![Detention](images/detention.jpg)
I’ve been curious about this game for a while now:
- It’s made in Taiwan ❤
- It’s set during the martial law period in Taiwan; Having read Formosa Betrayed (George H. Kerr) recently, I wanted to gain more knowledge on this topic
- This was the first game made by Red Candle Games, who would later develop Devotion, which was subsequently removed from Steam shortly after release; As of February 2021, we still cannot purchase this game (thanks CCP 💩)
Detention might be the first true horror game that I’ve played. Most of the scares were contained in the first half of the game, while the second half was more focused on revealing mysteries. There were still some tripped out parts though:
![Detention screenshot](images/detention-1.jpg)
Since the game is usually very dark (both literally and figuratively), the above sequence really stood out due to its vibrant colours, which made it quite unsettling.
Detention does an amazing job with the atmosphere. The school backdrop changes throughout the game, with each chapter having a very distinct look and feel. The items you pick up are appropriately creepy looking. The small amount of ghosts in this game provide most of the horror elements.
The sound design is also very well done, often times making the atmosphere even more disturbing. The track Haunted by the Past that plays when something notices your presence definitely got my heart rate up:
The puzzles aren’t very difficult but occasionally does require a bit of thinking. It takes about four hours to beat, and there are two endings. I somehow got the best ending the first time, which you obtain by answering a bunch of multiple choice questions correctly.
The story is quite tragic, as those were some dark days in Taiwan. Say no to censorship please.