Chasing Static

Spotty connection of certain design & narrative choices aside, Headware Games' retro-horror title will do just enough to keep fans from changing the channel.

Chasing Static is a psychological horror game in which you play a character who stumbles upon a failed research facility. These always mean trouble, this time caused by a surrounding energy field that can make a person slowly lose their mind. Recovering the equipment to fix the field and discovering what happened won't take the player more than a few hours, but it's a mostly fun, constantly creepy time while it lasts.

A little rough around the edges, even for the lo-fi approach – Chasing Static is a decent time if you’re looking for a short sci-fi horror story. The PSX art style lends itself into being an aesthetically memorable experience that might please fans of that era of horror games. Despite the game’s title I wasn’t necessarily guided by the static, resulting in a missing trick. However, the decent albeit a little vague story made me want to stay in the game till the end.

Chasing Static creates a strong sense of nostalgia as the appreciation of late 90's era horror games shines through. The game works well as a throwback, but it doesn't work as well as a horror game in its own right. More than that however it is ultimately let down by an abundance of overly familiar narrative choices. Minding that, fans of PlayStation 1 style horror should still find something to love.

Chasing Static is a boring, slog of a game.

Fully committing to a very retro look, this sort of horror adventure at least makes an impression in its somewhat brief runtime

If you enjoy classic horror games from yesteryear, this game is ready to give you an earful of scares.

The gimmick of using a PlayStation 1 presentation might attract an audience. But the game needs more than style to keep players engaged, even if only for the around three hours the story needs to reveal itself. Chasing Static has some good elements but it never manages to get the right mix for a truly engaging experience.

Chasing Static is an engaging walking simulator with an engrossing story. However, it isn't much of a horror game.

PS1 aesthetic fans will find a fun mood piece experience here, most others will likely feel underwhelmed by the shortcomings and averageness of what the game has to offer, compared to its peers.