Review: Infliction Extended Cut (Nintendo Switch)

When it comes to spooky games I’m usually not a fan. I don’t like to be scared. It gets my body all tense and ready to punch someone in the face. However, once in a while it’s kinda fun to be afraid. So when I was approached to review Infliction: Extended Cut I was a little hesitant, but I figured I’d take a chance and see what all the “jump scare hype” was about. 

Infliction begins with main character Gary getting a phone call from his wife. She seems to be at the airport and has forgotten her plane ticket at home. Gary agrees to go and fetch the ticket for his wife… but as we can all guess, plane tickets aren’t the only thing Gary is going to find at home. Shortly after entering the house, creepy things start happening, and the more you explore, the more the story unravels. The first-person perspective definitely adds to the suspense. Walking into a room or turning a corner was scary, even if nothing was there. Especially since all you have at your disposal is a flashlight. Ghosts and other entities will attack or chase you and if you don’t get away in time you will die. However, Infliction auto saves a lot so there aren’t any real repercussions for getting caught. 

Gary’s nightmare-fueled adventure gets worse as you progress. Creatures start lurking around and the house begins to change, it’s really neat. Almost the whole game takes place in the home, but it doesn’t feel repetitive or claustrophobic because everything keeps changing. Investigating or viewing items in the house will trigger memories for Gary. There are also random items like books and movies that you can pick up and view. Some of the titles are pretty funny and may even look a bit familiar to you. While your main arsenal is only a handy dandy flashlight, Gary does obtain a camera later on that allows him to view difficult-to-reach areas, and helps him find hidden ghosts around the house. There are also a few small puzzles to solve, but nothing that I would call difficult; mostly finding combinations for locks or figuring out an exit to a room. 

To me, Infliction feels like a good, interactive story. I don’t mean like the Telltale games either. Getting to walk around and explore is exciting. It also gives you control over where you go and what happens next, so this was probably the most fun I’ve had playing a game that doesn’t involve combat, or any kind of fast-paced action….besides being terrified. The game is a little bigger than you’d assume. Most indie titles don’t go over 1 GB, but Infliction is just over 3 GB. So make sure you have some spare room on your Switch before downloading. The gameplay was great and graphics are pretty good which makes it all the more fun to explore and look around.

The only thing that bothered me while playing Infliction was the ability to pick up almost every single item and investigate it, but not be able to use said item for defense or to get yourself out of a pickle. It can get a bit tiresome picking up every single thing to see if it’s somehow affiliated with the hell that Gary is trapped in. There’s also the problem of the empty boxes. Like, Gary, bro, why do you have so many cardboard boxes in and around your home? Every time I come across one I interact with it, which moves the box about five inches in a random direction and 95% of the time nothing is on or behind it. It’s literally just there to be there. It’s like if Amazon made a horror game and boxes were the obstacle. 

But besides those menial complaints I really have nothing negative to say about Infliction. I enjoyed my time with it and I was surprised how entertained my friends and I were while “getting scared”. If you’re into first-person horror games and you like a good mystery then you should definitely check out Infliction Extended Cut on the Nintendo Switch. While the price is a little steep I’m assuming Infliction will join the many other titles that frequently go on sale on the eShop. So if $20 is too much, hold out for a bit.