I turned up brightness both in-game and then on my TV and still the world in which Simmons frequents was hard to see, particularly when he explores at night or feels his way through a major snow storm or fog. Meanwhile, the title runs dark all the time.
That said, main character Simmons sometimes animates stiffly and is also prone to encountering invisible walls closing off landscapes, a shortcoming that breaks suspension of disbelief. There are definite wow moments during the character's progression through the haunted backdrops.
The visual presentation of the world is complemented by a competent 3D engine that, coupled with adequate art, enables a variety of atmospheric locales skinned with passably crisp textures and surrounded in robust particle effects like snow flakes. As he hikes, he's able to see his next major checkpoint high up in the distance on some cliffside path and when he finally gets there, he's able to look backward and take in the sprawling mountain, not to mention all of the locales he visited on the way, beneath him. But as Simmons explores temples, snowy mountain passes and icy caverns, the make-up of the levels blends together seamlessly and realistically. In a game like Resident Evil, you could very well step out of a decrepit village and right into a high-tech elevator leading to an underground military base - sometimes it's just a little hard to swallow. I like the logical, believable construction of the world in Cursed Mountain. And instead of guns, your only weapon is a pick-axe imbued with magical abilities. Instead of zombies, you will find dark spirits - monks, villagers and hikers spanning generations, all trapped in the bardo, a shadowy realm between life on Earth and nirvana. As Simmons climbs ever higher - you are perpetually moving up and up and up in this game - story snippets are told via well-produced flashback sequences and simple, static cinematics. How many times have we played through the same old zombie story, or some transparent variation on it? I have to give Deep Silver credit for delivering us in Cursed Mountain a refreshingly new take on the genre complete with a unique universe. Obviously, something went awry, which is why the bearded, ice-axe-carrying Simmons must seek out his brother in the first place. During his travels, Simmons steadily uncover the motivation for his brother's ascent through the seemingly endless stretch of rising mountains: an ancient artifact that it supposed to grant a key piece of wisdom shrouded in mystery by monks through the ages. You play as Eric Simmons, a rugged mountaineer and seasoned climber who travels to the Himalayas in search of his little brother Frank, who went missing while trekking through the region.
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