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What are the best psychedelic games on PS4?

5

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Considered

15

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Recs.

Mar 12, 2023

Last
Updated

5 Games Considered

Best psychedelic games on PS4	Price	Steam Rating	Genre
-- What Remains Of Edith Finch	$19.99	Overwhelmingly Positive	Narrative, Adventure
-- Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number	$14.99	-	-
-- Observer	$29.99	Very Positive	Cyberpunk Psychological Horror
-- Layers of Fear	$7.99	Very Positive	-
-- Thumper	$19.99	Very Positive	Action, Rhythm

What Remains Of Edith Finch

Top Pro

Instills a sense of wonder

From the opening scene to its final moments, What Remains of Edith Finch, seeks to instill a sense of wonder through it's detailed game world. The house itself is a mix of various unconventional architectural styles and flavors. From it's towering bedroom spires to it's dark, claustrophobic basement, each area of the house is different and varied with different decor and textures. Moving from room to room is sometimes done with interesting travel mechanics such as secret passages that act as a seamless transistion between two vastly different rooms. This makes each area feel fresh, new, and exciting. The player is never quite certain what they're going find beyond the next door, which instills a deep sense of wonder of what other secrets the house holds. See More

Top Con

No interactive puzzles

There are no puzzles to solve in this game, which can be a dull experience for some. The narrative is told as the player goes room by room without any puzzles or roadblocks for the player to overcome. See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Overwhelmingly Positive

Genre:Narrative, Adventure

Top Pro

Mysterious story

This award-winning story takes us step-by-step through the tragic and mysterious history of the Finch family. We learn of all the family members, the stories of their lives, and how they met an unfortunate and untimely end. By it's thrilling conclusion, the player has been led on a strange journey filled with all sorts of reveals, surprises, and plot twists. At the end, the game closes by answering the titular question: What exactly does remain of Edith Finch? At the beginning of the game, the player is informed that teenager Edith is the last living member of her family. She speculates and half-jokes that her family suffers from some kind of curse. Throughout the family's history, all of the members have met unfortunate and bizarre deaths. The origins and nuances of the alleged curse are a mystery to Edith and the player alike. The overarching storyline for the game expands deeply on this mystery and features two major themes as it progresses. The first theme is Edith's journey through the sprawling house as she tells of her childhood growing up there. Through Edith, we get to hear family stories and learn of the struggles the family has endured over generations. She comments about the family members as she goes from room to room telling us pieces and parts of her past. As the game progresses, much is revealed about Edith and her family through her tales and observations. The second theme revolves around the various family members and how they met their untimely demises. During the course of the game, the player relives memories of the various family members. These memories are always tragic events that result in an untimely or strange death for those involved. By seeing the story not just through Edith's eyes, but the eyes of the deceased as well, we get a complete, deeper and more intimate look into the lives of the family. See More

Top Con

Short playtime

The game doesn't take very long to complete and can be comfortably completed within a few hours. This may be a turn off for some players who are hoping for a longer experience. See More

Top Pro

Every story features a new gameplay mechanic

As Edith travels throughout the house and surrounding areas, she will encounter objects that tell the history of the various family members and how they met their demise. Upon inspecting the objects, an interactive story will be triggered and the player will take on the role of the family member portrayed in the story. Each one of these stories has its own gameplay mechanic, making for a new gaming experience each time a piece of the family history is discovered. For example, when exploring the room of a young, imaginative child named Molly, the player will come across a handwritten story hastily scribbled in crayon. By examing this note, the player assumes control of Molly for the duration of the tale. This particular story involves taking on the form of different animals and hunting various prey. By the time the story ends, the player not only learns about Molly and her imagination, but they also learn of how Molly met her end. Throughout the game, you will experience the memories and last moments of each family member in unique and interactive ways. See More

Top Pro

Expert pacing

The game sets an excellent pace by never giving players a chance to become bored. While detailed and varied, each room only has a handful of objects that can be interacted with. This limited interaction ensures the player will never linger in a single room too long and acts as a gentle nudge to keep moving onward. This encourages a comfortable pacing that allows the player to explore at their own pace, yet doesn't allow for much downtime between important story elements. See More

Top Pro

Amazing attention to detail

Every room in the Finch house is unique in decor and style, and plays its part in telling the story. No two rooms in the game are alike and each is filled with it's own charm and personality. While exploring the hallways and rooms of the sprawling home, the player will find various notes, photos, trinkets, and old momentos. While not all can be interacted with by Edith, the player is still free to zoom the camera in for a deeper look. Old photos and post-it notes often contain untold stories for the player to ponder. When Edith is narrating, the words she is speaking appear within the gameworld and then dissappear with a variety of different effects. They melt, burst, and fade away depending on her emotions. When Edith mentions a specific object, the words will take shape around that object. This is much more involved than the simple subtitles that most games opt to do. See More

Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number

Top Con

Confusing story

The story takes place before and after Hotline Miami 1, so it's never really clear when or why anything is happening. This is made worse by the fact that there are 12 protagonists, causing you to switch viewpoints a lot. If you ever feel like you're not keeping up with the story, don't bother with it, just enjoy the senseless slaughter. See More

