[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

Just brilliant. All the praise this game received is well deserved. There's nothing this game does wrong. Yet it went against the trends, it was its own unique thing. It managed to reach these heights against all odds, while not trying to perfect formulas, but rather invent them. It was fresh and new and stood the test of time. Even today, it shines bright and few games manages to challenge it. 10/10 because every aspect, every feature of this game fits well together. It hosts the deepest story I've ever seen in a video game. It's detailed it's polished, yet avoids being explicit, just the opposite, it's very subtle and leaves room for imagination. No wonder there's a lot of speculation going on long after the game was released. It managed to create its own universe, an aura that others tried to copy ever since, yet hardly managed. The characters are all unique with their own background and motives. It's touching, it's emotional without ever being spelled out. In fact, the information is dropped in morsels, the dosage is slightly below the satisfying level, so that one can't help but strive for more. It's a masterclass in storytelling. The story is equally depressing and eye-opener. The themes are so deep and dark that it might seem as an economic suicide attempt at some point, yet they dared to say, you know what, let's do it. And it was a blast. Against all odds. And taught us what we really appreciate in this relatively new kind of media. But this game doesn't get satisfied with that, it's equally enjoyable to play. It's exciting, it's challenging, it's puzzling, it stimulates all the right senses in the correct ratio. It delivers everything we can experience via a video game. From game play to music, everything acts in symbiosis with the other, so that the result is more than the sum of its parts. A genuine masterpiece. The PlayStation original from technological perspective is slightly outdated today, and the PC port is hardly available, but if yes, then there's an excellent fan project that can update its visuals up to modern standards. The Enhanced Edition gives justice to the title decades after its release, which is the recommended way to play it these days in my opinion. One can play it this way without compromises, and it's worth playing even after the release of the remake, because its the gold standard for all the games that were released in the franchise and even beyond. The expansion "Born from a Wish" is a nice little reprise after playing through the game, and adds a new perspective. It's the last drop we can afford, because this game stands in relative solitude ever since. So don't hesitate, experience it, because no sane list of must-play games can ignore this title, which will be likely mentioned among the bests ever after. This game wrote history, and it's mandatory for whoever is interested about what can be achieved with games, and how a game can approach the highest heights in story telling of all kinds.

Прошел спустя десять лет. Чисто психологический хоррор, пацаны. Не так сыкотно, как в первой части, но тут фишка в другом. Рекомендую любителям подумать и пощекотать себе очко. Посмотрим что там пшеки, из блубера выдадут в ремейке этой части.