Labyrinthine [Review]

Labyrinthine is a 1-8 player co-op horror game centered on navigating a procedurally generated labyrinth by solving puzzles and evading diverse monsters. Escaping the maze involves searching for items, solving riddles, and locating the exit. A significant challenge in Labyrinthine stems from its dark and dense environment. Players can increase screen brightness or use glow sticks for illumination. While glow sticks can light the way, my team found them more useful for marking paths and indicating teammates' movements, though this can lead to confusion with numerous glow sticks on the ground. The game offers options for unlimited or limited glow sticks, adding to the difficulty.

Labyrinthine is best experienced as a co-op game, requiring a team with at least one coordinated player. The labyrinthine nature of the game can become frustrating, as gameplay often boils down to wandering and hoping to find the correct path. Strategic use of glow sticks can help mark locations, but the repetitive scenery makes it easy to get lost. The monster often becomes an afterthought, with navigation proving more annoying than dying. In fact, dying can be beneficial as it reorients players by respawning them at the maze's start. Just to clarify, this game makes players go through a maze, and the monster is just an inconvenience.

From my perspective, Labyrinthine was more irritating than frightening. When a horror game prioritizes mechanics or jumpscares over genuine fear, it diminishes the scary experience. Instead of feeling trapped with a monster, it felt like navigating a maze with a mild inconvenience. I played the game on PlayStation 5 without issues, but I believe a VR experience would significantly enhance the fear factor and the sense of being trapped. Ultimately, I did not enjoy Labyrinthine as much as other co-op horror options.