The Classrooms delves into a chilling narrative of a procedural, liminal-space survival horror game rooted in a found-footage aesthetic. In this unsettling venture, players step into the shoes of Robert Chen, who in 1996 enters a condemned public school armed with only his VHS camcorder to unravel the mystery behind the disappearances of several students, including his own sister. What starts as a simple investigative mission quickly spirals into a bewildering ordeal as Robert finds himself ensnared in a shifting maze of endless classrooms and corridors, each playthrough generating a new horrifying layout thanks to the game’s procedural design.
A Maze of Terror and Mystery
Each session in The Classrooms crafts a uniquely disorienting experience, with the game’s architecture purposefully designed to perplex and terrify the player. The procedural generation ensures that no two explorations are the same, enhancing the sense of unpredictability and suspense. As players navigate through the eerie, abandoned hallways, they encounter various anomalies that range from mildly peculiar to dangerously hostile. The game effectively uses the liminal space concept—places that are between destinations, like empty schools—to amplify a haunting atmosphere that echoes with the remnants of lost souls and untold stories.
Intelligent Entities and Survival Strategies
Survival in The Classrooms is no small feat. The school is inhabited by a spectrum of entities, each with distinct behaviors and danger levels. Players must quickly learn the properties of these entities and adapt their strategies accordingly. The innovative proximity voice feature integrates the player’s actual noises into the gameplay; loud sounds may betray their position to predatory entities, while strategic use of voice might manipulate environmental outcomes.
Advertisement
