It moves... this is game about a kid and the monster under his bed, based on a short story by Michael Whitehouse and realized by SnowOwl using RPG Maker VX Ace. This is an old game, released initially in 2015 on Rpgmaker.net and later, in 2019 on Steam too with a new RPG Maker MV conversion.

If you read the previous reviews of SnowOwl's games or played the other games made by this author you will probably know what you can expect from this game: a short and atmospheric horror scenario. The interesting premise is that we play as a kid, but the narrator is the same protagonist that speaks about his younger years: this child used to sleep in the same bedroom with his older brother, but now that he moved in another room he has to sleep alone on the bunk bed, and that's when the nightmare begins...


Oh well, ok you can keep it, it's ok!

The gameplay can be divided into two parts: exploring the nightmare and solving some simple puzzles that at first did not seem even puzzles to me. Why? Because they're easy and play almost as diversions, letting the player focus more on the story and exploration of a dark surreal landscape, without distracting or requesting too much time and attention to progress.

Graphically the game is really pretty, dark and evocative: in my previous reviews I praised SnowOwl for using sprites and backgrounds that aren't those you probably already saw in other games, anyway this time the visual are really even better because there was the reason to place some evocative eerie landscapes, creating a disturbing atmosphere that makes the game stand out compared to other games (the previous games by SnowOwl I reviewed were more traditional, so settings and maps were't exactly new or original). I guess that most of the visuals and assets here are custom made (only the charsets looked familiar to me), so they stand out and clearly you won't see them in any other game. Cool, this game is really professionally made and I loved all the little details including the font used.

Sounds and music are also well enforce the atmosphere of dread, with chilling sounds of rattling chains and so on. Apparently the sounds also becomes louder as you approach the area and fainter if you go away.


Wait, isn't this a scene from Evangelion?


Final Verdict
It moves is a short creepy game that for once does not relies on jumpscares to create a disturbing atmosphere, providing also at the same time some nice visuals and an interesting narrative that will keep the player involved until the ending. It's exactly this: a linear but cool horror story (Silent Hill - style, to give an idea of this kind of horror scenario, it's not an action gorefeast at all) that plays like a good book, the writing is good quality and the scenarios look really detailed and ominous.

Anyway...

In my opinion this is one of the best games made by SnowOwl, recommended especially if you like surreal horror aventures.