Playing Every Game in the Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality
PEGBRJE: Location Withheld and Animal Lover
Horror and Animals. Locations and Lovers.
Location Withheld is a horror game created by Bryce Bucher, a solo dev based out of the United States. We will be winding back to 1994 to help an unnamed individual sort through some case files, specifically a few that detail an unnerving event that unfolded years past. Each person found was missing facial features, but there are no signs of them being torn out. Rather, they were made to look as if those features never existed to begin with.
Players will begin in a small apartment room with case files, a computer, and other items. From the comfort of the computer chair, players will swivel around and inspect the room and its items, right clicking to ‘lock’ the camera in place so they can click on each item. Rotating can reveal any secrets the item may have while the space bar will reveal hard to read text.
Unfortunately, the player cannot leave the chair no matter what they learn or do. It’s almost as if the room itself is not a safe haven but instead an escape room that the player is trying to flee from.
This simple limitation is the crux of the atmosphere-building that the game uses to create an unsettling scene. There is a constant sense of something lurking outside that cannot be seen. This is further induced by the constant sounds of the doorknobs turning and footsteps walking past. The nature of the investigation was already supernatural. Having these strange phenomenon continually happen adds to the tension. Once a certain event is triggered, the true fear sets in. The lights will go out and the player is now tasked with solving the new puzzle. Only this time, they are fully aware that they are no longer alone in the room.
Location Withheld’s clever title should have given its style of horror away immediately. The game thrives on the player’s inability to understand where they are while knowing that they cannot actually leave. Couple that with the multiple endings based around how the players approach the second half, and you’ve got a terrifying experience within a small package. If you like small scares, this is a perfect little game to grab. There’s also a ‘demake’ if you prefer the PS2-era graphics.
Animal Lover is a visual novel created by Trainwreck Studios, an indie trio based out of the United States. Players will name the young protagonist as she attempts to work through her internship at a local vet with as few roadblocks as possible. Unfortunately for her, a run in with a certain hamster turns her entire world upside down as a simple peck on its little cute head turns it in to a gorgeous, naked man.
As one expects with visual novels, Animal Lover will have players interacting with all these lovely individuals as they progress through the story, making decisions based on personal preferences and seeing how each of the characters react. The protagonist, default named Lucy, will have to deal with the incoming stress of suddenly having a fairy tale come to life before her eyes, while simultaneously trying to figure out just how many others there are that may have been trapped within animal bodies.
The hamster and first man found is Edmund, one from hundreds of years ago who has been stuck reincarnating hundreds of times over his life as a hamster. This has given him a bit more of a pensive approach to the entire situation, unlike the rest of his compatriots. The second is a cat named Apollo, real name Frankie, who comes from the late 50s and has an utterly brutal time readjusting to the future and adjusting his speech patterns and mannerisms. Kyle Yang is our ferret friend and a rebel without a cause, followed closely behind by Miguel the dog and Charlie the bear.
The characters all feel like real adults. They fall between the cracks of tropes, with Miguel and Frankie being more ‘barra’ than the other three and Kyle’s infamous rebel attitude, but they each have their own personality. All of them have interests and things they wish to accomplish, while still being able to carry a conversation with others that don’t initially scream ‘I am a trope, this is my trope sentence’. They are all at different stages of accepting their condition, while also struggling to adjust to a world that has seemingly left them behind.
Lucy also struggles to keep them secret while helping them as best she can. But even she has her limits, and they get addressed. It’s almost a character breakdown of how people understand and tolerate each other, put to a setting full of animals.
As one who’s read and watched more than one piece of media with individuals being cursed with animal states, Animal Lover does its best to distinguish itself as a strong contender. It focuses on the relationships that the six of them have, and the notion of romance is left to the relative end rather than attempting to force it in to an already sticky situation.
The villain is the only character I would say that relies too much on a trope to succeed. Also, there is some content that occurs that may be distressing for some if they are not mentally prepared. Overall, if you love stories about trying to come together and possibly become too attached to someone, this might be for you.
