It's also much more than a simple murder mystery. It dips its toes into some disturbing waters, but the journey is a riveting one. But by carefully delivering details and motivations for each character and playing around with the sequence of events, the game builds a gripping narrative that hints at a sinister and unquantifiable something lurking beneath the surface. On the surface, it's a tale that concerns itself with the Carter family's descent into madness. It's through these glimpses into the past that The Vanishing of Ethan Carter transforms from a simple collect-the-clues adventure game to a complex and captivating exercise in storytelling. Once you get it, you're treated to an extra scene subtly pointing you in the next direction. You have to study these vignettes in order to determine the chronology of events. The game then gives you little glimpses into the events leading up to the murder, everything from a man grabbing a makeshift weapon to a strained conversation between two family members. Eventually, you have enough to reassemble the scene of the crime.
#THE VANISHING OF ETHAN CARTER GRAPHICS PATCH#
The blood on the front of a railcar and the victim's severed legs suggest he's been run over in some sort of accident, but why are there ropes on the track? Why is this blood-stained rock lying in a nearby patch of grass? The adventure game mechanics are never very taxing, but studying the scene of a crime to determine the sequence of events is a clever touch.Īs you inspect each clue, you see Prospero's thoughts swirling around onscreen, revealing little pieces of insight that help guide you in your search. As the detective on the case, it's your job to piece together clues at the scene of the crime to gain insight into what's happened. This is a game that deals in striking juxtapositions, building an uneasy contrast between its pastoral scenery and the grim aftermath of violent outbursts.
But there's more to The Vanishing of Ethan Carter than simply taking in the scenery, something you learn early into the game when you stumble upon a mangled corpse next to a railroad track in the woods.
It's easy to surrender yourself to its gentle grip I quickly found myself wandering through forested hills as wind swept through the autumn foliage and an evocative soundtrack guided me toward the next stunning view of the river valley below. Prospero's poetic ruminations combine with the game's breathtaking landscapes to create an atmosphere that's nothing short of mesmerizing. "There are places that exist that very few people can see," remarks Prospero in the game's opening moments. You're Paul Prospero, a detective in search of a boy whose gift for peering into the unknown has triggered some terrifying mystery leading to the child's disappearance. Such themes are consistent throughout The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, an exceptional adventure game that introduces itself as a supernatural murder mystery before peeling the layers back to reveal something more touching and personal. ( Warning: the following review tries to avoid spoilers, but you will find brief references to later plot points.) But it's a melancholy and complex beauty. Red Creek Valley is a place where decaying homes and lifeless railway lines sit beneath stunning mountain vistas and painterly sunsets, a forgotten corner of the American Rust Belt fighting a losing battle against nature. It's one with fraying corners that's been stuck to your refrigerator for the past 10 years, buried under layers of past-due bills and other reminders of life's harsh realities. This isn't one of those pristine cards you'd buy off the rack at your local corner store, though. Red Creek Valley, the picturesque setting of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, feels like a postcard come to life.