Sure, I backed Perception on Kickstarter and was really looking forward to play it because of the innovative premise and the stylish screenshots. Sadly, my first impressions were really bad. The voiceover narrative felt unnatural and was full of stereotypes. The story behind the narrative sounded even more clichéd. I could've stomached that if the atmosphere had been eerie enough to let me forget the stupidity of the plot. Unfortunately, the game completely lacks any subtlety. Things go bump in the night from the very start. After half an hour you have seen countless things moving by invisible hands, ghosts lurking und things slam shut loudly. It's like an haunted house tour at the carnival.
Really annoying is that your only method of seeing or, well, perception is some kind of sonar you can use by the thumping of your kane. However, loud noises attract ghosts that apparently chase you. That concept prooved to be not scary but just annoying.
The gameplay is basically completely linear. The corridors and halls are full of boxes that obstruct your ability to traverse the mansion, or doors open and shut by the will of the narrative. A click of a button lets you see your next objective and you have to reach that and then the next event happens or door opens. You basically strictly follow the carrot. There is no real exploration or sense of discovery. At least in chapter 1. I didn't find the motivation to push further.
