrative of one Quarry character’s partner centred on attempting to save them was missed in this review repetition. The player’s actions were not penalised, and they were excluded from watching their loved one’s death, despite their enormous guilt for murdering the person they had fought so hard to save, despite the fact that the survivor had been so close to the dead individual. After spending the majority of the game attempting to save the characters, The Quarry’s conclusion is a massive letdown, since there is no true resolution for them.
There is a possibility that The Quarry falls short of the lofty expectations established by Until Dawn supporters who have been eagerly awaiting a worthy sequel. None of the characters in the title, which is a literary adventure, have happy endings. Nonetheless, the game’s fascinating gameplay and appealing characters mostly carry it. This poor picture may have been rescued if there had been an epilogue depicting how the Quarry survivors escaped and what happened to them after their deaths. Despite The Quarry’s breathtaking aesthetics, fans may have to wait longer for a proper successor to Until Dawn.