We’re edging ever closer to Halloween 2020, but why wait? Maybe a game about scares could jump out at any time, any moment, and scare the bejesus out of you! Well, such a game has crept up and I got to review it for you all. Goosebumps: Dead of Night (Cosmic Forces, $39.99) is an all-ages affair based on the hauntings straight from the Goosebumps books and movies. So, what do you say, want to read my review, or are you chicken?!
Description:
‘In Goosebumps Dead of Night, the best-selling Goosebumps franchise has been reimagined as a first-person spooky survival adventure game for consoles and PC. Experience three chapters of
stealth gameplay with 3D graphics and chilling AI monsters. Goosebumps Dead of Night is a family-friendly way for Goosebumps fans of all ages to engage with some of their favorite R.L. Stine stories and characters, get spooked a bit, and help save the world from Slappy’s nefarious designs. Slappy the Dummy has unleashed a nightmare of Goosebumps monsters, and they’re all out to get you! Escape from frightening creatures like the Graveyard Ghoul, Lawn Gnomes, Annihilator 3000, Murder the Clown, and the Werewolf of Fever Swamp as you collect the scattered pages of Slappy’s book to seal him away. You’ll explore infamous Goosebumps locales for clues, hide from monsters, and solve Slappy’s devious puzzles. It’s up to you to stop Slappy’s evil plan to unleash his monsters across the world… don’t worry, you’ll have some allies along the way like Nikola Tesla, Dr. Brewer and R.L. Stine, voiced by Jack Black. For the faint of heart, beware—you’re in for a scare!’
Features:
● ‘A reimagining of the successful and highly reviewed mobile and VR game, Goosebumps: Night of Scares.
● Inspired by R.L. Stine’s bestselling horror series and based off the popular books and movies.
● Developed from the ground up for console, releasing on all major platforms.
● Full 3D movement and stealth gameplay with HD Rumble Pack support, touch support, and gyroscopic controls on Nintendo Switch.
● Brand new 3D graphic engine, new gameplay, new chapters, and plenty of jump scares!
● Exploration — Explore locations from the Goosebumps books and movies as you search for clues, evade monsters, and solve puzzles to stop the evil ventriloquist dummy Slappy.
● Puzzles — Solve puzzles to thwart the evil Slappy. Be careful though, one wrong move could be your last.
● Jumpscares — Beware you’re in for a scare! Some of the classic monsters from the best-selling Goosebumps series have been unleashed, and they are hungry. Avoid them at all costs, or they may scare you to death.’
Trailer:
Goosebumps: Dead of Night is out now on XBOX One and Steam. You’ll presumably be seeing it on the PS4 and Switch in the near future as well. As the description mentioned, the new Goosebumps title is a retooling of the mobile and VR game, Goosebumps: Night of Scares. Before it was on some rather niche gaming platforms, but now you’ll be seeing this new version on more consoles. While I’ve never played Night of Scares, I did watch the trailers and compare it with Dead of Night. I would say that Night of Scares is something closer to looking like a game for the first Goosebumps movie. Goosebumps: Dead of Night is basically a game for the second movie. That’s not to say it doesn’t offer unique elements that the movie doesn’t have. 
Goosebumps: Dead of Night has only a campaign mode. The campaign is presented across three different chapters. To me, having three deliberate chapters makes the game easy to digest in small chunks. If your kid is playing this game, you could tell them that they’re only allowed enough time to play one chapter per day so they can still do homework or chores. If the game is for yourself and you’re a millennial like me, then you’ll enjoy having breaks to swap over to other games or…do chores. Maybe you think the game is too scary for you, no troubles, just make it to the end of the chapter and come back another day. 
There are a few different game mechanics to tackle over the chapters (besides being spooked). You’ll find that you’ll need to be stealthy in some parts of the game. This is in the form of taking cover and hiding from oncoming monsters. Just like in Goosebumps Night of Scares, you’ll also have to do a bit of thinking. There are clues hidden throughout the world and you’ll also need to solve some mind-bending, yet fun, puzzles. If you’ve seen the movies, you’ll start to recognize locations that you can explore. This is all part of a game that is nice and short, but in a good way. Your aim is to get from beginning to end of the story of trying to foil Slappy’s plot. The game doesn’t feature intense jump scares, so it’s really designed for fans who are just excited to be in the world of Goosebumps. This is a scary game that can be enjoyed by everyone, even those who have anxieties about horror games. The game relies heavily on the atmosphere and the baddies to give you some fun fear.
Purchase Links:
