Last week, I was on vacation visiting my in-laws in the Lower Mainland. I was sick the whole time, jet-lagged, culture-shocked, and constantly around people in someone else’s house.
Miserable, in other words.
But, when I was awake in the night, coughing and trying to breathe with a plugged-up nose, I got to play Kami: Parade of Senses.
It’s rare I write reviews like this. But where this is Anastasia’s game – the artist behind the character art and CGs for Maidendawn – I wanted to help her out.
Kami: Parade of Senses is a point and click psychological horror game from Ukrainian development team, Kostrum Games.When I first watched the trailer for this game, my first thought was that it reminded me of American McGee’s Alice, and there are frequent Alice in Wonderland themes throughout.
Dodo eating a cookie that makes her small and is trying to get big again. The mad-hat– The Cheshire– … Earl Furfur. More on the nose, a character named Alice actually compares you to the white rabbit.
Even the way you progress through the game and have to solve each room is reminiscent of Alice making her way through wonderland.
Except you’re making your way through what appears to be a Freudian nightmare.
Overtly at least, Freudian psychology makes up the framework for the premise of the story, but under the surface, there’s a case to be made that this game is more thematically Jungian. For instance, a bunch of characters (basically everyone not dressed in a straight-jacket or working at a desk) seem to represent a Jungian archetype. Shadow, Mother, Anima, Trickster, etc.
This game is psychology heavy. And if you don’t know who Carl Jung is, or you’re unfamiliar with Freud’s Id/Ego/Superego model, half the game will go over your head.
That’s not to say you won’t still have fun. Your decisions might just be less informed.
Not that I’m one to talk.
This game wants you to slow down, be careful, and pay attention. So naturally, I had a hard time.
I saw in some other reviews people were complaining about how they had to reload like 6 times because they were trapped in reception. Which is … way less times than me …
Of course, I was also playing as Olivia (hard mode), which didn’t help.
The game begins with you receiving an invitation from your brother (or sister, depending on the difficulty level) to come to this institute and volunteer for a mysterious psychological experiment that basically takes place entirely in your mind and/or the minds of all the other participants.
The story is intentionally a little bit hard to follow, and you’re left to collect fragments of information through journal entries, reports, and interacting with dubious characters. As you progress through the experiment and learn more about what’s happening, you will have to choose a side and determine the fate of the kami project—and everyone participating in it.
I think it would take multiple playthroughs to piece together what’s really going on.
There are multiple ways to solve pretty much everything in this game, and some of those solutions will burn bridges with people or prevent you from returning to certain areas forever, meaning you won’t be able to complete some of the secondary quest lines—where you’d presumably learn more about the Kami cult and the weird experiment you’re in.
This made me regret some of my earlier choices and made me genuinely anxious about some of the decisions in the later game.
Are you going to strangle this kind old man in a wheelchair with your bare hands? He might be trying to do something evil, maybe … He might not be real at all …
Or maybe he’s good and the other guy has it all wrong …
It would be easier if you were certain. But that’s a luxury you may not get.
I did complete the game with what … might be the good ending? It was the more dramatic ending of the two I got anyway.
It took me about 6 hours of blundering through.
Then I went back to one of my earlier saves at about two thirds of the way to the end and did a bunch of the side quests (that I was still able to do) and learned some more about the Order of the Kami to get a different ending.
This took me about another 2 hours.
I think there are a couple more ways it can end though, looking at the unlockable achievements. I’d say to 100% complete this game you’d be looking at 12-14 hours, and definitely multiple playthroughs.
I can’t speak to the Ukrainian, but the English version is very sharp. I played Kostrum’s previous game Notes of my Silence over the winter and—not that there was anything wrong with the writing in that game—but I felt some maturing had taken place.
I sensed a lot of restraint in the text. Very clear. Not cluttered up with redundant descriptions or tiresome exposition—which in a game like this could have easily been the case.
There are a few Ukrainian words that appear to have been deliberately left untranslated, such as the use of Pan/Pani (Mr. / Mrs.) which reinforces the cultural flavour of the original text.
The characters’ personalities all came out strong. Everyone seemed consistent, and unique—despite almost everyone wearing the same thing and having names like S-476. They do have real names, but you can only view them in the dossier after you’ve completed the game, if you’ve interacted with the character enough.
Everyone in this game is interesting. I think each person you run into has their own quest, or is part of someone else’s quest.
The overall mood of this game is tense, oppressive, and uneasy, and nowhere is that more evident than in the character’s faces. Everyone looks worried, distressed, hopeless … Either that or they’re a certified weirdo (i.e. they have a book for a head. Or no head at all.)
There’s a fair amount of symbolism in this game. And it still has me wondering, days later.
Why is that guy’s name Aristotle?
What is the significance of the default name for your guide being Dantalian? (See the lesser Key of Solomon.)
The lingering questions are what makes it fun.
Aside from that, I really liked going in the library. The music is really pretty there and it’s peaceful in a way that reminds me of a Resident Evil save room. The library isn’t a room like that, and some weird stuff does happen in there, but it’s very pleasant.
Also, diagnosing mental patients in the medic bay was an amusing task that made me feel very intelligent and important—though I’m not sure what became of those poor souls afterwards …
And of course, having played the Kostrum Team’s previous game, I cheered out loud when I gave the piano player the sheet music and he started playing Notes of my Silence. Nice touch.
Overall, for the kind of game it is, I’d give this a 9.5/10. There’s always room to improve, but I was impressed, surprised even, by just how polished it was and how smooth everything felt.
I'd like to say a big congratulations to Anastasia and her team for putting out a thrilling and intriguing game with a unique and unsettling premise that stays with you long after you’ve closed your laptop.
Fantastic job.
Timothy J. R. Rains – Nightchapel Productions
Kami: Parade of Senses Steam Page
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2764320/Kami_Parade_of_Senses/
Anastasia
Instagram: @anasta_si_art
Kostrum Games
Youtube: @KostrumGames