FlatheadThe independent developer Tim Oxton, is the first game published by Dread XP within the framework of the new programme XP. More than playing, actually, we should talk about experience, since the title has a duration less than 2 hours and an extremely low price (1.99€). And it is an experience in which you have to immerse yourself totally, without knowing anything about it, as fortunately happened to the undersigned.
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"The Mason Numbers!"
Flathead is a game that starts from a simple concept and transforms it masterfully into an experience of fear and palpable tension, building a creepy atmosphere around a basic idea apparently harmless. Tim Oxton creates a perfect balance between mystery and charm, dipping players into a vague and disturbing gaming experience.
We are in a room completely dark, except for a control panel in front of us, a light box on our left, a creepy dummy on our right and an exit door even more right. The only instructions provided are: pull the lever on the control panel to start the game, use the corresponding buttons to make our choice and hope to win. Because if you don't win...
The game is a classic Over/Under: by pulling the lever, a number is generated from 1 to 20, and we must bet if the next number is higher or lower than the one just obtained. In the dark of this mysterious place, ludopathy quickly creeps into our veins while obsessively pulling the lever and pointing on our lives, while numbers swirlly flow on the monitor.
If you guess, you earn a point in the temporary reserve. This point can be transferred to the permanent reserve or kept in the temporary reserve to accumulate bonuses with further correct answers. However, if you are wrong, all points in the temporary reserve are lost, with its consequences. To win the round, you must reach a minimum number of points in the permanent reserve. Also, you may receive an offer to turn around Wheel of Destiny, who can reward you or punish you.
Do you ever feel lonely?
But then the only thing we have to escape is the obsession with gambling that slowly takes control of us? Well not really: in the depths of darkness behind your shoulders hides a mysterious and terrifying creature, slowly approaching every round. We can't turn around to figure out what it is, we can only hear his steps getting closer and closer, toc...toc...toc...toc...
We have only one means to slow down its inexorable advance: light to our left. Lighting temporarily stops the beast, guaranteeing us precious time, but use is limited. We can also facilitate the choice of winning numbers by pressing the button “Create your fortune”, which will progressively eliminate non-winning numbers, simplifying the choice. However, this will advance the creature more quickly. Everything has a cost, and it's up to us to decide if it's worth paying.
Complete three rounds will free you from hell and will reward you with a VHS containing part of the lore behind Flathead. There are more boxes to recover, which gives the game a very interesting replay if you are interested in trying to understand something more than this intricate nightmare. Moreover Flathead serves as a prologue to the imminent "Silkbulb Test, another game of Oxton coming, and maybe in the boxes some interesting clues can be hidden. .
Technically speaking
We tested Flathead on the following configuration:
AMD Ryzen 7 3700x @ 3.60 GHz
Gigabyte RTX AORUS Master 3080 Ti 12Gb
Corsair Vengeance RGB RT 32GB DDR4 3600MHz
LG 34GN850 resolution monitor 3440x1440 (21:9)
The use of spectral lighting, limited inputs, anguishing audio compartment make Flathead a unique experience. You will constantly find yourself in tension, questioning your choices and fearing what is hidden behind you while you are tied to a chair. The game has sincerely disturbed me, I hate to feel chased, but it has done all this, take care of it well, without resorting to the use of the trivial and discounted jump.
In conclusion
Flathead, created by Tim Oxton and published by Dread XP in the XP Ultra program, is an immersive experience as well as a simple game. Set in a dark room with a control panel, a light box, a creepy mannequin and an exit door, the game is based on the Over/Under mechanism. Each choice involves a risk: earn points in the temporary reserve or lose them. However, there is a growing threat behind it: a creature approaching each round, only temporarily slowing down with light. The game offers an interesting replay through VHS cassettes with deep lores to be discovered. With suggestive lighting, limited controls and an agonizing audio, Flathead excels in creating tension without resorting to the jumpscares trites and ritriti.
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