Explore an isolated valley to search for the truth about the evil lurking there in this hand-drawn horror game.
Mundaun
Developer: Hidden Fields
Price: $20
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch [April 2021], PC (reviewed)
MonsterVine was provided with a PC code for review.
When Curdin receives a letter telling him about his grandfather’s death, he senses that something is wrong and travels to the valley town of Mundaun to find out what happened. It isn’t long before he confirms that something is quite wrong indeed–his grandfather’s body is still in the burned barn where he died, dangerous monsters lurk in the valley, and everything seems connected to a mysterious, sinister old man Curdin encounters in a meeting that leaves his hand strangely corrupted.
The first thing that stands out about Mundaun is its art style. Its grayscale graphics are actually the result of everything in the game being hand-pencilled, which gives it a unique and striking appearance. After a while, there were times when I wished for a little color, but overall, I liked the visual approach. Mundaun is set in an isolated valley in the Alps, an atypical setting for a video game, and it brings its world to life across several large environments you’ll explore throughout the game. All spoken dialogue uses the Romontsch dialect from that region, which contributes to the sense that you’ve traveled to an unfamiliar location. Everything is well-crafted, and while I encountered an occasional odd bug like an enemy clipping through the floor from below, it was never anything major.
You’ll encounter numerous enemies patrolling the valley, adding some tension to your exploration whenever they’re around. While you do have some limited combat options, avoiding enemies as much as possible is usually your best bet. Not only can enemies take you out pretty easily, but Curdin also slows down significantly due to fear when he gets close to them. With a couple of exceptions, save points and the occasional auto-save are usually frequent enough that you’re rarely in danger of losing too much progress even when you do run into trouble. Avoiding enemies means there are some light stealth elements to the game, but it’s never a major focus. Instead, you’ll spend most of your time looking for items and solving puzzles as you interact with the valley’s rather eccentric inhabitants.
Exploration is greatly encouraged in Mundaun. While you’ll need to explore to some degree in order to solve puzzles, going off the main path to check optional areas is well-rewarded with notes that expand the lore, resources such as matches and ammo, and upgrades that help you last longer against enemies. There are a lot of nice little details built into the game’s systems, such as how you can brew coffee to increase your resistance to fear. Getting the coffee isn’t enough; you’ll need to find a source of water, heat the coffee at a stove, and then fill a cup in order to drink it. Some players might find these steps tedious, but I thought it was a pleasant touch and one of many little aspects that made me enjoy taking my time as I played. At first, you’ll be required to do all of your exploration on foot, but eventually you gain access to a vehicle called the Muvel that makes it much easier to travel.
The story is the next major focus, with most of the horror coming less from the patrolling enemies and more from the dark truths you learn. Curdin is oddly unfazed by the bizarre events he witnesses, usually reacting with mild surprise at best. However, since the game does have a surreal atmosphere, with logic-bending events like a puzzle in which you must complete a painting of a bridge in order to repair the real bridge, his calm acceptance of unexpected situations might be intentional. All of the characters are a bit unusual, and that’s not to mention the number of times you’re aided in your journey by friendly goats. In any case, the story is well-told and the game does a great job of using its music and visuals to build up a brooding, ominous atmosphere.
While Mundaun often presents you with a problem and lets you figure out for yourself how to solve it rather than guiding you every step of the way, it also has some features that are quite friendly, such as the ability to summon the Muvel from posters set up throughout the environments and the fact that useful optional items can be found in multiple spots in case you missed them earlier. All notes and clues are also recorded in Curdin’s journal, which you can check at any point. While the story mostly follows a set path, certain decisions will determine which ending you get, so you’ll want to think carefully when the game asks you to make an important choice. Overall, I enjoyed exploring the isolated valley of Mundaun and watching its dark story unfold.
Oh, and if you were wondering, yes–you can pet the goats.
The Final World
Combat and enemy encounters aren’t a major focus of Mundaun, and it won’t be the scariest game you play. However, if you like your horror games to have a strong focus on exploration and a satisfying story to tell, you should come away from the surreal world of Mundaun feeling well-pleased with the experience.
-MonsterVine Rating: 4 out of 5 – Good
