So right off the bat, let me just say that this game does a piss poor job of explaining to the player what it is they're supposed to do. The objective is actually very simple - go to each checkmark that's on the map, make sure the coordinates you input are the same as what's listed and take a picture using the machine at the back of the sub. Oh, and do your best not to bang into any walls along the way or it's game over; the radar will alert you if you are close to any. And that's it. But does the game establish this to the player in any clear terms? No, of course not. It has to be bloody obtuse as hell about it. I spent a good maybe 30 minutes just trying to figure out what the hell it was I was supposed to be doing. This is all exacerbated by the fact that the checkmarks on the map are really hard to see. I didn't even know they were there until I accidentally stumbled upon one with my cursor. Was this a problem for anyone else or is my eyesight failing me?
Once I got past that whole stumbling block, what I discovered was a very fleeting but dread-filled exercise in busywork and mundanity. Iron Lung is not a 'fun' game. Survival horror rarely ever is intended to be fun. But Iron Lung literally demands the player perform a job, a joyless job under very unusual circumstances. By rights, it should be boring as hell, and it kinda is, but where Iron Lung succeeds is by ratcheting up the tension as you progress. Without going too much into detail, the situation starts to deteriorate as time passes. The game manages to find new ways of making you paranoid and anxious. The audio design can be quite potent, with one particular checkmark leading to the discovery of some thing that gives off a truly unholy sound. Despite the minimalist approach, Iron Lung does a lot with so little, and manages to create a nerve-wracking experience as a whole. You know that something bad is approaching, you know there's going to be some kind of morbid punchline to your playthrough, but the suspense of what it is and when it'll happen is what fuels this dark descent. You'll want to see what it is, regardless of how unpleasant it might be.
Once I got past that whole stumbling block, what I discovered was a very fleeting but dread-filled exercise in busywork and mundanity. Iron Lung is not a 'fun' game. Survival horror rarely ever is intended to be fun. But Iron Lung literally demands the player perform a job, a joyless job under very unusual circumstances. By rights, it should be boring as hell, and it kinda is, but where Iron Lung succeeds is by ratcheting up the tension as you progress. Without going too much into detail, the situation starts to deteriorate as time passes. The game manages to find new ways of making you paranoid and anxious. The audio design can be quite potent, with one particular checkmark leading to the discovery of some thing that gives off a truly unholy sound. Despite the minimalist approach, Iron Lung does a lot with so little, and manages to create a nerve-wracking experience as a whole. You know that something bad is approaching, you know there's going to be some kind of morbid punchline to your playthrough, but the suspense of what it is and when it'll happen is what fuels this dark descent. You'll want to see what it is, regardless of how unpleasant it might be.
Reviewed on May 30, 2023