Top Pro

Exciting fast-paced action

Hotline Miami 2 is about brutally murdering mobsters in their safe-houses. You can plan out your path before entering a safe-house but once the action starts, it never slows down. You'll run down hallways and through rooms, killing mobsters with any weapon within reach, including baseball bats, knives, katanas, shotguns, rifles, and many more. Before you know it, there will only be a sea of corpses left to keep you company. See More

Top Con

Can be really frustrating

When you die in Hotline Miami 2, you have to restart the level/section. Because most enemies can take you out in one hit, a momentary lapse in attention can be fatal. This can be especially frustrating in long levels since dying near the end means you'll lose about 30 minutes of progress. See More

Top Pro

Great art style for added immersion

Hotline Miami 2 has a very simple, colorful, and pixelated art style, which it uses to great effect for immersion. The bare minimum pixels were used to create the colorful environments, characters, and animations, so you never can make out the details. These pile up in your head, constantly using your subjective imagination to fill in the blanks. This creates a more disturbing and surreal experience, depending on how imaginative you are or how you feel about senseless slaughter. See More

Top Pro

Excellent soundtrack

The soundtrack perfectly fits the grimy and psychedelic atmosphere of Hotline Miami 2. Most of the songs fall within the electronic, synthwave, and outrun genres. Sometimes there are high-tempo songs matching the on-screen action, other times there are eerie songs in a really bizarre story scene. Whichever it may be, it's always exhilarating to listen to. See More

Observer

Top Pro

Terrifying, mind-bending story presentation

Observer's detective story sounds simple, with you tracking down protagonist Daniel Lazarski's missing son, but the way the game presents this narrative is what counts. As you follow leads on his son's whereabouts, you'll analyze crime scenes mostly by searching through horrifying, psychedelic memories from the neural implants of dying or dead victims. These are unstable displays of augmented reality, with broken visuals filled with psychedelic colors, eerie hallucinations, and rattling jump scares. They manage to distort your own consciousness in the game, making you question the reality around you. Through these terrifying experiences, the game poses philosophical questions on the true nature of reality, such as what point technology can take over and shape what we believe is real. See More

Top Con

Gameplay is limited to mostly walking around

As a "walking simulator," Observer is appealing to players who enjoy taking their time to explore and take in the environment, but it may not have enough gameplay for those looking for a more involved experience. Hacking into minds, analyzing crime scenes and moving from place to place makes up the bulk of the game. See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Very Positive

Genre:Cyberpunk Psychological Horror

Top Pro

Intriguing cyberpunk world

The deserted, rain-slicked streets of the gritty city at night, filled with unsettling displays of government advertisements fits right in with the themes and media that inspired Observer's cyberpunk world. A dystopian future where augmented humans were killed off by a mysterious disease is a fascinating, if familiar concept for cyberpunk enthusiasts. It's interesting to explore this technologically-advanced world where the government has collapsed and a mega-corporation has taken over, making you wonder how you might survive in this type of setting. See More

Top Con

Some frustrating, out-of-place chase sequences

Some segments of Observer force you to stealthily avoid a menacing enemy lumbering through a dark workspace or a dilapidated set of hallways, but they don't quite fit with the game's overall freedom of discovery and exploration. If you're discovered, it's game over. These parts ruin the pace and flow that you're used to from the gameplay. See More

Top Pro

In-depth environmental storytelling

As you search around apartment buildings and office spaces with augmented vision, you'll come across emails, video sequences, and notes that flesh out the story. You can take your time to find out about now-extinct religions from the past, learn about the lives of the many people who died from the digital plague, and interact with each piece of evidence lying around at crime scenes. Scanning items, computers and blood stains to solve these crimes can lead you down a rabbit hole of discovering more about the world through environmental storytelling. See More

Top Pro

Hacking into peoples' memories is an engaging way to investigate crimes

While solving cases, you can hack into a subject's memories through their augmentations, creating a new reality as you physically explore their thoughts. You'll then proceed through the scenes of their memories, listening to conversations that reveal more about the story and the world. The psychedelic visuals as you progress through these memories are unique and mind-bending, making these sequences even more exciting. These sections of Observer go above and beyond the other, more standard investigation mechanics in the game, making each crime mystery unique and exciting. See More

Layers of Fear

Top Pro

The horror of mental illness & alcoholism

Perception is everything, and the insane artist in Layers Of Fear sees the world as a nightmarish canvas. Smeared with huge daubs of color instead of gore, this game has unique and mind bending scenarios, teeming with impossible spaces. See More

Top Con

Limited exploration

As you move from room to room, the one you exited from will close off and lock, preventing you permanently from going back to see if there's any notes you missed. See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Very Positive

Top Pro

Multiple paths for replaybility

As you explore the surreal house, sometimes you will be presented with multiple doorways or paths. Since a majority of the doors close and lock behind you as move through the house, your choice is permanent and will influence the ending and certain story elements. This gives the game a bit of replayability as you will have to play more than once to see everything the game has to offer. See More

