Preview: No Such Place Is Every Horror Fan’s Fever Dream

Horror is probably one of my favorite genres ever, and what I truly love about it is how it manages to make me feel challenged and scared almost simultaneously, whether by forcing us to go toe-to-toe with bizarre creatures, face the oppressive darkness, or play hide and seek with deadly dangers.

Or, even better, by managing to do all of that at the same time, which is certainly the case with the upcoming indie No Such Place.

The game is developed by a small Chinese studio called Chilly Room (which is quite ironic for the name of a studio that knows how to deliver a horror experience). They are known for titles like Soul Knight and Otherworld Legends, and they truly know how to create top-down adventures with a unique and exciting flavor.

And yeah, they have done it again! I recently got to try out No Such Place for a few hours with a hands-on demo (courtesy of the developers themselves), and damn, all I could think was that this is every horror fan’s fever dream.

Many Layers of Complexity

I believe the best way to explain the experience of No Such Place is to break it down into layers, much like an onion, because there is an impressive amount to unpack here.

At its core, the game is a top-down extraction shooter, and your objective is to take on reconnaissance missions as an agent of the Unknown Research Consortium (U.R.C.). Basically, you will explore every corner in search of items and supplies to extract, find crucial information to gather, and, of course, terminate unknown threats and bizarre creatures along the way.

While the premise sounds simple, No Such Place is surprisingly complex because it places this structure on top of mechanics that lean toward realism and also promote constant character evolution.

This leads to a strong focus on resource management and character development, forcing you to keep an eye on your hunger and thirst meters constantly, meticulously rummage through every scrap pile and supply crate (even the trash cans), and constantly replace your equipment.

As you explore, you constantly face choices between paths, always forcing you to pick between the dangerous but rewarding route and the safe but uninteresting one. And I can personally attest: taking risks is absolutely worth it and will net you far better loot!

And, naturally, some of those high-risk scenarios involve enemies – horrible creatures that seem to have some connection to a supernatural, otherworldly domain.

This is where the combat comes in. Despite being simple, consisting only of a few firearm types (pistols, submachine guns, and assault rifles) and basic melee attacks, the system works perfectly by emphasizing the sheer helplessness of a lone human against such threats. Oh, and you also need to be careful with your positioning when engaging enemies; otherwise, you might end up with a fractured leg and need to quickly craft a splint to heal.

Now Entering The Terror Chamber

With the extraction shooter mechanics explained, now imagine all of that happening within a deep horror setting, where every scenario feels clearly desolate and godforsaken.

No Such Place offers a deep, atmospheric, and psychological terror, where everything is crafted to make you feel tense at all times – and it succeeds! There were moments when I felt like I was playing a mix of Darkwood, Escape From Tarkov, and Resident Evil, with one part of my mind focused on surviving the moment and the other terrified of what might be lurking just out of sight.

Alongside that feeling, the monster design is subtle but effective, as the clear intention is to present creatures that will leave you extremely confused about what they are or what they signify. And the sound effects also help with that, prioritizing silence and focusing on mysterious ambient noises, which helps intensify the atmosphere and keeps the player perpetually on edge.

The only element that felt slightly off to me was the abundance of ammunition and supplies to craft healing bandages I found while exploring, which seemed to contradict the game’s overall goal of creating a realistic and unforgivingly unsafe experience. We like fewer bullets, guys.

Frighteningly Beautiful Aesthetics

As H.P. Lovecraft, one of the most influential authors ever in the horror genre, once said: "The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown" – and No Such Place heavily explores this idea, especially visually.

The environments are profoundly dark and well-built, to the point where the illumination becomes an important system in its own right. You literally have to be deliberate about pointing your light source where you want to look, and there might be something lurking right there.

A great deal of care is also evident in the animations, particularly the protagonist's: every movement has a touch of realism, despite the 2D perspective, like watching each shell casing drop to the ground (and stay there!) after reloading your weapon.

Everything is covered by a slightly retro aesthetic that makes it feel like you are back in the 1990s, playing on an old monitor or a tube television – a time when we believed every creepypasta we found on the internet (and there was a weird magic to that).

Sadly, I only got to test one map in the demo (the final version will have several different regions), which was a mysterious, spooky forest. However, it was enough to make me feel that there is no such place as my home, since all I wanted was to find the extraction point (which is a toilet, by the way) and get the hell out of there!

The Final Layer

Story-wise, there isn't much going on in No Such Place – at least, not in the hands-on demo –, but the feeling I got after a few hours is that the gameplay is the entire experience. It is about feeling lost and gradually finding answers by being curious. However, be warned: this is definitely for players who enjoy a slower, more deliberate pacing.

This slower pace also translates into a steep learning curve right from the start. The game intensifies this by refusing to explain all the rules, and you have to unravel things yourself based on instinct and trial-and-error.

This approach isn't bad, but I confess that simply being dropped into the role of a veteran agent without at least a basic gameplay tutorial left me confused at the beginning. In the end, though, the game slowly won me over as I accepted its unique pacing and suffocating atmosphere (and I mean that as a compliment!).

So yeah, I am definitely already prepared for more, especially since the trailers suggest the developers are cooking up even more bizarre and paranormal threats in No Such Place. You can check out a bit of that craziness in the game's latest trailer right here: