Chris InglisStill Wakes the Deep is a narrative horror game developed by The Chinese Room and published by Secret Mode and launched back in June 2024. Returning to their narrative horror roots, the studio behind Dear Esther and Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs crafts a claustrophobic journey that trades traditional combat for psychological dread. I reviewed this on PC and the game flexes modern capabilities to render an isolated, grease-slicked oil rig hellscape that feels real. The Scottish accents of the voice actors are really memorable. There is an emotional core to the story that is compelling.
Set in 1975, players step into the work boots of Cameron “Caz” McLeary, an electrician fleeing personal and legal troubles on the mainland by taking a job on the Beira D, an oil rig situated off the coast of Scotland. Life on the rig is harsh but routine turns to catastrophe when the drill hits something mysterious beneath the ocean floor. An organic entity begins to infect the structure, twisting metal and flesh alike. With communications severed and the rig slowly collapsing into the freezing North Sea, Caz must navigate the destroyed corridors to find his crewmates and somehow survive long enough to return to his family.
Gameplay follows a direct, linear path focused heavily on environmental traversal and stealth. Without weapons to defend yourself, survival hinges on running, ducking, crawling through vents, and solving light spatial puzzles while managing a severe sense of spatial panic. As the story unravels, the tension escalates masterfully. The rig degrades structurally alongside the crew’s sanity, forcing you to navigate flooded compartments, exposed exterior catwalks whipped by gale-force winds, and tight enclosures. The horror grows steadily creepier as the unknown entity assimilates the environment, turning familiar corridors into a horrific, pulsating mass of flesh and tendrils where former colleagues become terrifying, mutated stalkers.
What elevates Still Wakes the Deep amongst other horror genre games of recent times is its exceptional sound design and outstanding vocal performances. The authentic Scottish voice cast delivers emotionally charged performances that ground the surreal terror in raw reality. Backed by immaculate environmental effects where the groans of buckling steel, the relentless lash of the sea, and eerie, otherworldly creature calls echo around you. The game builds a gritty, tense atmosphere that keeps building throughout.
Overall, Still Wakes the Deep creates a real sense of dread and emotional weight with is atmospheric terror and narrative tension. While its gameplay mechanics remain straightforward and linear, horror enthusiasts seeking a short, highly cinematic, and deeply uncomfortable descent into industrial body horror makes this trip aboard the Beira D well worth taking.
This review utilised a Steam key provided by Secret Mode and Still Wakes the Deep is available on Steam, Epic Games Store, Xbox and PlayStation.
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