Set sometime, somewhere in Feudal Japan, Ikai sees you playing as Naoko, a young priestess who has to protect her shrine against invading forces of evil, from terrifying yokai to spirits to demons. The story is delivered largely through brief monologues or notes here and there, and though there are some attempts at connecting the events with Naoko’s past, by and large, the whole affair feels rather straightforward. That’s not necessarily a bad thing- it allows Ikai to get right into the thick of things. That does, however, mean that the story isn’t ever really there to get you invested in the experience. The poor localization, writing, and voice acting certainly don’t do the game any favours either.

"Endflame’s Japanese folklore-inspired psychological horror experience is not without its merits, and at times, it does hint at greatness- but the sum of its parts is far from satisfactory, and the game as a whole is as brief as it is frustrating."

The setting, however, is a fairly interesting one, laden heavily with Japanese folklore and some of the imagery that goes hand-in-hand with that. The small shrine and the forest surrounding it that serve as the game’s setting feel like quaint, believable places with a surprising amount of detail that adds some authenticity to them. You can also find collectible notes scattered about the environments that teach you more about the yokai you face in the game, which is another neat touch.

The issue, however, is that in spite of being a very brief game at just 3-4 hours in length, Ikai often feels like a bit of a slog to play through. There are multiple reasons for that, though chief among them is the fact that you spend a bulk of the game going through repetitive and often the same environments as you move through the shrine and attempt to seal evil spirits. It doesn’t take long for a feeling of repetition to set in as you find yourself walking through environments that feel far too familiar.

It doesn’t help that the gameplay itself doesn’t do much to break up the monotony. Ikai has no combat, and is structured, for the most part, as a walking simulator. You walk through environments, investigate objects in your surroundings, do some puzzle solving every now and then, and try and find specific objects needed for specific tasks. That means there’s a lot of sifting through shelves and opening and going through drawers and what have you, which isn’t exactly riveting gameplay. It gets boring pretty quickly, and it doesn’t help that manually moving objects with the on-screen cursor using a controller feels quite clunky.

"There’s a lot of sifting through shelves and opening and going through drawers and what have you, which isn’t exactly riveting gameplay. It gets boring pretty quickly, and it doesn’t help that manually moving objects with the on-screen cursor using a controller feels quite clunky."

The controls let the gameplay down in other ways as well. The normal walking speed is slow as molasses, but sprinting comes with a strangely exaggerated hopping animation that felt jarring to me. Meanwhile, crouching feels sluggish, and having to wrestle with the controls during tense chase sequences to avoid obstacles and manually pull doors open was never enjoyable. Ikai also places quite a lot of emphasis on drawing seals using a paintbrush to seal spirits, but you have to do that manually as well- it felt like a neat and novel gimmick at first, but having it in the game as an important mechanic is a bad idea. When you have to quickly draw a complicated seal to lock a door before a yokai that’s chasing you breaks in and do it all using the inherently inaccurate movement of an analog stick, tension can quickly turn into frustration.

Puzzles are another big focal point for Ikai, but they, too, are inconsistent at best. Though there are a few in there that were genuinely fun to figure out, most others disappointed one way or another. Many were too easy and straightforward, to the point of feeling like busywork, while others were on the complete opposite end of the spectrum- completely obtuse, with frustratingly vague hints and next to no cues to help you figure out what you’re supposed to do. It kills the pacing in a game that already struggles with it.

I’ve been quite critical of Ikai up until now, but I do want to give credit where its due- building atmosphere is a crucial part of any horror game, especially one that claims to rely on psychological horror like this one does. Fortunately, that’s one area where Ikai impresses in several ways- though mostly thanks to its audio design. From the creaking of wooden floorboards to sudden thumps on the floor above you, from the chilling rustling of leaves to manic whispers in your vicinity, Ikai’s audio design is always on point, and never failed to make my skin crawl.

"Ikai has major technical and visual problems."

Sadly, the visuals don’t match up to the audio. Ikai has major technical and visual problems. Even when everything is working as it should, Ikai looks decent at best, but all so often, it just completely crumbles. The game’s got severe texture pop-in problems, especially when you load right into a save, to the point where often it can take dozens of seconds (if not longer) for huge, blatant swathes of textures to load in, leaving behind ugly blocks. Loading, too, can be surprisingly long- and I played this on an Xbox Series X.

All said and done, Ikai is a frustrating game. There’s a kernel of a good idea in there – psychological horror inspired by Japanese folklore is always interesting, while the atmosphere the game builds from the first second is also commendable – but it’s all outmatched to an almost overwhelming degree by the game’s many issues. The fact that it’s as short as it is and still manages to feel longer than it should be should tell you what you need to know about Ikai– that it’s a good idea that’s failed to evolve into a good game.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox Series X.

The horror game will now be out on March 29, both physically and digitally, for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, as well as for PC via Steam, and is available for pre-order. The physical editions of the game will also come packaged with a postcard and stickers as a part of the launch edition exclusive bonuses.

