LIMINAL SHIFT

Agonizingly slow movement + uninteresting poolrooms with the same cold white lighting everywhere = snoozefest Fortunately, Episode 2, aka Level 974 + pastel rooms + playground, was pretty nice. Almost enough for me to give this a thumbs up, but unfortunately, the movement is just WAYYY TOOOOOOO SLOWWWW. Like the slowest I've ever seen. The "run" is like a normal walk speed in other games. Jeez. I'm mostly giving it a thumbs down because of that. If it were simply faster, this would be a thumbs up. Why can't you add a movement speed setting?

Right of the bat, I wish there was a brightness setting, a way we could carry items (the elephant plush, giant rubber duck, plastic pot, trash bag, ect.) without having to hold down the clicker with your index finger the entire time (a simple one time pick up and put down click would have been preferable), and I wish more objects like the xylophone, microwave, wooden blocks, or oven were interactable. Would make it way more fun. Movement is slow even when sprinting. There are a number of times were I would make the wrong turn and wind up somewhere I had already been before and then have to make the long slow trek back, because 'sprinting' is so slow. It does not help that a few of the choices seem to loop you back to places you've been before! Would be nice if we could also jump. The levels are not randomly generated. Not the worst game but still could be better and more engaging. I wish I could give it a "maybe" review instead of yes or no

[h1]A solid liminal gloomy roomy affair.[/h1] Liminal Shift is another game in a small growing sea of walking sim / low psychological horror games inspired by The Backrooms where the developer basically takes a bunch of stock Unreal Engine 5 assets, slaps them into a selection of thematic rooms with obscure or outright random object placements and layers an almost labyrinthian structure on top where you must navigate your way through to the eventual exit. Its strengths much like other liminal-esque games of this type are the visuals and general atmosphere. There are no jumpscares or entities / NPCs that come after you, but in spite of that the it always manages to evoke a constant tension and sense of dread that keeps you on edge despite knowing there's no outright over the top spooking coming. In terms of actual mechanics there isn't much to say since it's a walking simulator with a very light touch of problem solving involved - mainly hitting switches or navigating more mazelike areas, but it does that job well enough for what it is and if you've played similar titles then that experience is very much the same here too. If I had to nitpick a couple of points it would be aroun…

Absolute Cinema of a walking sim, New episode is gonna be crazy, i like monsters that don't attack, but just jump scare, 8.2/10

I enjoy the little puzzles here and there. The places look amazing.

Liminal Shift makes me so damn nervous, which is how I know it's good horror. There may not be any monsters to jump out and scare you, but the process of entering a dead end and then turning around to leave only to find the door has vanished.... Is a new kind of freaky that I deeply enjoy. It may not be verified on steam deck but it plays just fine, I think. Check this one out if you want to wander around and get lost.