Sorry We're Closed: I LOVE this game SO MUCH.

"It was a lie when they said money can’t buy happiness"
"Can’t help but smile everytime I’m stacking it"

(My favorite song from the game.)

Sorry We're Closed is a survival horror game by à la mode games. You play as Michelle, a girl who can't get over a breakup from 3 years ago. She was cursed by a powerful demon and has a few days to remove it.

Some interesting mechanics are that you can alternate between the Resident Evil camera angles and first-person view. I love that I can see all parts of the maps in detail! There's also the third eye Michelle got from the curse, which allows her to peer into the demon world while she's in the human world and vice versa. The eye also gives her different ways of dealing with enemies.

A short spoiler-free summary first: If you can't already guess by the title, I can't recommend it enough. It's such a beautiful and refreshing take on an established genre, both art-wise and gameplay-wise.
I also think the game's on the easier side, so that makes it newcomer-friendly if you're unfamiliar with survival horror, as the puzzles aren't too cryptic/complicated, and backtracking is minimal.

I can see it being a balanced experience if played with a controller, but if you'll be playing with a keyboard and mouse (like I did), then keep in mind that the gunplay isn't too deep, although other mechanics make it satisfying. (And the guns look SICK!)

If the art style piques your interest and you're somebody who enjoys games that focus on the narrative, then this game would give definitely you an amazing experience.

Spoilers ahead, Love.

But if you're comfortable with it then come, sit.

Let's start with the story!

This is going to sound a bit cheesy, but my only complaint is that the game's a bit short, haha! I believe my first playthrough was approximately 7 hours long, and my second NG+ run was slightly shorter. However, my play time tends to be a bit bloated, as my house is hectic and I AFK a decent amount to do errands.

I loved a lot of characters. Mitchelle was relatable as someone who also fumbled at love. Lucy was so intriguing that I was compelled to complete her ending despite knowing that it wasn't gonna end well. Gotta listen to my boy Marty's demonology lectures. Robyn was my favorite as they were helpful and supportive the whole way.

The curse hook was simple but effective, too. My only gripe was with the short timespan; some of Michelle's dialogue really shifted her personality just from a few choices. Overall, very positive in this regard. The story kept me engaged throughout, and I felt overall satisfied when finishing the game. I still haven't gotten Clarissa's ending, but I doubt anything will be my favorite over Robyn's.

While there was indeed grotesque imagery present, it felt like the game was more about introspection regarding love and uncertainty. Coupled with its vibrant character designs, the horror wasn't the main focus. I don't mind, though, as I love this kind of experience. Like Crow Country for example, less on the horror but still has survivor horror gameplay and fun.

I feel like a strength of this atmosphere is that I feel it's easier to pick the game up after a hard day's work. It took longer for me to finish RE2 Remake and SIGNALIS for this reason.

It's also amazing that the main developers were just a team of 2! tom did amazing with the gameplay, and I'm super enamored with c.b.'s art! I'm not a game development master or anything, but I believe that the strength of smaller teams is their ability to focus on a specific vision with less compromises. That strength allowed Sorry We're Closed to be such a distinct game. I don't think I've played anything like it before. It reminds me of Killer7, but it's still something new entirely.

I love games that are unapologetically themselves. I'm a sucker for novel experiences.

Before we end, I'd like to wrap things up with music. The whole soundtrack works well, but my favorite part has to be the distinct hip-hop tracks for bossfights. They hyped up the fights a lot. (and made the downtime during those fights more palatable, hehe.)

Jenny's song was the most iconic to me simply because of how hard the first line hits. The most interesting part for me is that the bosses seem to second-guess themselves and their views in the lyrics. It's actually like how a person thinks. Especially when it comes to a subject as confusing and turbulent as love.

Like, which is worse? The pain of change or the pain of staying the same.

I think this is shorter than my previous blogs. Imma be honest, I'm not too great at remembering details, and don't want to record things down while playing games simply because I wanted to just chill and focus on it. Something of this length is much more manageable to write as well.

I want to write brief blogs for the majority of games I play in the future. I'm currently playing Heartworm, so let's see each other again once I finish it.

Before I head off, I wanted to let you know that I'm working on a game project with some friends at the moment. That's why there have been fewer updates on my socials. I've been learning a lot about Blender and doing a lot of writing. Lots of stuff to figure out. But as a good friend once said, you gotta get your hands dirty for this kind of thing.

I suppose the message of whether to embrace uncertainty in Sorry We're Closed resonated with me in parts that, even though I'm an artist, I have a hard time with not knowing the outcome.
Music is less stressful to a certain degree, as I've been doing it for a long time, but I've been struggling to deal with other artforms like 3D modeling and texture painting. Sometimes, the outcome is good. Other times, a rework is in order. It's a leap of faith in a way. As I said, I'm writing the story. The narrative is starkly different from my other works. It's a bit more personal and serious. I've always expressed myself fully with music, but this will be the first time I'm going to get a bit vulnerable. I suppose that's why finally taking on this project and bringing it to life has been both an exciting and terrifying experience.

Once we have more things down, we'll make an official announcement. Don't have a time frame yet, but it sure as hell will be a while. Cuz you know... GAMEDEV!

Wishing y'all the best. Thank you so much for stopping by. Much love. <3