Good howdy and I hope you have a spooky-tastic day today! I love Halloween. It comes with so much fun. Decorating the apartment, dressing up in fun outfits, going to parties, and of course enjoying some good scares! Many people like to play some spooky video games during October, but lots of folks don’t like survival horror. So here is an alternative that will get your spine tingling but not your heart racing! Its a puzzle game, so the experience isn’t one of “Gotta run, gotta hide” anxiety or jumpscares...(well, maybe some jumpscares on the Mac version).
Have you ever heard of a point and click MacVnture game called The Uninvited? The Uninvited was originally developed for the Macintosh by ICOM Simulations and released in 1986 as part of the MacVenture series and was later released on the NES in 1991 with some upgrades such as color instead of the Mac’s black and white, an amazing soundtrack, and some soft-locks removed. Since I played this on the NES, we’ll be talking about that version today. While Nintendo did remove some of the games more graphic content and some religious iconography from their port, overall, I think the quality of life upgrades make it the superior version of the game.
The plot of the game is a simple one. You’re driving down the road with your older sister in the car and something darts out in front of you. You swerve to avoid it and crash the car, blacking out. When you wake up, your sister is missing, so you escape the wrecked car and head towards the spooky mansion in front of you to look for her. When you enter the mansion it soon becomes apparent that things aren’t right here, so you begin exploring the rooms, picking up everything that you can to shove into your inventory, in case you need it later. Along the way you’ll find some various notes that tell you what’s going on and also how to solve most of the puzzles. You’ll also find several deadly monsters and ghosts blocking your path. This is where the Uninvited qualifies for an October spooky game. Despite being NES graphics, the artists at ICOM Simulations did a great job of making their creepy monsters look unnerving. The most iconic of these is the Southern Belle. When you’re exploring the hallway, she appears, facing away from you, the music switches to a peaceful tune and she calls you “my love.” However if you try to do anything other than go upstairs, she reveals her true form and ends your life in a graphic description. Its up to you to find the item that removes her from the mortal plane, so you can continue looking for your sister. You’ll also encounter a ghostly butler, a spider with a head as big as a breadbox, some zombies, a hungry dancing imp, and several other dangers that will require your wits to defeat as you investigate the mansion. You’ll probably die several times along the way, as well. That’s part of the fun of the game. Many of the descriptions of your demise are creative or over the top or moderately gruesome. Nintendo did tone down or remove the most graphically gruesome endings, so if you’re the type who wants the gory details, check out the Macintosh version of the Uninvited. Think of it as the director’s cut.
So that’s the good, let’s discuss the bad real quick. Its is a point and click adventure game that was made during the NES era. Games were rather pricey back then, so playtime had to be artificially inflated via difficulty. This shows in the number of useless items you can pick up. This can make solving puzzles VERY tedious. Sure the first time you read about the undead butler dissolving your skin, its cool….the 10th time, not so much, and your mind can slip into madness going “Well, he’s a butler, so maybe if I Give him the bloody towel, he’ll leave to go wash it and I can see what’s behind the hidden panel...oh..that didn’t work. He’s dissolving my skin again...okay, maybe next time I’ll hit him with the soap, because...why not..it might work.” I say this as a huge fan of puzzle games, they can be frustrating. However, there are some things I can suggest. First off, look for areas where you can Leave items behind. The game won’t let you throw away anything useful, so if you can get rid of it, do it. Throw the plate off the veranda. Its not your backyard. Let that skin dissolving butler deal with it. Also, don’t be afraid to use a walkthrough. That’s what they are for. I recommend trying to play the game without one because the satisfaction of solving puzzles can be very rewarding. However, if it stops being fun, look that answer up. Its just a game.
Oh, I do want to give some content warnings: The game does feature some accidental self harm if you Use a weapon on yourself. There is a really big spider in the game, oh and dogs, birds, cats, and snakes, will end your life if you’re not careful. Again, its not terribly graphic, but if those activate your mind in unpleasant ways, just be aware they are in there.
Well, gamer, if I have peaked your interest in this game, it is available in several places. You can buy it on Xbox and GOG as the 8-Bit Adventure Anthology: Volume 1 along with the other 2 games in the Macventure Series Shadowgate and Deja Vu. These seem to be based on the NES versions and the bundle is only 8 bucks in the USA. The Macintosh version is also available on Steam as the Macventure Series Collection. It features the other games as well as Deja Vu 2. Of course, you can grab it on the NES, but its about 75 dollars. And if you’re a long time fan who clicked on this article for nostalgia purposes, I recommend the games Infested and Spectacle by Grahfmetal. He is also a fan who wanted to make games like those he played as a kid, and accomplished that very well! I think his work can be found on Itch.io.
Thanks for taking the time to read my thoughts on Uninvited. I hope you have a Safe Spooky Month and a Happy Halloween.
