Spirits of Xanadu

Developer: Allen Trivette , Lee Williams | Publisher: Night Dive Studios | Release Date: 2015 | Genre: Action / Adventure / Indie | Website: Official Website | Purchase: Steam / itch.io

Flying alone to the far edges of explored space is creepy enough, but it is even worse when the purpose is to investigate why a research vessel has gone very quiet. Since the research vessel in question, the Xanadu is in orbit around a mysterious planet, you’d have to be incredibly brave or stupid to take the job. In this game, you step into the shoes of this lone operator tasked with finding out what befell the crew of the research vessel and then bringing it back to earth if possible.

Spirits of Xanadu is set in an alternate version of the 1980s, where mankind appears to have mastered interstellar travel. The research vessel you are sent to investigate isn’t very big, as only three members crewed it, but obviously, things look bleak when you arrive. The crew is nowhere in sight; the robots and defenses onboard are all set to kill, and before you can move the ship anywhere, it needs extensive repairs. You have the freedom to go anywhere, though, and along the way, you uncover what happened by reading notes and emails or listening to the audio logs scattered everywhere.

The game is clearly influenced by classics, such as Deus Ex and System Shock 2, but since it was made by a tiny team of indie developers, it is a little less ambitious. The developers still crammed a lot into the small playing area and ensured the environments were as interactive as possible. The game is viewed from a first-person perspective, and although it features three different weapons, we wouldn’t really classify it as a shooter. Enemies are limited to about three different types of robots, and if you hate conflict, you can even play in “peaceful” mode, which turns them all passive. Your mission is also very straightforward, and with a bit of exploring, you can easily power the Xanadu back up and complete your mission. However, if this is all you do, you’ll miss out on a big chunk of what makes the game unique.

Spirits of Xanadu actually features three different endings, and obtaining all of them will require you to scour every nook and cranny of the ship. The game uses a simple visual style, so don’t expect photo-realistic textures. However, the look fits nicely with the alternate timeline featured in the game. Options-wise, you can enable FXAA and SSAO as well as depth of field and bloom. The shadow quality can also be adjusted, and you can toggle effects such as motion blur, bloom, and film grain. The result is pretty good considering the number of people who worked on the game, and thanks to the great atmosphere, it is immersive.

After docking your smaller vessel with the Xanadu, you start the game in the shuttle bay. From there, you can explore areas such as the engine room, engineering section, medical bay, laboratory, offices, bridge, crew quarters, and more. At no point does the game hold your hand, so you are left to your own devices when it comes to figuring out what is going on. Some people will love this, while others will likely miss important clues and wander around aimlessly.

Despite the spooky premise and creepy location, the game doesn’t resort to cheap scare tactics. The robotic enemies in the game can surprise you if you stumble into them, especially the suicidal ones, but you won’t encounter scripted jump scares. Your character can get hurt but recovers without the need for health packs. If you manage to get yourself killed, you simply respawn back in the ship’s brig. The interactive environments are definitely the best part of the game, and we wasted a lot of time messing around with the basketball, guitar, and zombie arcade game. In addition, drawers can be opened and closed, toilets flushed, food eaten, drinks consumed, and you can even smoke so much that your character passes out from it! It is not just audio logs and hidden pages that you’ll discover as you explore either, but also a nice selection of Easter eggs.

Although your character never utters a word, the voice acting in the audio logs you find is very good. These offer a fascinating glimpse into what occurred on the Xanadu before your arrival and range from touching to disturbing. For the most part, the game is quiet, allowing you to concentrate on the audio logs or keep an ear open for the robots roaming about. The sound effects are also more functional than memorable. Spirits of Xanadu is best played using a traditional keyboard and mouse setup, but if you are really determined, it can also be played using a controller. The latter works best if you play the game in peaceful mode, but if you are used to playing console first-person shooters, you’ll feel right at home using a controller. The game doesn’t use checkpoints or auto-saves and instead requires you to activate one of the numerous terminals found throughout the ship to record your mission data.

Players who are fans of the games from which Spirits of Xanadu draws its inspiration will find this game to be an enjoyable experience. We would have liked to see it up the creepiness factor even more, as the game can sometimes feel a bit too sedate. The short playtime is also a drawback, but the multiple endings add to the replay value. Overall, though, we enjoyed our time aboard the Xanadu, and despite some shortcomings, the game is definitely worth checking out.