El Paso, Elsewhere Review (Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S)

In gaming, relationship dramas are a common premise developers use to inject their narratives with emotion and complexity. In Dead Space 3, the captivating chemistry between Ellie Langford and Isaac Clarke served as a radiant beacon amidst the ominous shadows of the game, giving players fleeting glimpses of optimism in the darkest of times. Meanwhile, Fire Emblem: Awakening masterfully weaves romance into its core, making it an integral part of shaping the destiny of your second-generation units. 

Now, Strange Scaffold has unleashed their latest masterpiece, El Paso, Elsewhere, a vampire hunting odyssey that fuses elements from classics like Max Payne, Hotline Miami, and Quake. You walk in the shoes of a disgruntled lover, hot on his heels, to stop his ex’s insidious plans to destroy the world. All this while battling fallen angels and werewolves.

On a light note, it sounds a bit like reality if you are fighting back against a former lover who’s tipping more on the side of crazy, with mean best friends who come to her aid. If you’ve walked in these shoes before, then El Paso Elsewhere is a game you’ll cherish. Yearning to know more about this game, sit tight as we unpack it in our El Paso, Elsewhere review. 

Love Turned Sour

El Paso, Elsewhere, tells the story of pill-addict James Savage on the verge of quashing his ex-girlfriend’s dreams. To do this, he has to scale the depths of hell to meet his formidable adversary. You see, his ex-girlfriend is Janet Drake. She later becomes Draculae, who is the mother of all vampires. 

Draculae has a sinister plan to unleash hell on Earth with a ritual. We don’t know whether this was the reason for the breakup, but James takes on the noble duty to put an end to it. But as you progress, the story takes shape, and we understand how the relationship fits into this.

Draculae is holed up in an eerie motel that hosts monsters and also hotel residents. To get to Draculae, he must defeat the beasts while busting some insane slow-motion moves.

From its inception, the game highlights James’ battle and his pill-popping addiction. He appears to be struggling quite a bit and indulging in vices that are distracting him from his broken heart. It makes sense why, as a former average Joe, he opts to engage the supernatural world, possibly sacrificing himself bravely. By the end of it all, you’ll save the world and also get closure on the toxic relationship. 

Way Down We Go

El Paso Motel, where all the action takes place, is a 46-story building. Each level has a set layout, transforming from a simple design to a complex one seamlessly. You ride the elevator, stopping at every level to vanquish the beasts and rescue hostages. The lower you go, the more the levels evolve into edgier and more eerie environments, from rotting mansions, ancient tombs, and graveyards to abattoirs. The levels have four walls, a floor, and almost always missing a ceiling. Instead, we see an eerie sky with a green hue that hints more at the parallel dimension in Stranger Things.  

The levels are filled with traps and odd designs that, soon enough, you’ll come to terms with. For instance, doors will drop from above, or you’ll encounter a toilet with a door where the toilet should be. If you thought that was insane, there’s a level filled with toilets. With some toilet stalls holding a monster or ammo, you didn’t see that coming, or did you? 

The most intriguing thing is how James converses with the motel as if it were alive. A worthy adversary, I must say, granted the transforming environments that amp the complexities. The soundtracks also do a great job of complementing this, adding a layer of intrigue. 

From face value, El Paso Elsewhere looks like a PS2 rendition of Max Payne. James’ monologues, which at first seemed unnecessary, reveal chunks of the game’s plot. Gradually, you get to appreciate its authenticity. The cryptic narrations are a great way of pacing yourself for the next challenge that awaits. They also give more depth to the complex relationship between the former lovers. 

Stake Away, Slow Mo

As a third-person shooter, you’ll spend much of your time blasting holes through the supernatural oddities. Thankfully, the game gives you a bunch of weapons that fit into the gameplay’s loop.

You start with dual handguns. Their precision and speed come in handy when engaging the fast-paced characters. You’ll soon come across a powerful shotgun that sends the beast flying across the room with each shot. Also in the inventory is an assault rifle, which clears enemies from a distance. Plus, as you approach the lower levels, things get too crowded. This is where you lay your hands on a grenade launcher that instantly clears the crowd. 

Notably, each weapon has its perks and drawbacks. For instance, the shotgun weapon has little range and takes time to reload. It’s suitable to use during the first few levels, where you engage a handful of beasts, downing the beasts with one shot. But this is where you need to actively swap weapons to suit your combat style. 

Furthermore, the wide range of monsters forcefully calls for a change in weapon strategy. You’ll be going head-to-head against mummified vampires, werewolves, biblically accurate angels, and puppet masters. Each supernatural baddie has a distinct fighting style. For instance, the puppet master unleashes hordes of creepy puppets while angels launch powerful attacks from above. The werewolves are the most annoying lot. They hide and ambush you when you least expect it. Therefore, to make it out alive at each level, you need a strategy.

Admittedly, El Paso, Elsewhere’s mix-up of creatures is a great way of varying the game’s difficulty. I’d choose this any day instead of battling adversaries who require tons of damage to take down. Plus, if things get too hot for you, you can adjust the difficulty settings. Plus, with adaptable difficulty settings and the exhilarating Slow-Mo shooting feature, every moment becomes a strategic and heart-pounding experience.

The Good

El Paso, Elsewhere, excels where Max Payne fell short. Foremost, the audio logs between James and Draculae add depth to the storyline. The playful exchanges between the two reveal a relationship that once blossomed and was full of life. It sheds light on what turned Draculae from a Damsel with a curious mind on how transformers procreated the Lord of the Darkness. Eventually, we see a drastic change in their conversations after the two directly engage. The exchange is brief, with no emotion. Clearly, there is still an aspect of love, but owing to the moral dilemma, it’s all in the wind now. 

Moreover, the intense level of detail is really captivating. It is like when you shoot at hovering bodies, and their demise concludes with a soft landing on the floor like empty sheets. Or when you are blasting at the oddly shaped angelic entities only to realize you’re aiming for the chandeliers. The werewolves take the crowning moment on this one. A single shot sends the dogs diving into the ground with crumbled limbs. 

El Paso, Elsewhere draws inspiration from a wide array of narrative-based shooters, spanning from decades-old classics to more contemporary titles, in both its storytelling approach and gameplay mechanics. The way James Savage delivers the story, along with the gloomy atmosphere and frequent use of slow-motion dives, evokes immediate comparisons to games like Max Payne and Stranglehold. Furthermore, the striking, screen-filling stage titles will trigger memories of a similar technique used, notably in Remedy’s Control.

The Ugly

The game’s narration takes a while to take shape. The first hours of the game barely reveal much detail about James’s quest. But once it hits its stride, the game becomes unrelenting. Also, the gameplay becomes quite repetitive when exploring floor levels. However, the cutscenes, which are mostly James’ monologues, do much more than pace the action. 

Verdict

El Paso, Elsewhere wears its inspiration on its sleeves. It’s not shy about it, but it doesn’t confine itself to them either. Instead, it uses these ideas to enhance its own innovative concepts. With its distinctively retro-style character models and chunky pickups for ammo and health, El Paso, Elsewhere may appear reminiscent of games you’ve experienced before. Yet, it maintains its unique identity, striking a challenging balance.

It also offers mind-bending journeys through layouts that fold in on themselves as you traverse them passively, placing your focus on the twisting nature of the stage rather than solely on defeating enemies.