By Jade Entien

Let me begin by saying that I love horror games. I love their ambience, their characters, their stories, and the adrenaline rush they give me. I live for those horrifying moments. I’ve never played a walking simulator horror game (other than the demo of P.T.), but Luto (Spanish for mourning) gives the impression that it’s on par with what P.T. as a full game could’ve been. As a debut title, Luto is an excellent introduction to what the Broken Bird Games development team is capable of. Within the first hour of gameplay, I was flinching from my screen, anticipating the next terror. Luto isn’t just a story; it’s an experience. 

We play as Sam, short for Samuel, about whom not much is known at the start. Since the game is “a story about death,” we can assume that he has suffered a great loss. We first encounter Sam in the desert, and the game’s narrator informs us that a sandstorm is quickly closing in, enveloping Sam within a massive dune. 

But this scene is only a nightmare, and now, after regaining consciousness, Sam stands before a shattered mirror that prevents us from seeing him clearly. I couldn’t help but wonder if perhaps Sam doesn’t want to be perceived. Perhaps something happened to him, something awful, and now Sam thinks less of himself as a person because of it. A smiling face on a post-it note reminds Sam to cheer up. The narrator informs us that this is Sam’s house, but he’s unfamiliar with it as he just moved in. We are told that Sam is ready to go to work as he does every day. I spent a little time looking around and trying to learn what I could from items like keys and a trashed funeral card before stepping outside and progressing to the next day. 

Sam never speaks to us, forcing us to trust the narrator that guides us through the gameplay, helping us follow the story and make the decisions that impact Sam’s life. Throughout my playthrough, I couldn’t help but wonder if the narrator – the only voice we have to depend on – was reliable. Who was the narrator really? Sam’s inner monologue? Perhaps a cosmic being watching Sam’s life play out? Not much is known, and my gut tells me to be suspicious. 

As the days pass and we spend time exploring, we discover a plethora of items to interact with, each adding detail to the story: house keys on a table, grandma’s locked chest, notes scribbled with drawings of a symbol only Sam seems to understand. Along with much to see and touch, there are puzzles to be completed, some that require returning to rooms we’ve already visited to examine items we’ve encountered earlier. And as we progress through the game, the scares begin.

Regarding the frights, I want to note that Luto runs on Unreal Engine 5, the latest version of Unreal Engine, and as a result it boasts incredible graphics and sound design that puts your console to work (hopefully without much lag). Thus, the scares feel incredibly real, due to the crisp, clear quality and bone chilling sound effects. Seeking a solution to one of the puzzles, I was unnerved when the room I was supposed to enter was darker than night; an eerie sound kind of like a haunting wind flooded my ears as I forced myself to soldier on. 

“Just run through, it’ll be over within seconds,” I told myself, my finger on my left tab ready to run. Suddenly, a ghost-like figure covered in a white bed sheet pursued me down the hallway. I paused the game, shivering as I fought back tears. “WHY DO THEY DO THIS?” I cried before unpausing and continuing, with my back turned to the ghost, I started to run. I don’t like ghosts OR being chased in horror games because, unlike in horror movies, this feels real. Horror games put you into the action, making you feel it, hear it, see it. In a walking simulator like Luto, you can’t fight back as in a survival horror like Resident Evil or Silent Hill. I hate being helpless, but it adds to the immersiveness. When you’re trapped in your own home, which is meant to be a safe space, there’s really not much you can do but try to escape. 

I highly recommend playing with headphones, which adds to the intensity: isolating yourself really ramps up the realism. I felt I had a personal stake in getting Sam out of his own mind and helping him move on from the evil haunting him. Luto’s wonderfully-told story of death, dread, and eventual triumph left me reeling after it was all over. 

Luto is currently available on PC, XBox and PlayStation consoles for $20, a bargain, in my opinion, for its deeply affecting seven hours of gameplay. It’s a great choice for anyone who craves fictional fear, along with a story that’ll keep you up nights, waiting for your next chance to hop on and indulge.

Jade Entien is an NYVGCC senior intern, a Junior at SUNY Cortland with a major in Communication studies and passion for Theatre as a minor.

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