Hello!
Psychostasis is a short story driven adventure made with RPG Maker VX Ace in 2014. The author is Red_Nova, the developer of other short cool games I likes such as The Gift (the revies is HERE if you are curious) and other little game made in collaborations with other dvelopers (made last year), like The Geterix Legacy and Hell on High Heels, both reviewed months ago.

Psychostasis is another short game (about 1 hour and 15/20 minutes) but this time it's a mystery/horror adventure game about Kyle Riverway. Who is our protagonist? Well he's not hero or adventurer, but just a normal eighteen years old guy that learns that he wasn't living with his real, biological parents but he was adopted, so he starts investigating to learn who were them. At first he does not find them but he meets a girl named Eve, and a rundown house at 628 Redwood Drive. Was this his former home? Unfortunately he soon realizes that he's in danger...


Hey seems that we've really a lot in common!

Ok, so Psychostasis is a sort of adventure/survival horror game where you have to explore dark rooms looking for clues, even if the "horror" element is rather mild, is more like a thriller/mystery gama, but maybe it's me, anyway the story is pretty good even if at a certain point it will be a bit predictable. Anyway I liked that the killer that's after Kyle can be spawned randomly in any room of the house or the school that is visited later, giving an element of surprise and tension that's not common for an rpgmaker game (usually if played once you can anticipate the bad guy, but NOT here in Psychostasis!). The killer can also be avoided if you're careful and pass unnoticed, but if you are spotted you will have to run for some rooms until you're safe.
Clearly among the items you may find there are bandages that not only are few but also need at least five seconds to be used, meaning that you must be in a safe place and not during a chase, of course. Oh and you can save, but at the mirrors, and doing this actually breaks the mirror, so it's a good idea to check where the mirrors are and use them when you really think you need!

Visually the game isn't really bad at all: the assets selected were good and adequate, plus there are some custom made portraits of the main characters comple of different expression. The weak point are probably the maps: most are very big (well, not bad when you have to run away for an assassin!) and not particularly interesting or detailed, for example the classrooms in the school are just rows of desks and chairs and there isn't even a blackboard. On the other hand the doors and exits are all immediately visible and also the animations (for example when Kyle uses the bandages of the mirrors) are all well done.

The soundtrack comes from the survival horror music pack and freesound.org, and it's pretty good: the chase music is obviously tense, and there is also some disturbing music. Few sounds, like the footsteps, but I do not mind, the atmosphere is unnerving enough. Well done, from this point of view!


OUCH! She hates me and she hit me! Better run away! chase section time!

Final Verdict
I cannot say that Psychostasis is an original game (classic exploration to look for clues, not combat nor real puzzles), but still it maker more or less everything pretty well. This game was made in two months for a school project, and despite this is the reason why it's a short game, I've to admit that I enjoyed it. The story is interesting and made me play until the end, and if you like this kind of mystery adventure game, well it's pretty good!