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I’ll start off by saying that Deep Silver got the name of this one right. That mountain sure is cursed.
I’m quite fond of both my brothers but, if either of them disappears on a mountain that’s haunted by dead monks who are all the time floating around and jumping out at me and opening their mouth too wide, I’m leaving my brothers up there.
I guess that Eric Simmons is a better man than I and why not? He’s a mountain climber, after all. He’s rugged. He has a cool accent. He ain’t afraid a’ no ghost. His brother Frank disappeared while climbing the Himalayan mountains to retrieve an ancient artifact at the request of, eh, I’ll let you discover all of that on your own. The story, which is revealed in partially animated cut scenes and journal entries you find along the way, is a bit sparse. There was nothing in the plot to keep me moving through this game, as I had absolutely no interest in learning the fate of Eric’s brother. But the game did hold my attention for other reasons.
There’s a Mountain
That’s important, because most of this game’s personality comes from the mountain. It’s oppressive in some ways but rewarding. As you stand at the bottom and look up at the peaks, you can’t help but feel like you’re not getting anywhere. But as you make your way up and look back down at the villages you’ve been through, you’ll know you’ve accomplished something. I’ve never played a game that allowed you to visually monitor your progress in this way and it’s quite cool.
You’ll have to develop this connection with the mountain because, quite often, that’s all there is. Much of Cursed Mountain is spent simply walking along paths, seeking the ending point for that level (hint; keep going up). The various villages add some personality, and you’ll occasionally run into living characters who will impart some wisdom, let you know what’s going on, or simply try to freak you out, but aside from that, it’s just you, the mountain, the weather, and the ghosts.
The Mountain is Cursed
Your brother did something pretty bad, you see. Without ruining any of the story, I’ll just say he had no respect for the mountain (they’ll hammer that notion home early and often), and that’s apparently a very bad thing. We’ve learned from games and movies that seeking ancient artifacts is often a poor decision—especially when you show that decidedly western lack of respect for the object you’re stealing—and here it released countless dark spirits who have driven away the villagers and who have no love for you and mountain climbing ways. They float around in the distance, they jump out from behind doors, they fade in and out of sight…anything to freak you out. Your only weapon against them is your pick axe. Up front, you’ll just be able to swing it at them. As you progress, it’s imbued with various magical weapons with which you can launch ranged attacks and do more signifcant damage.
For health, you’re given incense sticks which you light at shrines scattered across the mountain. Progress is saved automatically, which is both good and bad. Good, in that it happens often enough that you never have to trek to far back aftering dying. Bad, in that an autosave means something’s about to happen, and that kills the scare.
Your only other weapon is the “third eye,” which allows you to see into the spirit realm to discover items hidden to the real world. More importantly, it’s used for my favorite aspect of combat. After landing a few hits on a spirit, activating the third eye will unveil a red medallion on its chest. Click on this medallion, and a series of WiiMote and Nunchuck gestures will show up. Executing these gestures not only finishes off the enemy but also increases your health. It’s very cool, although often frustrating, as one gesture in particular (raising the WiiMote up or pushing it forward or doing whatever happens to work at the time) is wildly unreliable.
It is Still Cursed
Unfortunately, some development decisions prove to be your real obstacle to discovering your brother’s fate. First, although the game is generally quite attractive, certain sections are too washed out by the visual effects. The game is often hazy and dark, making it almost impossible to play in the daytime.
Second, there are long stretches were absolutely nothing is happening. At the beginning, this is fine, as you spend those moments anticipating scares. After a while, however, you’ll realize those scares aren’t coming and you’ll just get antsy.
Third, the scares don’t change. I was totally creeped out by Cursed Mountain for the first few levels, but then it becomes predictable, and that means it’s no longer scary. Still creepy (dig those arms reaching out from the rocks, the distant crying, and the way the screen tilts and fades to grayscale), but not scary.
And, finally, although there are a couple decent boss battles, most simply involve fighting more spirits than you normally face at a given time. I had a similar complaint with Deadly Creatures, in which there are two fantastic boss battles, and a bunch that were completely uninspired.
Did I Mention this Mountain is Cursed?
And actually, the comparison to Deadly Creatures carries beyond that. Both games are very unique in setting and story, but are hampered by execution that doesn’t quite deliver on a fantastic premise. Action comes in spurts, so if you’re not sucked into the game’s world, you’ll likely hit that wall about midway through and just bail on it. As I mentioned, I had little interest in Cursed Mountain’s contrived story (how many ghosts does a man have to kill before he starts to, you know, believe in ghosts?), but I shared Eric’s connection with that mountain, and was creeped out enough to stay involved in what was happening around me.
Cursed Mountain is a unique game that serves as a nice vacation from slaughtering countless Nazis and zombies. It’s easy to lose yourself amongst the mountain’s villages and cliffs, and the game will be ultimately satisfying if you let that happen. But if you demand more action or deeper stories from your adventure games, you’re better off staying closer to sea level.
Site [Cursed Mountain]
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