Top Con

Somewhat nonsensical story

The game attempts to be "too artistic" at times, opting for a surreal horror experience akin to an art movie instead of a truly coherent story with ordered plot elements. While this creates a good enough gaming experience, those looking for a solid story may be disappointed. Even though there are multiple endings, most are open ended and painfully inconclusive. See More

Top Pro

Lots of little secrets for those those who explore deeper

Throughout the game, the player can discover notes and journal entries that are small pieces of the bigger story. These are stashed in all kinds of different hiding spots such as dresser drawers. Those who poke into every nook and cranny will uncover more plot elements than players who opt not to do much searching. Additionally, there are some mysterious items scattered throughout the house such as a hand crank and an Oujia board. No direction is given on how to use these items, and it's completely up to the player to figure it out. It's still possible to complete the game without discovering everything, but extra secrets, multiple endings, and additional story elements await for those who dig a little deeper. See More

Top Pro

Focused on horror immersion without puzzles as roadblocks

Layers of Fear is almost entirely immersion based, meaning a majority of the experience consists of going from room to room and soaking in the truly horrific atmosphere. Rather than scratching your head over tricky puzzles, you can instead simply enjoy watching strange events unfold right before your eyes as you fall deeper into madness. There are a few puzzles and riddles to overcome, although they fit into the game well. Keeping an uninterrupted flow is a vital part in keeping the horror in the forefront and the immersion strong. See More

Top Pro

Uses the environment itself as a way to portray horror

There's an ever-present sense of psychological dread by feeling constantly lost and trapped. By using clever visual tricks such as doors disappearing when you turn around and hallways that never seem to end, the impossible architecture of the house itself is used as a horror element. Most of the changes are so subtle, you won't even notice them as they're happening. You may be watching that strange painting morphing on the wall, only to turn around and see the entire room around you has changed. See More

Top Pro

Strong emphasis on tension and fear over jump scares

Layers of Fear truly focuses on the fear aspect via tension rather than cheap jump scares. Whether it's that darkened hallway where you can't see the other side, cheery paintings that melt away to reveal horrific imagery, or the shadowy shapes that disappear when you turn to face them, the game does all in it's power to keep the player guessing while feeling frightened and ill at ease. Rooms are dark and ominous, hallways stretch into blackness, a baby's cry can softly be heard coming through walls, and the player never knows what they're going to find in the next room. The architecture of the house shifts and bends, in impossible ways, to create rooms and spaces that simply should not exist. Since everything is changing all the time, there is no way to know or predict what horror lurks beyond the next door. See More

Thumper

Top Pro

Unique blend of rhythm gameplay and racing-like speed

Thumper is a rhythm game mixed with fast-paced action, setting itself apart from other titles in the genre. Your "character" is a vehicle that runs on rails in a track, with certain speedbump-like indicators on the road that show up in sequence. You have to press the button prompts in time with your vehicle driving over the indicators, ideally to the correct rhythm to the beat to rack up points. It can be tough going at full speed and catching all of the button prompts while staying in-sync with the song, but the payoff is incredibly satisfying. See More

Top Con

Short playtime

A single playthrough will only take you about seven hours. However, if you go for a completionist playthrough to chase after high scores, then you'll get an extra dozen or so hours out of the game. See More

Specs

Steam Rating:Very Positive

Genre:Action, Rhythm

Top Pro

Intense controls and responsive feedback

Other than visual cues, the visceral feedback you get from timing your button presses just right helps keep you on-beat. Getting that timing down rewards you with an addicting rumble, helping you feel the rhythm in your hands. With your vehicle moving at such crazy speeds, pressing the right buttons on-beat simulates the feeling that you're really in the driver's seat, listening to the music playing at full volume all around you. Pressing the buttons correctly with feedback helps keep you glued to the game, motivating you to go after higher and higher scores. See More

Top Con

Might be difficult for players who are new to rhythm games

Thumper can be too hard if you've never played a rhythm game before. Because everything moves at such high speeds right from the start, you may miss a lot of the button inputs and get discouraged. Even for experienced players, it takes some practice before getting used to the flow of gameplay. See More

Top Pro

Really cool psychedelic visuals

Thumper looks stunning. The futuristic vibe with the flashing blues, purples, and reds everywhere. The road your vehicle travels on jets through a seemingly endless void that changes depending on the stage, such as showing off bosses that appear as large, abstract enemies looming overhead. The trippy visuals are pretty neat, making the game stand out more along with its unique gameplay. See More

Top Pro

Playing in VR adds a whole new layer to the game

Virtual Reality makes Thumper much more fun and intense. Along with the feeling of the controls putting you in the seat of the vehicle, you're actually put into the game itself, surrounded by the visuals. The lights, the music, and the rumbles all feel more up-close-and-personal, as if you're part of the environment itself. Thumper is compatible with VR on both PlayStation 4 and PC, so anyone with a headset for either platform will be able to try it out for themselves. See More

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