True Nightmare – Roadside Cafe Review (PC)

As if to illustrate the definition of insanity, True Nightmare makes a daring proposition—a midnight offer that I would be much better off turning down. It asks me to do the same thing again and again, all in the hopes that I’ll come to expect a different outcome from carrying out the exact same routine each night. A better paycheck, a slightly less chaotic shift, and, above all, a patron who won’t have ill intentions—three things that are about as commonplace here as the fixtures that flesh out the dank corridors of the VHS-inspired roadside café. I’d like to imagine that, if I can continue down this spiraling rabbit hole of unnecessary evils and weirdness, better things will peak out from beneath the woodwork to greet me. The problem is, I’m naïve, and deep down I know that I probably won’t be here in the morning.

True Nightmare puts a familiar spin on the unhinged world of VHS horror—the same spectrum that birthed the likes of Happy’s Humble Burger Farm and, more recently, The Boba Teashop. It’s deep within that realm of unnatural ambiance and grainy design that True Nightmare finds its foothold—in the dilapidated roots of insanity, and deep, deep within a concept that makes us shudder in disgust. And you know what? It does it extremely well, all things considered.

VHS horrors, in general, are something of an acquired taste; the visuals are painfully dated, and the storylines are either too predictable or drenched in all the usual Backrooms-like tropes. In True Nightmare, specifically, both of these things spring to mind. The question is, does it make an otherwise pulpy premise feel substantially palatable? Let’s delve a little deeper and find out.

It Comes With the Job, Apparently

True Nightmare tells a tale that’s vaguely reminiscent of Happy’s Humble Burger Farm. In a similar vein as that rather peculiar grain-drizzled creation, True Nightmare slots you into the shoes of an overnight restaurant worker—a disoriented protagonist who, in an attempt to earn a quick buck or two, vies to slug through the graveyard shift in a roadside café. With that in place, and in an attempt to follow on from the aforementioned abnormality, the story makes an undying attempt to twist your perception on reality through the familiar usage of unorthodox patterns, rogue patrons, and visuals that gradually warp and wean with each passing shift. Oh, goodie.

The game itself isn’t drastically complex. In fact, it more or less locks you into a routine that’s reminiscent of your bog-standard business-cashier-type hybrid sim. The only major difference here, of course, is that you don’t spend your evenings stacking shelves and applying for generous upgrades, but rather, engaging in eerie small talk, bathing in an airtight atmosphere, and witnessing abnormal events naturally unfold from just out of sight as you work through a series of somewhat monotonous chore core exercises. The tasks, of course, are pretty normal: pour the soda, stack the burgers, mop the floors, yada yada yada. Yet, there’s more to it than that, and it doesn’t take long for you to come to the realization that things, in general, aren’t quite as normal as they initially seemed. Shock horror.

Would You Like Fries With That?

Playing through True Nightmare is a lot like being the backseat driver for a show that you really don’t want to see. With events taking shape around you on a clockwork basis, there isn’t much else for you to do other than witness the obscenities and pretend that you didn’t see them until the curtain finally decides to make an appearance. And that, quite frankly, is essentially what the bulk of the journey consists of: slugging through generic household chores over a series of unsettling shifts at the roadside café, and actively pretending not to see the subtle changes in the atmosphere as the four walls squeeze you into a corner. Oh, and vying to ignore the looming silhouette who stalks the doorway to trace your routine. There’s that, too.

While the gameplay here isn’t what you would refer to as memorable, the outside activities—the frequent slips into darkness or into an unusual crevice that beckons for you to unravel its most horrific secrets, for example—are enough to keep you slurping your soda and mopping the grease-smothered kitchen tiles for a solid couple of hours. It’s certainly an unusual experience — not necessarily the act of running a roadside café, but the process of succumbing to an ever-growing madness as each night turns a new leaf and forces you to question your moral compass. It doesn’t stick with you long after the credits roll, I’ll admit — but it gets the job done, nonetheless, mainly thanks to its unsettlingly static environment and ominous, almost grotesque atmosphere.

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

The downside to all of the above is that the game itself does have a plethora of graphical and technical issues. The dialogue and text, for example, have a lot of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. Moreover, the game tends to lock up if you just so happen to deliver the wrong order to the wrong customer. There are also several instances where the visual textures bleed out and cause certain game-breaking events to transpire, often causing a delay or a complete crash. The point is, while the premise itself is strong, and that it has the potential to convey a compelling story, the sheer amount of mistakes and technical errors do, unfortunately, dampen the overall experience.

Verdict

If Happy’s Humble Burger Farm wasn’t enough to line your stomach and give you something to write home about, then perhaps you ought to take a big ol’ bite out of True Nightmare’s grotesque tongue-slapping static horror to whet those peculiar taste buds of yours. To put it simply, it doesn’t stray the beaten path all that much; if anything, it pays homage to the VHS flick by adopting a lot of the same themes — the mumbling sous chef included. And so, if you are something of a sucker for weird concepts and dank VHS aesthetics that foster disturbing images, then it’s highly likely that you’ll get a similar kick out of True Nightmare and its deranged world.

With all of the above said, there are still numerous hot fixes that need to be installed here in order for True Nightmare to mount its true potential. If the dialogue, visual effects, and technical drawbacks can be fixed, then I’d say that it justifies the price tag — if only just.