Curse: The Eye of Isis

"Not the Greatest Historical/horror game, but I wish there were more like it, not less"

I bought this game in December , 2004, so it's definitely not a hot and new title. Indeed, over the past couple of years I have seen Curse on store shelves a number of times without paying that much attention. Having now purchased it (from Amazon.com) however, I have to say that I think it's a very decent addition to my collection. The reviews here have it about right -- it's not as good as Eternal Darkness or Resident Evil, but it's a solid story and worth playing, overall. In fact, I wish there were more games of this nature...they don't all have to be blockbuster smash-hits.

Curse: The Eye of Isis is a lesser-known title in the genre of “survival-horror.” In this, it should be categorized alongside similar titles such as Resident Evil, Eternal Darkness, Silent Hill, and Fatal Frame. Other 'horror' titles such as the new Van Helsing game, or BloodRayne, are more linear and action-based, so they aren't really comparable.

There once were many games out like this, especially back when pc games were king. There were a lot of great detective novels, mythic sagas, and horror settings put into the video game framework for pc. No, they weren't all the greatest titles in video-gaming history -- though some actually were. But they were usually relatively intelligent and more enjoyable than the mindless action-games that largely dominate the shelves today.

In comparing Curse to other similar games, I actually prefer Curse: The Eye of Isis to Silent Hill because it has a more interesting, classic horror setting – the Gothic, Victorian era. I didn't find enough in Silent Hill to keep my interest. On the other hand, Curse is definitely not as good as Resident Evil, Eternal Darkness or some of the other major achievements in survival horror gaming. One trait that shows that Curse is not up to the standards of Resident Evil, or Eternal Darkness, is the relative lack of detail in the surroundings. The best games of this sort give gamers a lot to read, making the game have a literary quality, alongside the other elements. Settings such as a Victorian museum, a ship, or an Egyptian tomb would be great places to have a wealth of informative readers that could be (*gasp*) almost educational. There are some details given, but less than in other more ambitious titles of this nature. Games like Resident Evil thrive on the little descriptive details you enjoy as you explore your surroundings. The Gabriel Knight series for pc probably was the best at using details – both historical and incidental. I can honestly say I learned a lot playing both The Beast Within (Gabriel Knight 2) and Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned (Gabriel Knight 3), as well as finding myself totally blown-away by the great story. More generally, games like Resident Evil and Gabriel Knight showed the possibility of the video-game genre to blend the idea of games, books, and films into one encompassing medium. To make this game a higher quality title, such little details would have needed to be enhanced. Fatal Frame was better than Curse in its use of detail and setting, but not that much. Overall, I would rank Curse: The Eye of Osiris fairly close to the level of Fatal Frame – definitely not as good as Fatal Frame, but in that ballpark. Since Fatal Frame is a pretty solid little game, this puts Curse in some pretty good company.

As for the combat? I find I'm always pretty low on ammo but more is usually around. Actually, the club is often the most effective weapon, since much of the combat is fairly close range and the guns are 'historic,' which means slow re-loading and poor aiming. So in terms of sheer combat, no, it's definitely not as good as Metroid Prime, etc. It has a problematic camera system, too.

But...it's OK for what it is.

Curse employs a non-linear environment, another trait of the classic ‘adventure' genre. Many newer games have become more 'linear,' to avoid the sense of backtracking that these survival-horror titles often created. In today's gaming lexicon, the notion of "backtracking" is generally negative. If you think about it, though, “backtracking” is an essential part of exploration. If you have to locate a key to open a new section, that probably does indeed involve "backtracking." Re-tracing one's steps makes the game scenarios more like an adventure, and by the end of the game it's great to really know your way around. Finding your way back to locales you've already visited is a puzzle in-and-of itself. It's really a very cool type of maze.

Curse: The Eye of Isis also has a fairly tight and interesting story keeps you from the aimlessness that can sometimes plague "RPGs" like Morrowind. The cut-scenes aren't that great, but they do keep the game and story flowing.

I only paid $20 for this game, new, and for that, I very satisfied.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 12/22/04