When it comes to indie horror games, the lesson I’ve learned is to generally come to the table with low expectations. Whether the issues are with shallow play limited to jumpscares, serious technical flaws, or simply too much walking around waiting for anything at all to happen, the track record hasn’t been great. 

In the case of Incantation, I wouldn’t say that the developers managed to avoid all of these typical pitfalls, but compared to most I’d at least say there are some signs here of effort. Perhaps the game has the benefit of a more exotic locale on its side, but even if that’s the case I’ll at least give the ambiance and lack of familiar footing credit for helping it feel more unnerving at times. There’s no question that different cultures have very divergent visions of the afterlife, and rituals tied to how they’re dealt with. That lack of certainty, as your character is desperately trying to find her daughter in a strange village, does help to at least elevate the experience a bit. Mix that with a periodic scare, some of which are handled in a way that accentuates a little bit of shock in the moment, and there’s some promise here.

All that said, it’s hard to ignore that you’ll spend the majority of your time simply walking around, either in pursuit of someone in the distance, or simply being left to wander a bit. The fact that everything plays out in a very linear fashion strips away the mystique of your encounters, which are obviously very scripted, and that can also make the game feel a little more like it’s on rails at times, without you having a whole lot of agency in what you’re doing. There are some rudimentary puzzles and a few moments that feel like they could have involved stealth, but these elements don’t feel terribly deep or satisfying, just implemented well enough to give the feel of variety, without it really being there in a meaningful way. While it may sound like I’m pretty sour on the experience, sadly I’d say it’s actually not all that bad in the overall scheme of things for this genre in the eShop. Just so many of its competitors are so deeply dismal that this is able to shine a little by comparison.