‘Fear the Spotlight’ Review
Developer: Cozy Game Pals | Platform: PS5 | Playtime: 5:10 | Platinum: 6:40
Originally launching a year or so ago, now expanded and rereleased as the debut title of the Blumhouse Games publishing brand, Fear the Spotlight is the perfect entry level horror for those new to the genre while also offering a concise and charming tale.
Taking place at a high school at night, the two friends Vivian and Amy break in to use a Ouija board to speak to the victims of a school fire that happened years prior. Naturally things go awry, Amy disappears and Vivian finds herself in a nightmare version of the school. This was the content of the original release with the newer version having a second campaign that follows Amy’s perspective on the events. The two feel like they were designed in tandem and play similarly, but we’ll get to that.
It’s been mentioned ad nauseum in other reviews but Fear the Spotlight just isn’t scary. For a vast majority of your playtime there isn’t actually an active threat. The player has no weapons but this is more thematic than the lack of combat in something like Outlast. Primarily the fear comes from the somewhat spooky atmosphere. There are little ghost children scattered around as easter eggs but they’re not used as jump scares. Your only threat (despite some Silent Hill esque puzzles) is the Spotlight. He’s not a following or constant threat, instead appearing in certain set pieces and an interesting but wee bit finnicky final boss fight.
Amy’s campaign differs from Vivian’s, instead of having a Resident Evil A/B scenario, it takes place not in the school but rather her her childhood home. It’s easier the scarier of the two campaigns and I’d say it’s also the better of the two. The school is good but feels segmented. Amy’s house is relevant throughout the entire campaign, involving a lot of back and forth. While the Spotlight does appear, the main threat for Amy is a grudge like drowned woman, representative of Amy’s love of horror and occult (and the reason the pair even broke into the school in the first place).
The games main draw is this relationship between Vivian and Amy, the friends who want to be more, too nervous to share but willing to go through Hell to save and reunite with the other. That on top of unravelling the mystery of the fire and the Spotlight means the narrative here is just as strong as the gameplay.
As the first title of the Blumhouse Games label, it’s an incredible first debut. As a game on it’s own it’s a charming well designed horror-lite with a lot of heart. The husband/wife combo behind should be proud of their work and I’m excited to see what they do next.
