Recently, products created by independent developers can be quite impressive. Sometimes, games created by a single person can exceed expectations. Golgotha, developed by Craig Lawrence and distributed by Lockley Games, which you are about to read a review of, is one of them.
Free Horror Game Golgotha Review
When I woke up this morning, I said to myself, “I need a bit of a scare today.” I started to search for newly released games on Steam. When I came across Golgotha, I thought I had found exactly what I was looking for. To be honest, I thought it might be related to a virus that I remembered from Resident Evil. But there is no connection whatsoever. 🙂 And since the file size was small (1.13 GB), I decided to give it a chance.
Story
World War II holds many stories, and when you combine it with your own fiction and different genres, you have an endless source. The Black Waters Station in England, which is the subject of the game, is one of these stories. In the 1940s, people were hiding in subway stations to escape the war. However, sometimes people couldn’t escape from these areas and lost their lives there. The name Golgotha comes from here, referring to the areas where people were buried alive.
After installation, we start the game by seeing the story. In 1942, the Black Waters Station was covered with a poisonous fog that killed thousands of people who were sleeping in the tunnels and platforms of the station to escape from the war. After the horrific ordeal, the authorities closed the doors of Black Waters and sealed it off from the public. Nobody ever saw or heard from those inside again. It took its place on the dusty shelves of history.
We open our eyes at the station. It’s all dark around us, and we can see very little. When we look at the note next to us, we see that we need to get out of the station. Although it’s unclear how we got here, we have a mission. To escape and save our lives.
Fortunately, there is a lamp right next to the note. When I first started the game, I didn’t think of taking the huge lamp in front of me, so I had to wander in the dark for a while. When I got stuck, I had to go back to the beginning and get the lamp 🙂
Gameplay
Golgotha is a single-plane game. You come across a closed door and you need to find the key to open it. Fortunately, a clue about where to find the key was given on the previous screen.
There is absolutely no action in the game. However, sudden objects or sounds that appear as you progress towards finding the exit can make your heart skip a beat. Don’t expect to encounter a ghost or zombies running towards you when you turn around in some horror games. However, you still need to keep an eye on your back. In fact, it is these scenes that add fear to the game.
One of the most impressive aspects of the game is the use of sound effects. Unlike typical horror movies that try to startle you with sudden screams or noises, Golgotha gradually builds up disturbing sound effects that stimulate your emotions and force you to move faster.
Graphics
The use of sound effects is one of the most impressive aspects of the game. Unlike typical horror movies, the game does not try to scare you with sudden screams or various noises that can startle you. Instead, the gradually increasing disturbing sound effects will trigger your emotions and force you to move faster.
The game is designed with Unity engine and can run easily on even older computers. However, I have encountered some minor optimization issues at times. These issues do not affect your gameplay experience, but they can cause your computer’s cooling system to work harder. I think the main reason for this is the blurring effect during screen transitions.
Knowing that the game was developed by a single person, I did not expect a spectacular graphic result. However, the graphics I encountered were satisfactory. We see amazing projects created with Unity. Therefore, we can see that the game does not use all the features of the game engine graphically.
On the other hand, the length of the game was also a significant factor in lowering the score. I finished it in about 40 minutes. Your familiarity with the genre can either shorten or lengthen your playing time.
Overall
Golgotha may be short but it manages to make you feel fear in your veins. I recommend that fans of the genre try this free game. The impressive atmosphere made me want to finish it a second time. It has even become a game that can be played just for speedrunning.
I also contacted the developer Craig Lawrence. He plans to release his second game this year. I must say I am already excited.
You can add the game to your Steam library from here.
