Video Game Review: Ikai

Developer: Endflame

Publisher: PM Studios

Genre: Horror

Reviewed For: Nintendo Switch

Also Available On: PlayStation, Xbox, PC

One of my favorite video games is Fatal Frame II. The horror game (and the series as a whole) is an excellent and terrifying way for players to wonder through Japanese paranormal horror. Unfortunately, we don’t get a lot of games with the same energy as this series, and even the series as it is right now isn’t as great as it used to be. Still, we are occasionally fortunate enough to get a horror game that captures the magic of the PS2 Fatal Frame era. Ikai appears to be one of them, even if it isn’t flawless.

Ikai is a first person horror game by developer Endflame that fully embraces Japanese mythology. Players control a defenseless heroine who is trapped in a shrine with a myriad of Japanese spirts and yokai. Like most horror games in the genre, the player can’t really fight the ghosts, and will instead need to run or solve puzzles to escape.

The ghostly encounters are where the game shines, as players will have to rush to avoid their demise. Players can more or less sneak around throughout the shrine with fairly uninspired stealth sequences. When caught, players will need to escape, though they can also craft charms to survive against their predators. Crafting charms involves tracing characters on paper, which seems simple enough, but can be difficult when players are thrown into a hectic situation. Like sneaking around, their isn’t much depth to this mechanic, but it’s at least novel and works well.

When players aren’t creeping around or running for their lives, they will be solving puzzles and making notes of their environment. Most of the puzzles are in the form of figuring out how to use items found in the shrine. If players are at all familiar with PlayStation 2 horror games, they will know what to expect here. Ikai follows the formula set by the games that inspired it almost to a fault, and some might call this gameplay outdated. Still, solving the puzzles almost always feels intuitive even if they can be challenging. There aren’t too many solutions that feel like a stretch, making Ikai feel pretty good to play. Players who explore thoroughly likely won’t run into any issues, making looking through every nook and cranny feel rewarding.

Ikai has an atmospheric horror-filled presentation, meaning that it doesn’t rely on tons of jump scares to terrify the player. In fact, while players might feel tense throughout, they will rarely be terrified. Ikai is set up to have players constantly on edge of what might happen yet, and that might be its biggest strength. Sure, this approach might be too slow or even “boring” to some players, but it works for what it is going for. If players are looking for the scariest game out there, Ikai isn’t it.

Some will also be deterred by the actual graphics of Ikai. While the atmosphere and sound design are fantastic, this isn’t the most visually impressive game. It’s made by a small studio of three, and at times, that shows. This is especially so on the Switch version, though there are certainly much worse looking horror games on the console. If players have a pair of headphones and can sit in the dark with handheld mode, they will surely have a spooky time. The sound presentation is somewhat marred by a script that is way too wordy and a little cheesy, so that will be hit or miss for some players.

While it doesn’t excel in any way, Ikai is a solid horror experience that acts as a great callback to an older time. The charm mechanic stands out, and the atmosphere provides tons of opportunity for tension. Any horror fanatic will want to check out Ikai if their expectations are reasonable.