Review: In Sound Mind

Developer – We Create Stuff Publisher – Modus Games Platforms – Xbox Series X/S, Playstation 5, Switch, PC (Reviewed) Every so often a game will come around that I don’t want to stop playing until the end. Typically, I have no problem switching between a couple games every few hours or days as I get my fill of it and need to play something else. In Sound Mind is one of those games that got me invested right from the start and I couldn’t put it down until I figured out what was happening in the small town of Milton Haven. You are Desmond Wales, a therapist whose patients are having mental crises and in some cases dying. You start the game by waking up in a dark basement floor of an apartment building that seems to be a manifestation of your mind. In this building, a few of the doors in the apartment building are actually gateways to the homes of your patients like Virginia, Allen, Max, and Lucas. As you enter their homes you are able to find a tape of their therapy sessions with you. When you bring these tapes back to your office, you can turn back time and experience their breaking points. These tapes become levels in which you try to figure out what has happened to your patients. As you progress, you end up discovering that your patients actually are linked in a way that you never imagined. Each area, including the apartment building, have secret areas and have interesting puzzles that must be solved in order to fully explore and understand each character’s motivations and emotions. There is a nice variety of puzzles that involve using several tools that you unlock through the playthrough. As you unlock these tools more of the apartment building opens and you can reach new locations. A few examples of these tools are a shard of a mirror, which you can use to see hidden notes and objects, and a flare gun that allows you to pass thick shadows. Once you reach the end of these areas, there are boss fights which involve using the items you have unlocked to solve these battles which are mostly puzzle based fights. While there are weapons such as pistols and shotguns, they are mostly used to destroy lesser enemies. These enemies have weak points, such as shooting the glowing light on their head for a quick kill. The boss fights are usually fast paced and there is plenty of action to balance out the searching and navigation portions of the adventure. The puzzles remind me of Resident Evil, such as collecting medallions to put into a lock, or twisting valves so fluid will come out the other side of a pipe. Most are simple but some can provide a decent challenge. There are plenty of notes to provide lore and items scattered around the levels such as healing items, ammunition, and pills. These pills are used to permanently increase certain passive stats like how stealthy you are and your max health. I found it fun to search high and low for all the pills in each level and quite a few of them are well hidden and require the use of your tools to find them. The game’s environments are really well done. You will investigate different locales such as a lighthouse, a quarry, and a factory to name a few. These levels take about 2-3 hours to fully search and unlock all the secrets. The best way I could describe the story without spoiling anything is to say it’s as if David Lynch filmed an episode of X-Files. Plenty of conspiracy and paranormal events fill the 10-13 hour playthrough. There are also a lot of dark ideas that are explored in “In Sound Mind” such as suicide, PTSD, and domestic violence. I didn’t feel as if they were portrayed in a joking way and that these elements were treated with respect and not taken lightly. One of my favorite aspects of the game was that after each level, you can go back to the room of the patient and try to find their secret vinyl album. If you find the album, you can take it back to your office and listen to it on your record player. Each song is sung by the patient and gives a retelling of their story. Each of the songs were really well done and it added an element of sadness on top of their already sad story. All together, the music fit the game perfectly as well, not just with these musical selections. There is a lot to like about In Sound Mind! When thinking back on my experience with the game I would say that the downsides are relatively few. Some of the levels felt like they dragged on and sometimes secrets would be obvious but getting access to them took measures that felt unnecessary. For instance, I could have sworn I knew the way to unlock a secret and it made logical sense but executing it wouldn’t work. Also there were some elements of platforming which people may have an issue with since the game is in first person. Overall, In Sound Mind is a gem. If you are looking for a psychological horror game with creepy Twin Peaks and X-Files vibes then I would definitely consider giving In Sound Mind a chance! You can even download the demo to get a feel for the game as well which is great if you are on the fence. You won’t be disappointed!
Resident Evil 4 VR Launches Next Month For Oculus Quest 2

Earlier this year, you can easily remember that Capcom went on to celebrate the 25th anniversary for Resident Evil for more than two decades of revolutionizing the video game industry. At the time, it was shared a handful of new projects and other initiatives are on the way. This included the upcoming crossover with Dead by Daylight at the time. It was later revealed that the project welcomed Nemesis to the Behaviour Interactive game. Additionally, Capcom also intrigued its fans with a new look at the forthcoming Netflix release ‘Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness’ then as well. More interesting happened to be its partnership with Oculus. In that, the firm unveiled to be working on a Oculus Quest 2 version of Resident Evil 4 and told for a fall 2021 release for the project. In a new announcement from IGN, Resident Evil 4’s release for Oculus Quest 2 is just less than a month away slated for mid October. You can watch the preview from the outlet in the video below: Most noted from what IGN indulged itself with for Resident Evil 4 on Oculus Quest 2, users have the ability to play in either full motion or teleportation for those inclined to being prone to motion sickness. The ability to physically draw weapons, reload, and organize your inventory is also a niché for the game. Saving also takes more energy when entering in your save into a typewriter as well! While Resident Evil 4 is set for Oculus Quest 2 next month, reports from previously also explained a return of the game for 2022. In that, Video Game Chronicles said that the next remake is to be for the 2005 game which is being handled by M-TWO former PlatinumGames Tetsuya Minami is overlooking. You can read the full report by heading here. Do you plan to revisit Resident Evil 4 in virtual reality? Resident Evil 4 arrives to Oculus Quest 2 on October 21, 2021. Source: IGN
Latest Sony Patent Nods To PlayStation Now Support For PlayStation 5 Titles

