Low budget genius - somewhat a cult classic already. Buy it before it becomes a rare find.
What kind of game is it ? Well it's an open world adventure / survival horror. You have to carry out an investigation in an open world environment that look like a mix of shenmue and GTA, but like in silent hill you also have to make your way trough mazes packed with scary enemies that seem to be only in your mind. BAsically this game isn't affraid to explore every possible gameplay option, from open world to QTE, which is why it's often labeled as ambitious.
Right from the start the game intentionally pays to tribute to late 1990's gems. It looks and somewhat plays like shenmue, aiming is similar to resident evil, the enemies look like ring, i know what you did last summer and other horror classics, open world type maps look like GTA in shenmue world, and the hotel reminds me of the shining, as well as the weird twins. At some point you'll notice that in certain locations, the controls suddenly switch a early resident evil type, with fixed camera angles.
The game looks cheap and clumsy, but sometimes i wonder if they didn't choose to make it look like a Dreamcast game. After all the menus, QTE and fonts look like shenmue. It's particularly obvious in the first daylight scene on the bridge, the texture of the river is SOOOO cheap any gamecube game looks much better. The Characters are quite detailed and "HD" enough for a recent game. To sum up : the game looks really cheap but somewhat it feels right and works with the retro feeling this game has. I love the feeling that i'm playing on my old dreamcast.
The gameplay mechanics are clumsy and old school, but it doesn't get in the way so here again you feel like you've found a hidden gem from the past. Car controls are just horrible !
The story is just brilliant, and manages to scare, make you laugh, create an interesting atmosphere with weird dialogues and characters that are just brilliant, packed with references that will please the most hardcore horror geeks like me. It manages to both be funny and scary / gore at the same time, which in a way reminds me of the way scream was a slasher while at the same time making fun and paying tribute to halloween and the others. More importanlty, it's refreshing and different, and doesn't take itself too seriousely.
The music is good but repetitive and sometimes really not adapted to what's on screen. Offbeat again.
This game is not for everyone. You either "get it" or you don't.
If you're into AAA / bockbuster games forget DP. DP is a game for people who are looking for a more geeky experience, are ready to invest a little time and patience and forgive a clumsy gameplay and cheap looking graphics. If you're that type, then this game is a cult classic, get it soon before it becomes impossible to find and skyrockets on ebay.