Into the Woods told us that agony can cut like a knife, but developer Mad Mind Studio has made Agony extraordinarily more gruesome. So gruesome in fact, that there was a question if this game was going to make it to consoles at all. The game features so much gore and nudity, the developers had to tone it down so it could receive an M for Mature rating versus an AO for Adults Only. That should give you an idea of what this game entrails… I mean, entails.
Obviously, Agony pushes the boundaries to the point of breaking. So if you’ve ever wondered just how far a game can go, this is it. The pictures and gameplay trailer do try to portray a sense of that, but nothing seems quite that bad yet. Expect a whole new world of disgusting when the game finally releases.
What has been seen is already disturbing. Everything is red and sticky from blood and there is no shortage of human bones. They even make up the walls and floors. Plus there is a tunnel to pass through made of teeth which need to be dodged, lest you get chewed. Compound that with not being able to see more than two feet in front of you, and you are in for a bad time.
The story seems fairly basic so far. You are a human man who wakes up in hell with no recollection of what happened during his life. As anyone would, he would very much like to get out of this god-forsaken place. It turns out the only way to do this would be to meet with a being called the Red Goddess, whom all the other souls seem to worship. Something tells me she won’t be letting you out easily.
Agony is classified as a survival horror game, and it looks like that on steroids. A few monsters have been seen already, most of which have vaginas for heads. And yes, you did read that correctly. The only way to make a vagina face creepier would be to make it have eyes (shudders). Thankfully, Mad Mind has made these creatures blind, but have an acute sense of hearing. Basically “Clickers” from The Last of Us with more genitalia.
It seems at this point there will be no way to kill these horrible beasts. No weapons have been shown or mentioned thus far. There is a torch to burn obstacles in your way, but the sound attracts creatures. Thre is a mechanic which allows you to hold your breath if an enemy wanders to close. However, if they linger for too long you can find yourself in a spot of trouble. There has been a promise of mind control though, which does sound quite fun.
Unfortunately, I have serious doubts about this game. I like horror and am by no means a prude or squeamish, but I fear that Agony will get dull rather quickly. It just seems to be trying to shock and disgust you in as many ways as possible. There is no way that will be sustained through a many hours long game. Two hours maybe, but no more than three. With games being much longer than that in this day and age, this game screams to be a disappointment in some way. Hopefully, I will be proven wrong.
No exact release date has been announced but should be coming sometime in 2018 on PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4.