Shattered Haven

 PC
Shattered Haven Image
Metascore
59

Mixed or average reviews - based on 4 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
6.9

Mixed or average reviews- based on 14 Ratings

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  • Summary: An Environmental Puzzle Game About Family, Grit, and Survival.

    Grays roam the land, largely in the absence of human interference. These aren't your typical Zed -- theirs is a very different sort of apocalypse. Animals spontaneously transform into twisted, violent beings. The earth decays,    An Environmental Puzzle Game About Family, Grit, and Survival.

    Grays roam the land, largely in the absence of human interference. These aren't your typical Zed -- theirs is a very different sort of apocalypse. Animals spontaneously transform into twisted, violent beings. The earth decays, collapsing into a network of abysses. The wilderness thickens.

    It has been nine years since That Day when it all started. Pockets of humanity still exist, but are ignorant of one another. Within these isolated havens people try to live as best they can -- for even in a world so broken and dark, daily life must go on.

    Darrell and Mary Williams were able to build such a life inside a five-acre fenced yard out in the country. They were even secure enough in their isolated compound that they had a daughter five years after the zombie-like grays appeared.

    Life carried on as normally as it could, until another refugee on the run is killed during a nearby attack. Her son is saved and taken in by the Williamses -- who do not realize that this kind action will destroy their home and threaten their entire family. They find themselves caught in the midst of a struggle between two eldritch horrors, and the path to survival is anything but clear.    … Expand

Trailer

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Shattered Haven - Launch Trailer

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. Hooked Gamers
    Apr 1, 2013
    70
    Overall, Shattered Haven is a decent game for its low price. It features a standard narrative with a few twists and turns to keep things interesting.
  2. Edge Magazine
    Mar 28, 2013
    60
    There’s a workmanlike simplicity to the core of Arcen’s game, one that lets down the powerful atmosphere suffusing it.
  3. PC Gamer UK
    May 31, 2013
    59
    A bountiful adventure game with a lot of personality, but one that suffers from its own ambition. [June 2013, p.82]
    All this publication's reviews
  4. GameSpot
    Apr 1, 2013
    50
    Shattered Haven's inert levels and unwillingness to let you naturally learn obscure its more brilliant moments.

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 3
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 3
  3. Negative: 0 out of 3
  1. nas1m
    Mar 20, 2013
    10
    A really fun game that mixes Zelda like overworld-gameplay (and I am speaking of Zelda I and III here, folks!) with up to 100 levels filled toA really fun game that mixes Zelda like overworld-gameplay (and I am speaking of Zelda I and III here, folks!) with up to 100 levels filled to the brim with environmental puzzles accessed from there. The goal of each level is either to kill all zombies (called Grays here which are quite a different breed from your regular zombies) using the environment and what tools, traps and weapons you can forage from it or to escape from maze-like structures filled with switches, secret passages and more.

    What makes this game really stand out is it's story and musical score, again composed or remastered by the intrepid Pablo Vega. All the overworld areas are bound together by the tale of Darrel and Mary and their quest to recover their four-year-old daughter Lela, whom they raised in the midst of the Gray Apocalypse, along with the boy Pierce, whom they took in after he lost his family in the wilds, while being caught up in the struggle of two eldritch horrors. The game features a branching story arc with multiple distinctive endings along with a "New Game Plus" feature to continue your quest and visit those areas you missed before (along with being able to find some treats not available before). The soundtrack might well be one of the best yet produced by Pablo Vega and does an awesome job on creating an engaging atmosphere and setting the scene for the story, which is told through a big number of comic panel based cutscenes, some of which feature brilliant voice acting by Prince Taylor (it is ridiculous how much atmosphere is created alone by his impersonation of Darrel) and loads of in-engine cutscenes.

    The art of he game has been created by Heavy Cat Studios, this being their second joint venture with Arcen after Valley 2, and does a great job creating a polished but still retro look & feel for the game (think SNES with a higher resolution here). Throw in some really nice weather and particle effects to complete the package and what you get is a fitting presentation.

    Finally the game can be controlled using keyboard & mouse or a gamepad controls, both of which are working flawlessly (I recommend using a gamepad, though).    … Expand
  2. MrHanMan
    Mar 20, 2013
    10
    This is the best game I've played in a long time. I really can't recommend this highly enough. The story is engaging, the music is incredible,This is the best game I've played in a long time. I really can't recommend this highly enough. The story is engaging, the music is incredible, the gameplay is nostalgic and innovative. It's almost like The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and the Adventures of Lolo had a lovechild. Plus, they include the same editor that they used to create the levels. Really, what are you waiting for?… Expand
  4. derp_derp
    Apr 8, 2013
    6
    This might be a game that takes a while to hit its stride, but what I played in three hours really didn't inspire me to keep going.

    The    This might be a game that takes a while to hit its stride, but what I played in three hours really didn't inspire me to keep going.

    The biggest offender were the hit and miss puzzles. There were a couple I enjoyed, but for the most part I felt like I was going through the motions, and at worst they were either tedious or full of wasted space due to the sheer amount of tiles the game throws on screen at once. But really the big issue is that I never had to stop and think about what I was doing at all, and that's the whole point of a puzzle game, isn't it?

    The severity of the story and setting also feels really out of place in very gamey 2D puzzler. I know I'm supposed to be looking for my kids and all, but it feels like if Pacman had cutscenes telling you it was all a somber allegory for eating disorders. I just can't take it seriously at all.

    The music was surprisingly awesome though. There were a couple tracks that sounded kind of unfinished, but I'd probably pick up the soundtrack if it came out.

    Again, the game might get interesting later on, but if a simple puzzle game can't hook me in a couple hours I'm just not interested.    … Expand

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