Ikai aims to deliver the feel of classic psychological horror games, where the main character is defenseless and incapable to attack any of the evil creatures you facee. The game, however, plans on creating a sense of helplessness by making players face your fears directly, instead of fleeing or attacking.

The game is currently available to pre-order for $29.99. PC players can currently try out a slice of the game to get a feel of it by playing the demo, which is downloadable from Ikai’s Steam page.

We also conducted an interview with Laura Ripoll, producer and designer at Endflame, where she talked about the various aspects of the upcoming psychological horror game last year.

https://twitter.com/PMStudiosUSA/status/1482027854158204928

"Japanese folklore has a whole world of mysteries, ferocious creatures and fascinating ghost stories appealing to any horror lover. It is just something that has always attracted us, a common interest between every member of the team. Not just as developers, but as players, we felt that there were so few games that had successfully brought to life such creepy J-horror tales, thus we decided to create our own approach."

Horror can be a difficult thing to implement properly, especially psychological horror, which is what Ikai seems to be focused on. Can you talk about how you’ve approached that aspect of the game during development, and how you’ve ensured that the horror is as potent as possible?

We’ve taken the approach horror movies take, indeed. Ikai follows a designed pace that keeps evolving in the course of the game, with its highs and lows, which makes it easier to guess what the player is feeling at each situation and plan the gameplay accordingly.

We didn’t want to fall into trying to keep a high level of tension during the whole game because it can get tedious and players would eventually get used to it, making the events lose their desired effect consequently. By avoiding this practice, we have been able to design Ikai more accurately. This lets us ensure the game is actually scary.

Ikai’s usage of Japanese folklore in its story and settings is definitely one of its more intriguing elements. Why did you decide to build your game’s story around that?

Japanese folklore has a whole world of mysteries, ferocious creatures and fascinating ghost stories appealing to any horror lover. It is just something that has always attracted us, a common interest between every member of the team. Not just as developers, but as players, we felt that there were so few games that had successfully brought to life such creepy J-horror tales, thus we decided to create our own approach.

How much of an emphasis does the game put on exploration? Additionally, what’s the approach you’ve taken to level design and the size of the game’s environments in light of that?

Exploration is the way throughout the story of the main character is revealed, so it is something of the game we really want to highlight.

The level design has been a bit tricky because we wanted the players to recognize the environment to strengthen their bonds with the place. However, it is difficult to make them remember a huge space interesting enough to keep exploring the same areas. That is why we have kept the main small scenario of a shrine, where the players will keep returning and, additionally, we have added other bigger exterior scenarios that will let the players explore very differentiated areas and prevent the monotony.

Ikai is focusing quite a bit on stealth, it seems, but will the game also have combat mechanics?

Ikai won’t have any sort of combat. Nevertheless, we did come up with a tool to purify evil yokais without involving direct combat and thus achieving a feeling of powerlessness.

The seal drawing is a double-edged mechanic, and that’s what makes it intriguing. The seal is the only thing which can defeat the evil creatures, but time and concentration are needed because drawing the seal involves real precise movements instead of just pressing a button. The player is found in a vulnerable situation while drawing, being completely unable to see what is happening around. It is up to the player whether to quit drawing and check if there is any threat, look for a safer place or to keep making the seal regardless of what may occur. Yet, at the end, the seal must be done anyway in order to defeat the creatures.

"We play with the same couple of simple mechanics to ensure that any player can master them easily. What makes them interesting enough, once the players know how they work, is not the mechanic itself, but the situation where it is required."

One of the most interesting things that you’ve said about Ikai is that every mechanic in the game is built to put further emphasis on its tense atmosphere and invoking a feeling of dread in the player. My question is, how do you ensure that that is being done effectively, especially without perhaps going overboard with things, which is a trap that horror games can sometimes fall in?

By trying to keep things simple. We play with the same couple of simple mechanics to ensure that any player can master them easily. What makes them interesting enough, once the players know how they work, is not the mechanic itself, but the situation where it is required. We break the pattern the players have gotten to know in past situations and that makes them feel tense and uncertain while, at the same time, they know perfectly how to perform because it is a mechanic they have already mastered.

Roughly how long will an average playthrough of Ikai be?

Ikai will last an average of 3 hours, but it can very likely last longer for people interested not only in the lore of the game itself but also in the Japanese folklore, since there is a Collectibles system that gathers the several yokai pages and hidden objects found in the game to convey the mysteries behind each of them.

According to the publisher, “Ikai embodies the spirit of the classical psychological horror genre with a defenseless main character incapable of attacking the evil creatures. However, it explores a new sense of horror by making the player face the threats directly neither fleeing nor attacking.”

Every mechanic in Ikai is designed to make the player feel helpless and create tension. Players take on the role of Naoko, a priestess trying to make it from her shrine to the river before dark. Unfortunately, strange occurrences have been happening in the village as of late, and while Naoko doesn’t believe the rumors of demons and spirits, she’s about to find out she’s wrong firsthand. The game will task players with exploring, drawing protective seals, solving puzzles, and running or hiding to try and stay alive.

You can watch a trailer for Ikai below: