The Free Horror Video Game That Will Encourage Friendship

Video Game Review: Identity V

Photo by Karin Jensen

Once upon a time, Orpheus was a novelist. But after losing his memory, he couldn't complete any writing. So he became a private detective, but without clients … until he received a strange request to investigate an infamous estate and find a man's lost daughter.

So begins the mobile horror-game, Identity V, whose mantra is "Fear Always Springs from the Unknown." This is the game that has made quarantine bearable for my youngest teen daughter.

The Chinese company Netease produced Identity V, which feels a bit like Coraline and Dead By Daylight's offspring. The Tim-Burton-inspired gothic art style is gorgeous. The mysterious storylines are compelling. And the exciting one vs. four rapid-fire play makes Identity V a heart-thumping experience.

You enter the game as the detective, whose life has been sliding into disarray. You must unravel your mysterious past. You've received a strange request from a Mr. James Reichenbach who claims his daughter was kidnapped. As Mr. Reichenbach points you to a run-down mansion – the girl's last known location – you begin searching the manor for clues.

You explore and complete various tutorial objectives and find diaries that reveal the girl wasn't the only person at the manor. Many have been there before and write of playing a dark and sinister game. The game may have resulted in both the girl's disappearance and your memory loss.

With this preliminary story in place, the multi-player aspect begins when you enter these past players' memories as either Hunter or Survivor. If you don't have friends in the system, you start as a random player paired with other random players. The game ranks you according to your skill level and matches you with other players at your rank.

As you meet other players and begin to make friends, you may form a team. Each match requires five players, one Hunter versus four Survivors.

The Blood Queen is a Hunter

As a Hunter, your goal is to capture the Survivors working to escape your lair of horror. Playing as a Survivor, you team up with three other Survivors to escape the Hunter's diabolic playground.

To do this, Survivors must find cipher machines. Once you've decoded all cipher machines, the exit gate unlocks. Survivors who pass through the gate without being caught successfully escape.

If three or more Survivors escape, then they win. If three or more are eliminated, then the Hunter wins. If two Survivors escape while two are eliminated, it is a draw.

Visual and audio signals heighten the rapid play and charge the atmosphere with tension. Whether you are Hunter or Survivor, your heart is continuously in your throat as you struggle to reach your goal.

The adrenaline rush is intoxicating. Whenever my youngest daughter plays with her team, it sounds like she is riding a roller-coaster, complete with shrieking and shouting.

The more you play, the more game currency you earn, which allows you to unlock new Hunter and Survivor characters, each with their own unique set of abilities and backstories. When you obtain a new character, you can complete challenges to unlock more of their diary and learn why they came to the manor.

Further, as you gain skill and experience points (called persona points), you can redeem them for Hunter or Survivor skills. Building different skills can alter the way you play a character, which offers more game-play variety and ensures no match is the same.

Here's what my youngest daughter loves about this game:

1. The game is free through the Apple App Store, and there's no pay-to-play aspect. That is, while you can buy customizations and behaviors (emotes) that are fun or attractive, you can't pay to improve your chances to win. Consequently, the playing field is level regardless of your ability to pay.

The amount of currency needed to "buy" a character is reasonable. If you log in every day and play for at least an hour, you'll likely be able to buy a character in one to two weeks.

Also, the game allows you to test out a character's abilities whether you own it or not by practicing against a bot. Thus, you can evaluate if you want it for your collection.

2. No two games are alike. You go against real people, not against bots. In every round, competitors play different characters with different abilities. There is a wide range of characters that competitors can play, so you face a distinct group during each match.

3. This horror game fosters friendship! In a world where we currently can't connect in person, the adrenaline rush of either hunting or working to foil the Hunter in a team frame-work fosters a camaraderie that lasts long after the matches are over.

My daughter communicates with her team-mates by voice-chatting through the Discord app. Her team-mates range in age from high-school to college age. They've grown close.

Outside of playing the game, they talk about school, sports, homework, and everything else common for teens and young adults to discuss. These friendships have been valuable during this period of physical isolation.

Although less avid, my older teen also likes to play, and different aspects of the game appeal to her. While my youngest is most interested in achieving the highest possible rank and the camaraderie aspect, my eldest is more interested in the story, crafting fan art which she has entered into competition, and participating in the fan community.

The author's daughter's fan art/Photo by Karin Jensen

Identity V was released in 2018 and Netease fosters continuing interest through festivals and e-sport tournaments with cash prizes, art competitions, and art collaborations with entities ranging from Nike to Junji Ito, the famous Japanese horror manga artist.

These artistic collaborations consist of crafting theme costumes or “skins,” which players can purchase for their characters. The artistry of the skins is gorgeous.

In addition, there are numerous community-run tournaments. And of course, many participate in character cos-play at comic-con events and/or collect Identity V merchandise. The game appeals to a variety of different personalities, and opportunities to participate at different levels are endless.

Identity V Merchandise/Photo by Karin Jensen

One final note: Common Sense Media rates this game for 12 years and up and says, " The gameplay features cartoon violence and mild elements of horror. Violence is the core of gameplay, and player characters are shown hitting other player characters or being hit with blunt objects and injured." (See References.) As with any media, parents must exercise their discretion.

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References:

Common Sense Media Identity V Review

Wikipedia: Identity V

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