Whisper Mountain Outbreak Preview

As soon as Whisper Mountain Outbreak begins, you know that you are in for a creepy and blood-filled time when the game warns that this game has pixel art scenes of violence and gore. Developed and produced by Toge Productions, Whisper Mountain Outbreak takes us back in time to 1998, where a mining operation inadvertently unleashed an ancient curse when they disturbed a ruin that was buried deep in Mount Bisik. This has caused everyone there to be trapped on the mountain to face the evil anomalies that are on the hunt. 

Whisper Mountain Outbreak is an isometric survival horror game where you and up to four friends (or you alone) through online co-op work together to explore and find clues to figure out what you need to do to escape this cursed place, and possibly save the world. Right now, the game is in Early Access, so currently, everything isn’t available to check out, but this is what you find in this version. 

You first select the Scenario that you want to play: right now, The Outbreak is the only one available. Next, you select the difficulty between the easy mode called Hollow, or Normal. In the future, you will be able to select harder difficulties like Veteran and Nightmare if you really want to challenge yourself. An image pops up showing the controls, and we are tossed into the fray.

 

The game starts in the safe house of the Bureau of Research and Investigation of Metaphysics (B.R.I.M) Special Agent Atma, waking you up and asking for some information about you. Select the character type you will play as from three options: Sprinter, an athlete who is trained to win so they have faster movement, but not survive on the frontlines, especially when they have 10 less max health. Security Guard, they know how to punch, so they hit harder, but they are slower and have a harder time catching up to bad guys. Then the final option is Firefighter: they are trained to break through flames but not gunfights. They begin with an axe and can craft early, but lose the axe when they die. Also suck at using firearms as their aim is poor.

This is a difficult choice, everyone is kind of crappy in their own way…

We learn that the bureau has quarantined Daha City, though the situation is getting worse, and it won't hold for long; the agents need to stop the anomaly before it can spread even further. There are two artefacts that you will need to find to contain the threat: the Captain's team had gathered intel on their location, but weren't able to recover the objects themselves. There are two Classified Containers and you need to find them before the entire world is destroyed. Atma proclaims that you are humanity's last hope. So with all that pressure on you, we jump into action.

Before heading out, you can customise your character by visiting the closet. There are five different heads to select from, three bodies which is essentially their outfit, and colour options for your agent jacket. Beside this, you also find a workbench where you can craft items like a Life Stimulant, Energy Stimulant, or a Hip Pouch. You can also learn new skills by reading things like the Martial Arts Guide or the Fitness and Health magazine, but to do this, you will need to earn skill points from playing. 

 

We head to the map that is on the table in the base; here you select the location that you want to visit. For the first mission, the only spot you can select on the board has you going to the Residential Area. In this area you will find the crash site of the helicopter where you have to search for that classified container and get it to the transporter. Whatever took down the helicopter might still be there, so proceed with caution.

You are shown a Map of the Residential Area and where you need to travel to get to the helicopter crash site. It also shows the Threat Level rank denoted by the number of skulls. In theory, this first mission should be easy since it has a one skull rating, but I had a feeling it might be more challenging than that until you get more familiar with how the game works.

Once the van gets you to the location, you begin the mission. Your agent is carrying a weapon, the type is based on your type of character, and a flashlight to illuminate the way. The ground and walls are covered with blood, with music that is incredibly tense, and it feels like a creature can jump out towards you at any minute, so listen for the groans and growls to get an idea of when a monster is near. You find items on the ground that you can pick up like scraps, guns, and ammunition. Your agent can only carry six items besides your two weapons, so it won’t take long to run out of space. Though you can combine items together like herbs to make them more potent and clear a bit more space if you need. 

The creatures that you encounter are heavily armed; they run in wielding axes, blades, and scythes and can easily hurt you if you aren’t careful. Especially since you have a limited amount of stamina, so if you go in using melee attacks you will get tired and will pause to take a breather, leaving you open to getting hit. When you get hurt, the corners of the screen turn red, and your character starts to move slower and breathes heavier. This happens a lot when you face off against an enemy horde, there are so many monsters slashing at you at the same time!

When you die, you see a Mission Failed screen showing total mission time, how many kills you had, and any skill points you had earned. You will start back at the home base, which will give you a chance to use the upgrade bench and redeem any skill points you had earned before you jump back into the mission. The nice thing is, the layout of everything is exactly the same as the first time you had explored, so you have an idea of where some of the enemies are and where the items are located, so this should make it easier to get further each time you try it. Though, I will warn you that some supplies, like the radios, are limited and you will drop them when you die and they don’t come back. 

If you pause the game it doesn't stop the action; you are always in danger. I got caught with this, at first I figured pausing would freeze what was going on… nope! I got attacked by a horde and died. After I learned this, I was just hoping I wouldn't get interrupted during a run, as otherwise I'd be doomed. This also happens when you are trying to solve a puzzle to open a door, so listen for the monsters coming for you!

This game doesn't need to be realistic looking to be incredibly creepy, the tense atmospheric music does a great job with that, combined with the groans of the monsters advancing towards you. Seeing the floors and walls covered in blood is instantly disturbing, especially when combined with visuals that show doors nailed shut with boards and shaking because the creatures keep ramming into them, trying to get through.  

I am having a great time playing Whisper Mountain Outbreak; it’s so creepy, suspenseful, and has great pixelated graphics. I can’t wait to try playing this online with my friends and see how we do together instead of me trying to fight off the hordes on my own. I’m excited to see what the game is like once it fully releases, especially since it is already fun to play in Early Access. This is a title that fans of horror survival games should check out, especially if you are a fan of pixel graphics.