Software:The Mortuary Assistant
| The Mortuary Assistant | |
|---|---|
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| Developer(s) | DarkStone Digital |
| Publisher(s) | DreadXP |
| Designer(s) | Brian Clarke |
| Engine | Unity[1] |
| Platform(s) | |
| Release |
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| Genre(s) | Horror |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
The Mortuary Assistant is a 2022 horror game developed by DarkStone Digital and published by DreadXP. Set in 1998 in a small town in Connecticut, players control a newly hired assistant at a haunted mortuary.
Gameplay
Players control Rebecca, an assistant at a mortuary who embalms corpses under the watch of her boss, Raymond.[2] Players must engage in the mundane aspects of this job while avoiding demonic possession in the haunted mortuary. This involves jump scares and puzzles. PC Gamer described it as "more or less a walking simulator with some haunted scenery".[3] It is played from a first-person perspective.[4] Players must correctly identify which corpses are possessed, the demon possessing them, and perform the correct exorcism to survive.[5] This process is timed, as indicated by a set of Post-It notes to show the progress of the demon possessing Rebecca. It has multiple endings,[3] and a new ending was added in July 2023.[2] The story is procedurally generated, but the game remembers which vignettes the player has seen and shows different ones in each playthrough.[6]
Development
Brian Clarke developed The Mortuary Assistant himself, based in Connecticut.[3] He had previously worked on massively multiplayer online role-playing games. Clarke's influences included creepy online videos and found footage films, especially Paranormal Activity. A prototype was released in 2020, and Clarke was surprised to find that many people wanted a full simulation of embalming. After researching embalming, he mostly implemented it realistically. Some aspects were streamlined for time, and he used archaic procedures when he thought they made scenes creepier.[6] DreadXP released it on Windows on August 2, 2022, and on Switch on April 20, 2023.[7] A film adaptation was announced in September 2022. DreadXP said it will focus on "the overall narrative" rather than replicating specific gameplay elements or endings.[4]
Reception
On release, it became a bestseller on Steam.[8] The Mortuary Assistant received mixed reviews on Metacritic.[9] Despite saying that it is short and "a little rough", GamesRadar said its atmosphere makes up for these shortcomings.[5] They also included it in a list of top horror games.[10] Polygon called it "a little clunky" and said the puzzles can be confusing, but they felt it "delivers a fun set of scares" while being a satisfying simulation.[11] Bloody Disgusting praised the game's content but said they encountered many technical issues.[12]
References
- ↑ Saver, Michael (2022-12-27). "Made with Unity: 2022 in review". Unity Technologies. https://blog.unity.com/games/made-with-unity-2022-in-review. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Gould-Wilson, Jasmine (2023-07-24). "The Mortuary Assistant's shocking final ending makes embalming possessed corpses look chill by comparison". GamesRadar. https://www.gamesradar.com/the-mortuary-assistants-shocking-final-ending-makes-embalming-possessed-corpses-look-chill-by-comparison/. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Winkie, Luke (2022-08-19). "Embalming corpses in The Mortuary Assistant is oddly satisfying". PC Gamer. https://www.pcgamer.com/embalming-corpses-in-the-mortuary-assistant-is-oddly-satisfying/. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Litchfield, Ted (2022-09-03). "The Mortuary Assistant is already being made into a movie". PC Gamer. https://www.pcgamer.com/the-mortuary-assistant-is-already-being-made-into-a-movie/. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Franey, Joel (2022-08-05). "The Mortuary Assistant has me sweating embalming fluid, and I keep coming back". GamesRadar. https://www.gamesradar.com/the-mortuary-assistant-has-me-sweating-embalming-fluid-and-i-keep-coming-back/. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Abbott, Harrison (2022-08-01). ""Dead Bodies in a Funhouse": The Mortuary Assistant Developer Previews His Spooky Autopsy Simulator [Interview"]. Bloody Disgusting. https://bloody-disgusting.com/video-games/3725655/dead-bodies-in-a-funhouse-the-mortuary-assistant-developer-previews-his-spooky-autopsy-simulator-interview/. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ "The Mortuary Assistant". Gamepressure. https://www.gamepressure.com/games/the-mortuary-assistant/z163f2. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ Bellingham, Hope (2022-08-04). "The Mortuary Assistant looks terrifying and disgusting, but it’s flying up the Steam charts". GamesRadar. https://www.gamesradar.com/the-mortuary-assistant-looks-terrifying-and-disgusting-but-its-flying-up-the-steam-charts/. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ "The Mortuary Assistant (PC)". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/the-mortuary-assistant/critic-reviews/?platform=pc. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ Hurley, Leon (2023-07-26). "Best horror games to play right now". GamesRadar. https://www.gamesradar.com/best-horror-games/. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ Marshall, Cass (2022-08-17). "The Mortuary Assistant combines body embalming with demon invasions". Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/23308598/the-mortuary-assistant-horror-game-explained-windows-pc-steam. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
- ↑ Abbott, Harrison (2022-08-08). "‘The Mortuary Assistant’ Review – Narratively Involving, Mechanically Inventive, and Technically Flawed". Bloody Disgusting. https://bloody-disgusting.com/video-games/3726393/the-mortuary-assistant-review-narratively-involving-mechanically-inventive-and-technically-flawed/. Retrieved 2023-08-01.
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