Breaking up can be hell, but at least most of us don’t have to deal with partners and exes who are also actual demons at the same time. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for London shop worker Michelle. Not only is she still reeling from a bad break-up with her very human girlfriend that happened several years previously, but she’s also recently caught the eye of a very demanding arch-demon called The Duchess who simply won’t take no for an answer – cursing Michelle with a third eye and the prospect of death and eternal damnation if she doesn’t submit to love The Duchess in three days’ time.
Sorry We’re Closed reviewDeveloper: à la mode gamesPublisher: Akupara GamesPlatform: Played on PCAvailability: Out now on PC (Steam, GOG)
It’s pretty intense as romances go – less whirlwind and more category five hurricane, perhaps – but Sorry We’re Closed isn’t the lusty visual novel you’re probably picturing in your head right now. Rather, this is a love story viewed through the dark and grungy lens of survival horror, where celestial bust-ups are brought crashing down to earth in bars, hotels, underground stations and aquariums, and where hearts get broken with over-the-top axes, pistols and soul-shattering shotguns. But even though its PS1-era visuals and fixed, third-person camera angles give it an air of an angels and demons Resident Evil, that’s really only one side of the story here. For when you’re not fighting off legions of hellspawn, you’re also taking on branching sidequests to fix the love lives of your mates – many of whom also happen to be angels and demons, it turns out. It’s survival horror with a lite RPG glaze, in other words, and it’s probably one of the most striking games you’ll play this year.
Sorry We’re Closed | Launch Trailer Watch on YouTube
Set over the three fateful days of Michelle’s curse, our heroine discovers the only way to escape The Duchess’ clutches is to follow the trail of the demon’s other unfortunate lovers, who have all been turned into giant, unspeakable nasties in three distinct locations across London (and would very much like to kill Michelle themselves in the process). By claiming third eyes, Michelle hopes to gain enough power to challenge The Duchess herself, though this is presented very much as mature, emotional growth rather than extra video-gamey skills and abilities. No matter, though. Across its brisk, six-hour runtime, Michelle has everything she needs to carry us through this demonic allegory of finding love in the modern age right from the very beginning, with developer à la mode games making the most of their limited toolset.
Chief among them is Michelle’s own third eye. With a tap of the space bar (and a natty click of her fingers), a halo of alternate reality opens up around her, instantly revealing the pristine truth behind her freshly grimed up underworld surroundings, and vice-versa. Apart from being a neat visual trick, it also serves lots of different functions, such as turning ghostly apparitions of demons and angels into flesh and blood beings, and paving the way for some gentle, but smartly designed puzzles in the three main dungeon locations.