Boreal Tenebrae tries to pick up on the sentiment of the eighties and nineties, making you think of the good old days (kind of like the old point and click adventures are doing right now). Combine this sentiment with Lynchian storytelling, and you get Boreal Tenebrae. Intrigued yet? Let’s dive in, and I’ll explain.
David Lynch
What makes a film or a series Lynchian is its attempt to depart from linear storytelling to show the subconscious hangups of certain characters or situations. In a Lynchian sequence, music is often involved, stark color and lighting convey mood, and no matter how pleasant the scene may appear, there is always a nightmarish and threatening undercurrent. Where most of these moments involve the dream world, a true Lynchian departure can happen right in the middle of what is perceived reality. Boreal Tenebrae goes exactly that – it plays with your mind, just like David Lynch would do.
Boreal Tenebrae
Boreal Tenebrae starts you off with Bree, who lives inside a dying town where mysterious bright rectangular objects appear. It feels like dropping into a show halfway through the season, but the story grows on you; trust me on this. Said block is like the object in 2001: A Space Odyssey, but instead of pitch black, this one seems to be made of static. You think the object has something to do with the disappearance of your sister Sarah, who was really into this mysterious stuff, which is the beginning of your quest to find your lost sister.
Your journey takes you to some mysterious dreamscapes, through Twin Peaks-esque forests, into static TV sets, mills run by frogs; discovering video tapes and disks everywhere, find and use items to proceed, and wander around as a ghost or something else weird, and I’m used to playing weird games. Combine this with Boreal Tenebrae’s wonderful storytelling, world-building, character development, and all those juicy, sticky bits keeping it together. This feels like an interactive film with the high angled shots, avant-garde methods, and narrative tricks to make this immersive.
The 80s’ and 90s’ are back!
Giving off that 90s vibe, some elements make this feel like a top-tier PlayStation one game – bells and all, and while it’s authentic with a 4:3 option, you can also play in widescreen. Despite being an oldie, I preferred it wide, though the cutscenes are constructed as if straight off of an old TV. This is important as the VHS elements aren’t just there for presentation but part of the tale. The gritty analog signals constantly signifying some meaning with multiple overlays were superb. Dialogue in Boreal Tenebrae is text-based, but there are voiceovers here and there, and the actors are well cast.
While the presentation is everything I had hoped for, the key element here is the atmosphere. However, despite the invisible walls that the game places on the overworld and the awkwardness of the odd camera angle (a fixed perspective), the overall experience is excellent, which boils down to Boreal Tenebrae’s absurdity. I did, however, run into some bugs – which were a bit game-breaking at some points. For example, when first getting the camera to scan ‘certain aspects of the game (I will not spoil which one), the camera got stuck and made me reload the entire game, which led to losing a good hour of gameplay (which sucks with little kids running around the house).
Conclusion
For me, Boreal Tenebrae didn’t disappoint. You have to like working through a certain creepy atmosphere of the game, and if you like that kind of stuff, you will feel fulfilled. In the end, it’s an indulgent experience that is a positive one; only you feel some guilt at having finished in one sitting. However, some of the older mechanics might cause some frustration with ‘younger’ gamers, plus I hope the bugs that plague the Nintendo Switch port will be fixed since they can cause some controller throwing moments.
