Nosferatu: The Wrath of Malachi Demo

While some might argue about the true nature of vampires and their intentions, it really doesn't make much of a difference if you are a human and you are stuck with them in an abandoned old castle. Thus, after realizing that every trick in the book more or less works against them, you get every bible, stake and cross you can find and head on to save your family and escape the cursed lair of the undead.

Nosferatu: The Wrath of Malachi is a first-person shooter with heavy horror elements, in which you have to survive the night in an European castle filled with vampires and various other dark and evil creatures. Naturally, you do this by shooting them, driving wooden stakes through their dead hearts, or splashing them with holy water, depending on what kind of results you want to achieve and how permanent you want the damage to be.

The background story is quite simple and non-impressive, since it all revolves around the actual atmosphere, rather than on a coherent and mature plot line. Hence, your family happens to be royalty and everyone but you leaves to Romania, where your sister is about to marry the son of a local count. After you finish your important business in another country, you too hurry to attend the wedding, only to find that the house is actually haunted and everyone you love is in grave danger.

The main ingredient of the game are the jump scares that are scattered all throughout the levels, with enemies popping out from behind every door, crack and window there is. Naturally, this can be very effective on the moment and cause more than enough pacemaker issues, but the jump scares are also very forgettable and repetitive, especially after you play the game for a few hours at end.

In order to achieve the desired effect, the game also uses well-chosen sound effects and a chilling soundtrack, which, combined with the spooky level design, should give you goose bumps on more than a few occasions. On the other hand, the graphics engine is rather weak even for its time, which means that you should be prepared for some very blocky vampires jumping at you and pretty simple particle effects to go along with them.

Regardless of how scared Nosferatu: The Wrath of Malachi might make you feel whenever things pop out of the cupboard, the sentiment is quite temporary and you more often than not forget it until bed time closes in. The lack of a more mature atmosphere is the biggest issue of the game, followed by the childish storyline and the lack of imagination when it comes to the vampires themselves.