Just how long is this train?
If you haven’t already guessed, this game takes place on a train, and it’s a fairly long one, infested with all kinds of horrors, from exploding critters to seven-foot monstrosities with a rusty blade for an arm. The monsters in Fright Train seem endless, like the train you’re on for several hours, though it does have its charms, keeping you from instantly falling asleep on your very long journey through the freezing Antarctica.
You’ll encounter monsters in almost every section, but to actually engage in combat with some of them, first you need enough credits to access all parts of the train, which is a fairly easy task but makes the ride even more interesting. Earning money to progress through areas is something we’ve already seen a certain title do, which worked well since it gently forced you to explore your surrounding areas properly to gather resources in order to proceed. It’s essentially the developers’ way of saying, “play our game and don’t rush through it.” This is a great way to admire and appreciate all of the work the developers have done, which is exactly what I did which made me enjoy the game even more.
Gaining credit itself is straightforward: kill enemies and kick objects around the train. The latter came as a surprise to me, and it felt random, but thanks to a note found at the beginning of the game, it dispelled any qualms I had about the mechanic. The pacing of Fright Train made it so that you had enough time to get credits, gather resources, and prepare for all of the upcoming fights heading your way. In short, you couldn’t simply speedrun your way through all the carriages to finish the chapters as quickly as possible; this added a strategic layer to the game and made you manage your resources sensibly, all whilst killing the enemies and making sure the train doesn’t completely freeze. Juggling two things at once definitely added a lot more difficulty to the game, making it an enjoyable and challenging experience for horror fans who love a real challenge.
Figuring out where to fight waves of enemies was the biggest challenge for me throughout the whole game. When paranormal storms occur, you can’t fight outside, so you’re forced to stay inside and fight the enemies head-on. Sometimes it’s six enemies or ten, which isn’t an issue; the challenge comes when it’s a horde of twenty enemies or even more. When that happens, it’s important to find a fairly open area allowing for easy movement and eliminating the risk of getting cornered, which almost always ends in death. As said earlier, you need credits to progress, so not having many means fewer doors open, which can make it a challenge against enemies if you’re in a very small space with nowhere to go. This is just another of many ways Fright Train encourages players to be perceptive and to spend time and credits wisely.
A dog with a gun and a mission, what could possibly go wrong?
Anthropomorphism in games, particularly horror games, is always tricky to execute, especially in a game that maintains a serious tone throughout. Whilst Fright Train isn’t necessarily the darkest game I’ve ever played, it still had deaths and blood, which, for a horror game, is the bare minimum. If you’re playing as an animal in a setting like that, you might feel less immersed or think that the game is unserious, which is understandable considering you’re trying to survive in a life-or-death situation. Thanks to the strong voice acting (especially Doug, the main character) and the overall execution, it never felt too weird; if anything, it made the game more unique and enjoyable.
Combat itself is fairly straightforward: make your way through the train by either shooting or kicking the enemies repeatedly until you’ve finished the chapter. Simple enough, but doing so on controller does feel quite clunky and isn’t a completely smooth-sailing experience; it’s still very much playable but can act up at the worst possible times, like being stuck in a corner fighting a huge wave of enemies. There was a wide variety of enemies, making each wave different than the last, which made the pacing of the story less boring and also allowed for smart, calculated plays to have enemies interfere with each other and make life much easier for you. Like the enemies, not many weapons are available, but in hindsight it’s extremely beneficial, as it allows all guns to be tried out at least once throughout the whole playthrough. You can also experiment with all of the weapons at level three, which have their own unique abilities, and make saving all of the credits for some of the fun and wacky abilities worth it.
It’s clear from early on that Fright Train pays homage to many retro horror titles: the classic UI inventory, third-person perspective, and general vibe that only old titles have, reflected that perfectly. There was also a certain inspiration for Doug, which I think you’d have to play for yourself to know who I’m talking about specifically.
