Sanitarium

"Who..Who Am I?.... I'm NOT INSANE!!!!"

While searching for my next violent, bloody, and/or disturbing game to add to my demented collection, I stumbled across a strange sight: A game pack with a face bandaged up showing one large eye. Almost as if it stared into my soul, I picked it up and checked the back. I was hooked. I fired up the game and immersed myself in what I have dubbed ''The Second Most Disturbing Game Of All Time.''
Let's review shall we?

Sound
I decided to start with sound because this is what captured 45% of my attention. ASC Games created a system where each sound is perfectly pinpointed to a specific area. Walk next to a person to hear mumbling or crying. The voice acting is excellent although at times I disbelieved any real emotion in the VA. The music soundtrack was hellishly beautiful. Fear provoking songs and sounds make this chilling excursion one to remember.
Score: 9/10

Story
Very gripping story. You play as a man without a name..at first. You soon find out his name is Max. After being in a car accident you become scarred and disfigured. With no memory of who you are or what really happened, you awake in a tower prison. The inmates are quite insane. One is beating his head against the wall splashing his blood all over it. Another jumps off an edge and falls to his death. You somehow escape this nightmare only to find yourself entrenched in a horror you could never contemplate. Deformed children in the death grip of a monster, an entire alien race on the verge of annihilation, a twisted violent carnival, all thriving within the shattered psyche of Max, the mystery man.
Score: 10/10

Gameplay
Sanitarium hits a branch here. Using only the mouse for interaction, you must traverse Max's psyche in a most annoying fashion. Using only the Compass directions (N,S,E,W,NW,etc.) you move in a very frustrating pattern. You will find yourself stuck going up and down stairs repeatedly due to cruddy control. Max, despite his claims of sanity, cannot access items that are at least 3 steps away. Sometimes Max's character will get in the way of the item and frustration sets in. But you can just inch Max aside to see the item so it's not that big a deal. There is no Quick Load, despite what the game says. You must manually load the Quick Save from the Load Game Menu. Sanitarium also hosts a problem. Windows XP is not very friendly with this game. Some WXP users claimed to have been able to play this game faultlessly but for me it was always a ''Quick-Save-before-it-crashes'' way of playing. There were moments of crashing calm where the game went along flawlessly but these bugs still surfaced many times. WXP users be warned that Sanitarium is not always going to work.
Score: 7/10

Graphics
Nothing short of awesome. In game graphics display the twisted and disturbing world of Max's psyche. Unfittingly Rated (''T'' for teens 13+), Sanitarium pushes its way into MATURE realms with some very gory scenes. Mutilations, impaled bodies, blood everywhere...so why ''T?'' The cutscenes are nothing short of beautiful. Each placed specifically to reveal bits and pieces of the story, luring you along like a dog to a bone. An impressive game that I will enjoy playing again.
Score: 10/10

Replay Value
Hard to really rate this but you can always play it again to relive the adventure. All depends on the player.
Score: Varies

Final Judgment
This is a must buy for anyone who wants a game almost as scary and disturbing as Silent Hill (PSX,PS2,PC,NGC).

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/17/03