When I first learned about Pneumata, I was struck by the clear inspiration it took from other horror classics like Resident Evil 7, Condemned, and Outlast. These games are my personal favorites, so I was already hooked. I wouldn’t say no to more first-person survival horror.
Unfortunately, very early on in my playthrough, it became clear that while the inspiration was there, the execution didn’t come to fruition. Pneumata is an ambitious game, especially from an independent developer, but it’s hampered by a lack of polish, technical issues, and design choices that prevent me from recommending it even to a super fan of the genre like myself.
the case was solved
According to the Steam page, Pneumata involves investigating crime scenes and piecing together clues to solve a series of gruesome murders. After reading this description, I had high hopes for detective-style gameplay similar to the Condemned series. There, players are required to use their powers of observation to solve the mysteries of the game world, further immersing themselves in its nightmarish world. And although the main character, David, is a private investigator, nothing like real investigative gameplay ever materializes.
The closest this game comes to detective work is when David occasionally finds VHS tapes. There, you see the past through someone else’s eyes and uncover details of the story (very similar to Resident Evil 7). These segments add flavor to the story, but do not involve actual puzzle-solving or clue-gathering. The idea of actively piecing together the mystery is sadly absent, other than scattered notes, tapes, and the occasional IV drip.
The lack of exploration elements will be a disappointment to anyone, including myself, who was looking forward to those gameplay elements. Rather, the story feels more like a backdrop for combat and exploration than the driving force it describes. When the game begins, your character is investigating the disappearance of his missing wife, Jamie. But strangely, this was the last time Jamie was mentioned until the end of the game, leaving some confusion as to how all the other story beats and discoveries were meant to tie together. . And if you’re looking for a satisfying solution to the end of this bumpy road, look elsewhere. I won’t spoil it, but the ending felt rushed. After 7-8 hours of hard work, I was extremely disappointed.
Monotonous rather than threatening
Pneumata is particularly poor in enemy AI and combat mechanics. The game promises an “unpredictability” and encourages players to use hiding and distractions to evade or outwit their enemies. In reality, AI is incredibly basic and fails to deliver on this promise. Once spotted by an enemy, there is little chance of using the environment to distract or throw them off. They tend to keep tracking you, and avoiding them is often a matter of simply outrunning them rather than engaging in strategic gameplay. The only environmental element that affected me was the exploding barrels that were conveniently scattered across all maps. However, I mostly ended up self-destructing while shaking the enemy, so be careful with the hit range.
The lack of variety in enemy types is also a problem. The enemy designs are actually pretty scary and well done, but you’ll encounter the same types of enemies over and over again and they all act the same way. The gunfights feel good and serve their purpose, and you’ll pick up several different weapons during your adventure. The game includes some melee combat, but unfortunately it feels more clunky and dangerous than it’s worth. When encountering melee combat, it often depended more on luck than skill or timing. Detection of attacks is inconsistent and there is little feedback to let you know that you have been attacked. I tried to avoid melee attacks as much as possible because the mechanics are frustrating, but this is a shame because sometimes saving ammo is important. There is a blocking mechanism to assist with melee attacks, but in my experience it was never worth using. There was a significant lag between swinging the weapon and being able to block, making it feel almost useless.
Enemy encounters are a key source of the gripping tension I crave in horror games, but in Pneumata, enemy encounters quickly become more of an annoyance than a thrill. With no major changes in enemy mechanics, the game’s combat never evolves beyond a rudimentary level, and gameplay quickly becomes repetitive and monotonous. Boss encounters are also lacking, with the final boss fight being incredibly repetitive and drawn out.
fell into frustration
Exploration plays a big role in Pneumata, but it’s also its biggest drawback. It’s all too easy to get lost in the environments, especially the dark, winding sewers. This might not be a problem if the game gave the player good tools to navigate, but without a map or a way to get directions, the player is left stranded. Wandering aimlessly and seeing the same landmarks over and over again. I really felt like I was losing my mind in that damn sewer. The repetition of environments and lack of direction make exploration more frustrating than fun. The majority of my 7-8 hours of gameplay was spent wandering around in confusion, growing more and more frustrated by the minute. Many times I thought I would end the game without finishing it, but when I reached the final boss it felt like an Olympic victory.
Maps can go a long way in improving your experience. If developers see this and are planning future updates for Pneumata, we highly recommend that they patch this. Without this, exploration feels like an exercise in frustration, backtracking through dark, monotonous hallways over and over again, unsure of where to go next. I think this may have been partly the intention. In horror games, a certain amount of disorientation can heighten the fear, but in Pneumata it feels more like a design flaw than an added layer of tension or fun.
dead air
In my opinion, sound design is one of the most important elements of a good horror game. They build tension, create atmosphere, and signal danger in ways that visuals alone cannot. Unfortunately, like many other aspects of Pneumata, the sound design is underwhelming. Audio levels are not well mixed, with some sounds being too loud and others barely audible. The sound effects repeatedly looped in the environment, making me wonder if it was a glitch or intentional. A particularly bad moment was at the first carnival where the music was an endless loop of 5-10 seconds. The lack of well-designed audio cues reduced the potential for shocking jump scares, which Pneumata didn’t want.
Many of the games seem to lack music where it’s needed. Silence is an effective tool for building tension in other games, but sadly it doesn’t work in Pneumata. It would have been appreciated even more if it had more diverse music tracks to set the mood and make the endless hours of aimless wandering more pleasant.
real fear…
More to the point, Pneumata has a number of technical issues. The game is full of bugs, from visual glitches to crashes that can wipe out your progress. Many times, I witnessed getting stuck in an environment or having important elements such as ladders disappear from view. In one instance, an important ladder I needed to escape from a group of enemies disappeared, but when I approached where the ladder was, I was still able to climb it. Moments like this made me lose faith in the game, and I constantly wondered if my inability to progress was due to a glitch, or if I had truly missed something.
Most concerning are reports of game-breaking bugs that could cause players to lose all progress late in the game. Fortunately, I didn’t run into this problem, but the fact that it’s affecting others is a serious problem. Bugs like this are unacceptable in a $34.99 game. Technical issues are to be expected with an indie title, but at this price point players should expect a certain level of polish and trust that they won’t waste hours of their time.
Pneumata is a great game, but unfortunately there are too many things missing for me to recommend it. The inspiration for Resident Evil, Condemned, and Outlast is clear, but the execution doesn’t live up to the high standards set by those great games. The lack of variety in enemy AI, frustrating exploration, underwhelming sound design, and abundance of bugs made Pneumata a difficult game for me to enjoy.
If you’re an avid fan of first-person horror games and still plan to experience this title, we highly recommend waiting for the hefty discount. Like everyone else, I do not recommend Pneumata. There are many other great titles at a cheaper price point, but it’s not worth the investment here. I see a foundation of possibility in Pneumata, but it is just a foundation. As it stands, Pneumata feels like an ambitious idea, but it’s still not quite ready for prime time.
Something like this:
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