I love it when newer horror games really delve into the genre’s past, bringing modern improvements and taking the more hardcore design philosophy that really defined the genre. Games like Signalis, Crow Country or even the original Tormented Souls really brought their own twist to what was once a perceiving stale genre. The past couple of months as a whole have been an excellent year for horror games, with Chronos: The New Dawn and Silent Hill f joining together for two back-to-back bangers within the genre. Tormented Souls 2 joins them and offers a mostly safe yet excellent survival-horror experience. 

Story 

Following on from the events of the previous game, main characters Caroline and her long-lost sister Anna have been reunited and escaped from the abandoned hospital, but their story isn’t over. Anna has been suffering from visions and hallucinations that result in drawings that can manifest themselves into reality, and to find a cure, they head to the town of Villa Hess in hopes of finally escaping the nightmare. 

Caroline meets a variety of friendly and not-so-friendly characters

Of course, things don’t go as expected, and the residents in the Convent are evil, looking to use Anna’s gift to serve their own goals and ambitions. Once again, Caroline has been separated from Anna and must save her before it’s too late. 

To put it bluntly, the story of Tormented Souls 2 just isn’t very good; the setup essentially retreads the first game, with Caroline once again looking for Anna. There are, of course, some standard twists and turns, and delving into the Convent’s dark past can be interesting, but the writing and direction of the story aren’t all that engaging. Caroline is a much more confident character this time around, and her personality is less static as a result; so, if anything, we have a more fun protagonist. 

Survival horror perfected

Much like the previous game, Tormented Souls 2 is a “fixed camera” survival horror game that has you exploring winding hallways that loop back on each other to solve ridiculously elaborate puzzles and deal with all the monsters in the way, all whilst keeping yourself stocked up on supplies. The camera plays a huge part in this game, with plenty of camera swaps and creative uses. 

If you played the original or classic survival horror games like Resident Evil, you should know what to expect here: it sticks to the formula in the best of ways. Caroline can now move and shoot, though the speed is significantly reduced, meaning you will still need to pay attention to your position and enemies. And she still retains her dodge, though the timings can be awkward, so don’t expect it to be the most reliable. 

Caroline will, for the most part, use her trusty Nail Gun to deal with the horrific threats at the various locations, as well as a Hammer, which isn’t only used to break rusted locks, but also to smash vases around for supplies. You won’t be using it much in combat, but it can be a great way to save supplies if you stun a singular enemy and use the hammer to finish it off. Other weapons will be unlocked throughout the game, so make sure to explore the environments thoroughly. It’s a shame that the enemy variety isn’t quite strong, however. 

Puzzles are excellent with multiple steps that require you to pay attention and think logically.

Whilst exploring the maps, you will need to avoid the darker corners of the world. This will make Caroline panic, and if you stay in the dark for too long, you will die. To counter this, you can pull out a lighter that allows you to traverse the darkness. But in doing so, you will leave yourself vulnerable. Combine this with the spectacular use of fixed-camera perspectives that shift and follow Caroline as she explores the various locations, and we have a terrifying experience.

Puzzles are (for the most part) another strong suit. Much like the Silent Hill 2 remake, a huge emphasis has been placed on puzzle-solving. There are one or two that really stumped me for longer than I would like to admit, but looking back, this could have been down to me rather than the design itself. It feels like, in an attempt to forge intricate puzzles, it messes with pacing. For the most part, though, they are all logical and force you to really pay attention to not only the objects but the environments as well. Even the boss fights have some very light puzzle-solving mechanics that add a layer of challenge, but none of the bosses are particularly memorable either. 

Where the game really separates from the predecessor is in a broader variety of locations. Caroline will expand her search from the Cathedral at the start of the game into the nearby town streets and malls, among other places. It really is the difference between Resident Evil 1 and 2, where the games would expand further and further out, making the world feel much bigger. 

The level design is excellent as well, with maps that constantly loop back on themselves, plenty of shortcuts, and supplies scattered throughout the rooms. Every inch of the maps is used effectively, and there’s some great backtracking, without becoming obnoxious. The Processing Plant is a masterclass in level design and tension-building, featuring some of the game’s best puzzles and enemy encounters. Other areas are similarly excellent as well, and the level of quality here is top-notch; though the second half isn’t quite as strong as the first half, which is pretty much a trope of the survival horror genre. Despite this, every zone has something to love except for the Cemetery section, which was the game’s only real miss in terms of level design. 

How many mansions does Spencer have?!

Playing on the default difficulty, Tormented Souls 2 doesn’t want to hold your hand. Just like the lord intended, there are no auto-saves, no checkpoints. Instead, you will need to go to various save rooms scattered around the map to save your progress, and you will also need a recording tape to do so. These are limited items that encourage you to push as far as you can without saving, making each feel like a loss and a decision not to be taken lightly. Do you save now, or wait just a little bit longer and risk a longer run? It’s a great system, and I was glad to see it carried over from the original. From what I can remember, it has eased a little bit here with a few more tape recordings scattered around. 

If this isn’t your thing, though, that’s understandable. There is an option to enable auto-saving and remove the tape recording items. Giving players more options is never a bad thing.  As for the difficulty of the game itself, outside a few annoying sections, it’s reasonably well-balanced. As long as you aren’t constantly wasting ammo and getting hit by every enemy, you will do mostly fine. 

A mostly solid visual presentation

Once again, the look of Tormented Souls 2 is a bit of a mixed bag. On the one hand, everything has a roughness to it; character models aren’t the most detailed and are exceptionally flat in cutscenes, whilst some environmental effects feel like cheap Unreal Engine asset-store models thrown in for flavour. It’s not bad, but they do stick out. 

Exploring a silent town is a big surprise.

On the other hand, there is an excellent understanding of framing with the fixed cameras that follow Caroline around. It really takes what would have otherwise been an incredibly messy presentation and turns it into something interesting. It occasionally disoriented me when it switches between cameras, but this is incredibly rare, and for the most part, Tormented Souls has perfected the fixed-camera perspective. Mix this in with some great lighting, and all is forgiven. Tormented Souls 2 lands the visuals where it matters and immerses you into the world. 

Verdict

Tormented Souls 2 doesn’t strive to do anything new because it doesn’t need to. It takes the original game and improves on it in just about every way possible. Whilst there are some frustrating moments, it’s a game that channels the best of classic survival horror. Complete with the dynamic cameras that can terrify one moment and disorient you the next, fantastic level design and unapologetically tough puzzles. If you love classic survival horror, you will absolutely love this game as well. 

Tormented Souls 2  is available now on PC, Xbox Series and PlayStation 5. 

Reviewed on PC with an RTX 4070, Ryzen 7 7800X3D and 32GB RAM. 

A copy of Tormented Souls 2 was provided by the publisher.