Hauntii review – monochrome property

Hauntii screenshot — Hauntii – It Definitely Looks Different (Firestoke)

From the moment you see its monochrome visuals, Hauntii leaves you in no doubt that it belongs to a tradition of contemplative artsy indie games, including games like Limbo, tripAnd Little nightmares. The hand-drawn art style – sometimes sparingly using colors instead of white to drive home certain gameplay-related points – is wonderfully atmospheric, and the gameplay is just as unique and interesting.

Hauntii favors minimalism and so does the storyline which, in that great tradition of indie games, has to be pieced together in your imagination from a cryptic series of clues. You play a nameless ghost who navigates Eternity, an underworld that is surprisingly rich and bizarre and even contains a rollercoaster-filled amusement park called Wickland.

In the beginning you meet a character called an Eternian by the locals; she disappears, but an early puzzle involves summoning her back with a giant magic bell. From then on, it's nice to have a companion on your quest to rise from eternity – except that the locals constantly remind you of their distrust of Eternians, which turns out to be not entirely without reason.

Hauntii has two main gameplay elements: shooting with two sticks (your ammo consists of blue energy blobs that essence) and the ability to possess all kinds of objects, from animals that shoot more powerful projectiles or have devastating stomps, to hills, trees, street lamps and marquees. Once you have them in your possession, what you can do with them depends entirely on the form they take, with part of the fun of the game being discovering what you can do with possessed objects.

The first thing you learn is to stay in the light areas: if you move to a black part of the environment, the music – which is beautiful and also adds to Hauntii's chilled yet mystical atmosphere – will become endearingly wobbly, and small purple eyes will mean the presence of predators; stay in the black and you will lose a heart from your life meter.

That might indicate that Hauntii is a single path game, but it isn't. For example, possessing and shaking trees can illuminate spots in dark areas, and moving from tree to tree can open hidden paths. Collecting things is a big part of Hauntii's gameplay: there are crystals, the main currency (which can really only be used to buy hats for your character), purple souls and, most importantly, stars.

Collecting stars quickly becomes the focus of your gameplay efforts: each area of the map has an altar where you can redeem them to fill in the constellations in the local night sky. Each zodiac sign you fill in brings with it a minimal, impressionistic memory of the life you lived before you died and were consigned to eternity.

By completing certain constellations you can gain access to new areas, and if you sketch a whole collection of constellations in each area you will be rewarded with a key crystal. Additionally, each constellation you complete allows you to upgrade certain aspects of your character, such as overall health and the ability to perform two dashes instead of one before a cooldown begins.

Each area of Hauntii contains a certain number of stars, so you'll find yourself going back – and developing an intimate relationship with the map – in your quest to collect enough to get those key crystals. That's probably a good thing, since Hauntii isn't the longest game, with only a maximum of 10 hours of gameplay.

As you progress you'll find some more challenging sequences, often involving some pretty manic twin-stick shooting or possessing creatures that have the right firepower to take out specific enemies. You can also own static poles that allow you to shoot in any direction, which is useful during boss fights.

Hauntii has one glaring problem: the fixed camera can sometimes work against you, especially when you have to do twin-stick shooting or solve platform-style puzzles that require you to pass through gates with a high degree of precision. But the game is generally forgiving when it comes to danger: if you run out of health, you merely respawn at the nearest save point after docking a small amount of crystals.

Overall, Hauntii feels pleasantly original: it looks fantastic, contains some puzzles that will exercise your gray matter, and generates an atmosphere that's quirky, contemplative and, despite the occasional hint of creepiness, always inviting. Like the best indie games, which try to make a virtue of minimalism, it does a great job of stimulating your imagination. If you're a fan of games that aim to be thought-provoking and atmospheric, there's no chance you won't like Hauntii.

Hauntii review summary

In brief: A highly original indie action puzzle game, with some wonderfully minimal visuals and a uniquely seductive atmosphere.

Pros: Great art style and music help to create a pleasantly unusual atmosphere. Exploration and experimentation are always rewarded and shooting with the twin-stick is fun.

Cons: Fixed camera sometimes works against you. Not very long and sometimes a bit too cryptic.

Score: 7/10

Formats: Nintendo Switch (reviewed), Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC
Price: £16.99
Publisher: Firestoke
Developer: Moonloop Games
Release date: May 23, 2024
Age rating: 3