Hide

Hide is a brilliant freeware survival horror game that uses retro graphics for great effect. Hugely helped by a great sound design, the atmosphere is as oppressive and scary as they get. For those who notice some similarities to Slender, note that Hide was in fact released nearly a year before Slender was launched for worldwide acclaim.

In fact, Slender uses pretty much the same gameplay elements as the ones found in Hide. The player is an unknown person who is wandering through a snowy forest, searching for five signs that have a message in them (Persecution, Torture… and we won’t spoil the rest for you). The more signs/locations we discover, the more our mysterious hunters try to catch us. These strange creatures are seen at a distance with their flashlights and there’s even a helicopter or such trying to find us. When they see us, they can get closer at an incredible speed. Sound in this game is majestic, offering a noisy atmosphere that is all the better with the constant heavy breathing sound of our character.

Much like Slender, Hide could benefit from a bit of context. Although leaving most details for the imagination, it would be interesting to be able to make some sense out of it (is our character a fugitive or a criminal? What connection does he have with the words in the signs? Are our pursuers really human?). Without it, it’s just an incredibly tense chase for the signs, trying not to get caught by something. It’s a very hard game, once again, pretty much like Slender.

All in all, Hide is a fantastic indie horror game, with great visuals that use the pixilated style in favor of the atmosphere and terrific sound effects to go with it. If you’re a fan of Slender then you owe to yourself to try the game that most likely inspired it all.

Free Full PC Game Download (14 MB):
Download PC Game