The Nameless City Review – A brief but enjoyable low-poly descent into Lovecraftian cosmic horror

To me, developer Paradnight Studio’s first-person horror-adventure, The Nameless City, came as quite a pleasant surprise: it’s a solid example of a project that uses its limited runtime to nonetheless create something that’s both atmospheric and memorable. As you might have guessed if you’re an avid horror fan, the game is based on H.P. Lovecraft’s short story of the same name, and follows a lone protagonist as he explores a ruin of mysterious origins – the titular nameless city, nestled within the depths of the Arabian desert. After experiencing everything the game had to offer, I’m happy to report that The Nameless City is a very solid effort in terms of capturing the essence of Lovecraftian terror, managing to delight and unsettle the Lovecraft enthusiast in me despite its intentionally minimalistic visual style.

“That is not dead which can eternal lie,   And with strange aeons even death may die.”

The game wastes no time when it comes to grabbing you by the collar and pulling you right into its creepy, Lovecraftian bog of otherworldly secrets, utilizing narrated quotes from the original story to set its eerie mood. The blazing sun, the abandoned ruins and the unforgiving desert come to life as we see them in their PSX-inspired glory, yet despite the low-poly assets, the use of strong shapes and vivid colors, combined with effective storytelling, make it very easy to get effortlessly immersed into the experience. What initially begins as an exploration of stone structures and grotesque statues does, naturally, take on a more sinister and mysterious tone as you progress, and indeed, The Nameless City, despite its very short length (60-90 minutes, give or take), manages to cram in as much cosmic horror goodness into its runtime as it possibly can, and it does so gradually, without using up all its trump cards too early. The further you get, the more you discover, and what you see – or don’t see – has terrifying implications; the game also does a splendid job of illustrating just how deep into this monstrous abyss you go, with corridors and staircases that descend further and further downwards into the unknown, almost to symbolize your gradual abandonment of the last vestiges of human civilization. And yet, it never grows too repetitive; instead, there is a constantly growing sense of visceral dread that you’re about to encounter something better left untouched, which is very much at the core of Lovecraftian horror, especially if you consider how often the protagonists of his stories spell their own doom through their insatiable curiosity for the unknown. It’s worth noting that the game also uses AI-generated imagery to represent the chaotic, incomprehensible visions of eldritch monstrosities, which I thought was a pretty clever use of this technology.

At sanity’s end

Despite its focus on storytelling and exploration, The Nameless City does also feature some gameplay elements and puzzles. Most notably, your excursion into the nameless city eventually leads to the discovery of mysterious glyphs that the protagonist will be able to use in order to cast a handful of spells that – as you might’ve guessed – play a crucial role in solving the game’s puzzles. There aren’t too many of these, which is a shame, and their usage is fairly obvious from the get-go, but their presence very much ties into the storyline as well, as each spell you cast drains a hefty chunk of your sanity meter – which not only works on a gameplay level, but implies that you’re playing with things no mortal man was meant to experience. I particularly enjoyed the part towards the end that had you constantly casting a spell to create light sources after your torch had already guttered out – partially to let you see, but also because the unnatural darkness enveloping the ruins was rapidly making the protagonist lose his grip on sanity. So, while the puzzles aren’t terribly taxing, I appreciated their inclusion, as they added some variety to the game while also enhancing both the storytelling and the atmosphere. The ending scene was also expertly done, I thought, with haunting narration and chilling imagery, as well as a final shot that made me go “yup, this is how you conclude a Lovecraftian horror game”.

A solid adaptation

I believe it’s quite obvious how impressed I am with The Nameless City. It marries the oppressive and mystical atmosphere of Lovecraftian fiction with gameplay elements that both add variety and serve a narrative purpose as well, then caps it all off with an ominous ending that felt just right for a game in this particular genre. I personally found its PSX-style graphics charming, albeit I realize it may not be everyone’s cup of tea; that said, it stands testament to the quality of the game’s atmosphere and storytelling that its low-poly presentation didn’t particularly take much away from the impact of its narrative. Long story short, if you’re looking for a solid Lovecraftian adaptation and have an hour to kill, I say give The Nameless City a shot.

The Nameless City is available on Steam and Itch.io.