Until Dawn (2024) Review

Launched in 2015, the original Until Dawn came from a studio that was mostly unknown at the time, which was a huge surprise because the game was massively popular. A number of factors contributed to the horror adventure game's critical acclaim, including how scary it was, its choice and consequence systems, the acting performances of its cast of renowned celebrities, and fun teen horror vibes.

The original Until Dawn comes from a studio called Supermassive Games. They seem to specialize in the horror genre. Other titles by them, like The Quarry and The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes, are excellent. It is clear that the studio has moved on far beyond its success with Until Dawn.

However, it can be argued that Until Dawn was their pinnacle. At least, Sony has deemed it worth enough of their effort by bringing the title back from the prehistoric year of 2015. Until Dawn, which was an exclusive on the now retro PlayStation 4, has been brought back into the modern age by Ballistic Moon. If you couldn't pick up on the sarcasm, here's your cue.

Sony's decision to remake Until Dawn is a serious point of contention. The whole game has been remade from the ground up in Unreal Engine 5, from the old Decima engine. It is the exact same game as the 2015 slasher video game, with improved visuals and new problems.

Until Dawn is currently suffering from some performance issues on PC. The framerate can be choppy at times—even in some calmer scenes where it definitely shouldn't be happening. There are some animation bugs, but the problem boils down to an inconsistent framerate and stutters here and there.

If you have played Until Dawn back when it was popular, it is difficult to justify getting this game at the full price of $60 once again, especially when the charm diminishes on play-throughs after the first. Though, if you have not experienced this teen slasher movie turned into a video game, you might want to keep reading this review because there is some fun to be had with Until Dawn.

Until Dawn's reputation was built on its teen horror slasher film-inspired vibes, as well as its emphasis on player choice, with gameplay driven primarily by QTEs and some light ambient interactions. All of that is carried over practically exactly as it is in the remake. The slasher horror atmosphere remains quite effective, thanks to the game's clever use of everything from jump scares to genuinely frightening or tense moments and sequences.

Much of Until Dawn's charm comes from the story's unpredictability, but suffice it to say that the game does an excellent job of building suspense and frequently surprises you with genuine scares and tight set pieces.

Rather than having just one character to play, the story switches between multiple characters doing different things. Since this is a slasher, many of the characters are awful, yet once things start happening, it's hard to help but feel bad for these people—at least the majority of them.

The story follows the template of a classic horror film: a group of friends visit the lodge of a wealthy family, play a cruel joke on a girl, and things end tragically. One year later, on the anniversary of her death, they are lured back to the cottage by the revelation of a demented killer.

The central mystery surrounding the terrifying abilities that follow the main characters throughout the narrative is still a major focus of the game from beginning to end, but not all of the plot is explored.

The story and script of the original game are faithfully followed in the Until Dawn remake, which means it inherits many flaws from the original game. Some of the cast members are terrible characters who I actively hoped would die violently, and the writing ranges from passable to unbearable.

Nevertheless, Until Dawn holds up quite well. The game has a campy tone that works despite some of the characters being obnoxious. They act like idiots and make stupid mistakes all the time, which is a clever story device that keeps things fresh.

It drags on for far too long, but right when you are too tired of it, things really start picking up speed. Your decisions in these kinds of games need to seem purposeful, and Until Dawn does a far better job doing that than most. During one part of the narrative, you have to make a cruel choice regarding who survives and who doesn't. Who you are is greatly influenced by the decisions you make. Characters that make poor choices will meet horrible, grisly ends.

Games like Until Dawn are great since the focus is on doing anything you want to do rather than making the right or wrong choice. You control the fate of a number of irritating individuals in the game, all of whom you cannot stand—trust me, you'll know when you pick this game up.

You can pretty much do whatever you want if you want everyone to meet their demise. If you're the type of person who gets angry at the screen whenever a foolish thing happens in a slasher game, this game gives you the ability to make really smart choices.

A few surprises are almost impossible to guess, but for the most part, you can do everything perfectly and save practically everyone if you go through all of the notes and consider everything. Not all of them, but most of them. It's not like other story-based games where you play as a single character and lose a lot of points for mistakes.

The story itself isn't very clever; it doesn't cover important subjects or use real language. Some of the characters say pretty dumb things, which could be awful if you're easily embarrassed by other people. However, I think it suits the genre and has a great scary vibe.

It's not totally serious, but it's also not really a horror comedy either. The best way to put it would be "self-aware." It does, however, occasionally throw stuff at you, like the horrifying deer cliffhanger, that I'm not sure is serious or not. Should we laugh at the deer, or should we be terrified of it? I still don't know.

The visual upgrade of the remake of Until Dawn has resulted in better facial models, improved animations, and increased environmental details. These are all solid factors in making you more immersed in a choice-based cinematic experience like Until Dawn.

The aspect that benefits the most from the visual overhaul is the blood and gore of Until Dawn's scariest scenes. The modern Unreal Engine 5 makes each gruesome scene have disgusting details that may make you wince or make your eyes water. 

The changes have definitely altered the appearance of some scenes, and not everyone will be happy with the outcome. In my opinion, the remake mostly succeeds in preserving the spirit of the original while also adding obvious improvements that really enhance the experience.

I love that the game's numerous death sequences, which were already horrifying, now seem much more delightfully sadistic. The characters all look substantially better, and thanks to the new engine, their wounds have much more detail.

Until Dawn is a faithful remake of the original while offering updated visuals and nothing more. For those unfamiliar with the franchise, this remake is an excellent way to pass the time—plenty of suspense, effective scares, and meaningful player choices that make the investment worthwhile. Plus, you will have a kick out of making fun of the numerous terrible characters featured in this game.

However, given certain performance flaws and the game's reliance on the element of surprise, those who liked this in 2015 may not find it interesting enough to justify the full $60 price. If you have already experienced this game, you should definitely wait for the sale.