Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut was developed by ToyBox Inc, and published by Rising Star.It was released for the PlayStation 3, in Europe and North America on April 30th, in Australia it was released May 16th. It was also published for Microsoft Windows October 29th. The non director’s cut version was developed by Access Games, and published by Ignition Entertainment three years earlier, but we will be focusing on the updated PS3-only Director’s Cut. It is rated M for Mature.
This updated version of the game upgraded many portions of it. There are many YouTube videos online comparing the two, showing the upgraded graphics and clearer design and movement.Graphics were also redone in the terms of re-textured people, to make them look more realistic (IE: hair having more movement) and making bushes have more realistic movement. The graphic upgrades are far too many to list here, but the comparison to the old game is amazing. Zombies, buildings,as well as being in true HD makes this game much more amazing overall.
Some items were changed, but nothing major enough to cause any problems. Small details that were wrong, such as a license plate, were also fixed in this updated remake. The music was not redone completely, but it sounds much better now as well.There are also added cut scenes to help explain the game more, to avoid some confusion from the very complex story line. The controls were also upgraded to overall make the game easier to play, especially in the OtherWorld sections that I talk more in detail about later in this article.
This game has had a bad rap from a lot of people I know as well as many people on the internet, but fans of the horror genre should give it a look. Especially if they, like myself, are huge fans of the psychological sub genre. The story is one that is hard to summarize, especially not without spoiling everything for everyone, which is good news for a game of this genre. If it was easy to understand I don’t think it would have the same flair it is supposed to for this genre.
But the story is something that I loved to pieces, and loved picking up every little piece to uncover the mystery along with my character. My character being York, an FBI special agent who is known for his use of criminal profiling to solve the hardest murder cases. Because of this ability, the town of Greenvale, Washington called him in to help investigate the murder of a young woman whose death might have more connections to him than York thinks. He speaks to an entity Zach, who we learn about as the game goes on. This sounds like a typical detective game, huh? That’s completely wrong.
There are these ‘OtherWorld’ elements of the game that feel like they’d fit right in, in any Silent Hill world. There’s creepy zombie-styled monsters who attack you, blood oozing everywhere, and a frantic feeling that nothing is right in this world. It is dark and spooky, as it should be, and it leads to clues of figuring out the Raincoat Killer’s identity and solving this crime once and for all. In the OtherWorld, there are these portions that I will calling hiding portions.
They are some of the tensest portions I’ve played in a game like this. You have to hide York under a bed or in a closet, and hold your breath to make sure the Raincoat Killer can’t find you. It’s given me quite a few tense moments. There are also the chase scenes which aren’t super difficult, but difficult enough to understand to give the game a challenge. There are also the again, Silent Hill styled puzzles to unlock doors and such. All while killing these monstrous creatures.
There are also many side quests that give length to the game. However, these side quests are not completely useless, or pointless to complete. These side quests develop characters, or even give the best car or melee weapon in the game. Another part that makes this game different are the parts where you use York’s renowned ability to piece together clues, piecing them together and figuring out everything that is going on along with him.
Something that I didn’t quite know where else to put was the concept of shaving/eating/washing in this game. If you wear the same suit for too long, and don’t change it in one of the safe rooms, it starts to noticeably discolor and smell until it gathers flies. If you don’t take the time to shave of his beard, you can watch it grow. You have to eat and sleep to keep the character going. There are time periods you have to meet people, and they actually want you to wait until the in-game clock tells you it’s 2 PM or they won’t be there.This is something strange for a survival psychological horror game, but it works so well for this game. It makes sense. It becomes slightly annoying to wait around for the correct times, but the game makes it clear this is prime time to complete all the side quests the game gives you. It sounds tedious, but it really isn’t as bad as it seems.
Overall, this game is not as well known as I think it should be. It does have it faults, as some will say it is very similar to a TV show I have never heard of (so I wouldn’t know if it really is) and the story line can get confusing if you don’t sit and try to follow it. But the sequences in the OtherWorld are as close to a Silent Hill-styled world you can get without completely ripping it off.
The sequences where you have to have York hide and hold his breath still stick out to me, about two years after I played the game as one of the most interesting and tense chase scenes in a horror game. The story is something that any fan of psychological horror will love, especially after the reveals. This game isn’t perfect by any means, but for any PS3 owner and lover of anything horror, it is well worth the $20 price tag for preowned at Gamestop. It is also available for download on PSN, for those who don’t want to hunt down a copy and enjoy download versions.