For those over on PlayStation Now, the monthly subscription service continues to improve as Sony Interactive Entertainment rolls out new features for the service. Most recently, the PlayStation company welcomed a 1080p option for the program to stream titles at a higher resolution via PlayStation Now. And of course, the game continues to roll out. This month, it was announced that a new initiative with Square Enix is to deliver a new Final Fantasy game to the service each month from September until January. With a total of five titles, the service and what it offers continues to grow. And that is not including the monthly addition of games which includes Killing Floor 2, Tekken 7, and Moonlighter. From a new discovery over on PatentScope, Sony Interactive Entertainment filed a new patent which appears to be in efforts to work in support for PlayStation Now to offer PlayStation 5 games. This is determined by the mentions for the feature to access NVME and SSD drives to perform the feature. Non-volatile memory over fabric (NVMe-oF) is used to stream video, computer games, and the like to client devices from network storage embodied by solid state storage devices (SSDs). To provide for redundancy, multiple copies of a single piece of content, e.g., a computer game or video file, are stored on multiple SSDs. To provide information to address the block-level storage based on a client demand for the content, a data structure correlates each content with the SSDs and related block numbers at which the content is stored. Sourcing of the content as it is being streamed may be dynamically switched between SSDs to provide for load balancing or loss of a SSD. Although Xbox Game Pass already offers the feature for next-generation titles, Sony Interactive Entertainment evidently did not provide the mechanic for its service since launch. However, it is suggested that the firm is looking to offer the feature previously. In a prior financial report, corporate Sony told that it is search for ways to incorporate both Horizon Forbidden West & Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales to PlayStation Now. While game streaming is out on PlayStation, the feature has not been effectively established on Xbox just yet. But, Microsoft plans to deliver xCloud support for Xbox One & Xbox Series models later this fall. The tool will go on to enable the support for Xbox Series X|S exclusives on older hardware, Microsoft notes. You can read the full report by heading here. Are you interested in playing PlayStation 5 titles through PlayStation Now? Source: PlayStation Universe
Dolby Vision Support Officially Arrives For Xbox Series X|S

Given the understanding precedent for what makes the next-generation truly revolutionary is the new capabilities that come with the respected hardware. When you think about either system, games are the biggest mention as you might expect. However, to fuel said projects’ anticipation is alongside features unique to the system that make titles feel a need to own. While entertainment (TV/Movies) indulged in Dolby Vision for the past few years now, the mechanic is now making its way to video games – at least that is for Xbox right now. Through small increments via Alpha Ring for Xbox Insiders, users can witness the feature starting to revolutionize how we view games if you have the right display. Later on the greater Xbox Insider program witnessed an update open up for Dolby Vision. In a new announcement on Tuesday this week, Microsoft announces that Dolby Vision is now out for everyone owning an Xbox Series X|S system. You can watch the comparison footage of The Coalitions’ Gears’ 5 in the video below: “Gamers with compatible Dolby Vision-enabled TVs will be able to enjoy full-spectrum visuals with the rollout of Dolby Vision gaming on Xbox Series X|S. With Dolby Vision, epic worlds – such as lush rainforests or neon futuristic cities – are brought to life in more vivid color. Dolby Vision deepens your immersion into the experience by enabling you to see an enemy hiding in the shadows or spot hidden clues through expanded contrast and better clarity in both bright and dark scenes.” Microsoft also notes it is working with Dolby to enable the feature for games that support 120 refresh rate currently. However, this announcement does not cement a marketing deal or exclusive agreement with Xbox. Previously, Microsoft commented that claims of any under table partnerships is completely fabricated. Additionally, users that already play on Xbox Series systems can also indulge themselves in another Dolby initiative – Dolby Atmos. Back in November with the launch of the system and countdown for the arrival of Dolby Vision, the firm’s in-house audio suite launched then for the systems. You can read the full report by heading here. Are you able to use Dolby Vision on your TV? Source: Xbox Wire