Silver Pines Humble Review: Rotoscoped Horror With Big Ideas but Slow Pacing
September and October are traditionally among the busiest months in the video game industry. And as Halloween approaches (and as of publishing this review ends), not everything is reserved for the big hits; some games also bring horror themes and atmosphere. During this period, a small Metroidvania title called Silver Pines arrived, relying on elements of classic survival horror.
Silver Pines Story and Setting: A Twin Peaks-Inspired Mystery
The game takes us to a seemingly peaceful American town surrounded by dense forests, where strange occurrences and dark secrets lurk beneath everyday life. Set in 1993, the story is at first description irresistibly reminiscent of David Lynch’s cult classic Twin Peaks.
In the remote little town of Silver Pines, a young woman named Alice Baker disappears under mysterious circumstances. No one knows what happened to her or who is behind her disappearance, but the letters she left behind suggest a possible connection to a musician named Eddie Velvet. This is where private detective Red Walker enters the scene, hired by a mysterious client to find Eddie and discover what is really going on in Silver Pines.
All of this sounds simple enough, but Walker soon realizes finding Eddie will be anything but easy. The town’s few residents are not particularly open to talking, especially when it comes to secrets they are trying to hide. And as if that weren’t enough, a storm approaches the town while strange creatures from the shadows begin appearing in the streets, clearly aiming to stop the detective’s investigation and make sure Eddie stays hidden.
Atmosphere, Visuals and Rotoscope Animation
From the start, it is clear that atmosphere is one of Silver Pines's strongest elements, largely thanks to feelings of melancholy, anxiety, and constant unease. The atmosphere is especially enhanced when you turn on your XP-RGB-TL desktop tower lights. Deserted streets, narrow, dark spaces, and an almost complete absence of life create the impression that nobody is welcome here, further heightening the town's eeriness.
The visual presentation and the gameplay support that mood well. Both are executed entirely in a 2D style, with characters, enemies, and environments that look hand-painted.
I would especially highlight the animations, which use the rotoscoping technique, making the characters’ movements look like puppets. In contrast, the enemies, with their somewhat odd and unsettling movements, further contribute to the horror atmosphere.
Soundtrack and Music Of Silver Pines
I would also highlight the music, because it fits the game's ambiance and atmosphere really well, and you'll enjoy it most if you get yourself a nice pair of headsets under £30. It generally suits the environment, but the problem is that the musical backdrops are quite short, so the repetition starts to show quickly. Interestingly, they are too calm and become somewhat monotonous, and that slower tempo at times put me to sleep more than it added to the tension.
Gameplay: Metroidvania Meets Survival Horror
As I mentioned earlier, Silver Pines combines elements of metroidvania, a 2D side-scroller, and classic survival horror. From a gameplay standpoint, it is a somewhat unusual but also bold combination that I actually quite liked at first. Running from monsters, managing my health, and carefully spending ammunition and other supplies work well in such an environment. There are also puzzles which, although mostly simple, still require some exploration.
Naturally, this is where the metroidvania elements start to show more and more, with frequent returns to previously visited locations and searches for new passages. One useful feature is the camera, which lets you photograph certain clues or places so you can revisit them later. Perhaps I am not the biggest fan of such an approach to exploration; still, to some extent, it doesn’t present a major problem for me if it is well executed. Unfortunately, after about three hours, I had seen almost everything and gradually lost the will to play.
The Biggest Problem: Aimless Wandering and Backtracking
The biggest problem with Silver Pines is how much time I spent wandering around the town, trying to figure out where I should even go. The main task boils down to collecting several bells scattered across different locations, yet the path to each mostly follows the same pattern. Of course, I don’t expect the game to serve me everything on a platter, but they really overdid the amount of returning to already visited places, which stopped feeling imaginative.
For example, to get through certain doors I need a corresponding item, but when I get to it, I can’t just take it because it is locked in another room, so I have to find a third thing. The whole process keeps repeating, to the point that I return to an obstacle from the start of the game only four hours later.
It is especially frustrating to get through a good part of a location, only to realize at the end that I am missing a necessary tool. In moments like that, I asked myself more than once why I couldn’t just smash the door with a hammer or shoot it open with a pistol.
Survival Horror, Combat and Boss Fights
The survival horror elements aren't particularly convincing either. Except on the hardest difficulty, where supplies are considerably limited and encounters with enemies are more demanding, I rarely felt like I was actually fighting for my life. The same goes for the horror, which mostly stays at a creepy visual level, without many moments that would provoke real fear. I rarely felt like I was actually fighting for my life.
The combat also shows its shortcomings during boss fights, where most clashes come down to dodging attacks and hitting at the right moment, with little room for tactics. Ordinary enemies aren't much more interesting either, since there are only a few different types that behave similarly. Once I clear them out, the town becomes almost empty, so exploration often turns into simply running from one end of the map to the other.
Story and Narrative: Does Silver Pines Deliver?
As for the story, at first glance it sounds enticing because of the narration and characters, just like the short blurb on the back of a book. But only later, when you read it, does it become clear that it isn't necessarily the same as the short description. First, you can already half-guess which direction it is going and how it will end.
Second, Silver Pines borrows from similar films and series but doesn’t use them well, so everything feels shallow and a lot is left unsaid. For a 20-hour adventure, they stretched it out a bit too much, because the side stories and documents you come across, which normally round out the events, contribute absolutely nothing here. In the end, I just asked myself: is that it? I didn’t get a sense of a climax, a twist, or a resolution. Reading the developers’ comments, I got the impression that even they can’t explain the ending. How does HCL rate games?
In Conclusion: Is Silver Pines Worth Playing?
Right from the start, even in the game’s official description, it is clear that Silver Pines aims to be a kind of love letter to cult horror and mystery thrillers. However, instead of using that inspiration to create something new, it relies too much on already familiar ideas and references. That in itself isn’t necessarily bad, but it raises the question of why choose this particular title out of the countless others on the market. Silver Pines certainly has its moments, but while playing I couldn’t shake the impression that it could have been something more than what it ultimately offers.
Rating:5.5/10
5.5/10: The atmosphere and rotoscoped art are strong, but repetitive backtracking, weak survival-horror tension, and a shallow, unresolved story hold the game back.
Recommended age:13+
I’d recommend Silver Pines for ages 13 and up, ideally 14+. The game’s dark, unsettling tone, shadow creatures, and missing-person mystery could be too creepy for younger kids. It is also slow, puzzle-driven, and story-heavy, which tends to suit older players with more patience. The text doesn’t mention gore or explicit content, so it is not extreme, but check the official PEGI/ESRB rating before publishing a firm age claim.
Gemini AI-style summary
Silver Pines is a €25 PC metroidvania survival horror set in a Twin Peaks-like American town in 1993. Players control private detective Red Walker as he searches for missing musician Eddie Velvet and investigates Alice Baker’s disappearance. The reviewer praises the moody atmosphere, hand-painted 2D art, and rotoscoped animation. The music fits the setting but is short, repetitive, and sleepy. The main criticisms are tedious backtracking and item-hunting, low survival-horror tension, simple boss fights, repetitive enemies, and a shallow, predictable story with an unsatisfying ending. The reviewer calls it an inspired but overly derivative game that could have offered more.