Layers of Fear, All You Need to Know

Layers of Fear gets a new remake as a mash up with its DLC. The story might’ve not changed much but you’ll probably enjoy this as well.

Layers of Fear is a psychological horror adventure game developed by Bloober Team and published by Aspyr. It’s not exactly a sequel, it’s not an original game, it’s not a DLC, and it can’t be called a remake either. If you put a gun to my head and ask me exactly what it is, I’d say it’s a remake but that’s not exactly it either. The game is available on Linux, Microsoft Windows, macOS, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
As the player, you take control of an artist who has returned to his studio to complete his magnum opus. However, as you navigate a Victorian mansion, you begin to uncover secrets about the artist’s past and become aware of his psychological instability.

Gameplay

The game is presented in first-person perspective, and the gameplay is story-driven, revolving around puzzle-solving and exploration. The house appears straightforward at first, but it changes around the player as they explore it, providing scaffolding for the puzzles and jump scares common to games of this genre. The game is divided into six chapters, and the player must find various items to complete their work.

As the player progresses through the game, they uncover objects that reveal certain aspects of the painter’s history and explain the secret of the painter through dialogue flashbacks. The player must also piece together a letter that shows the origin of the painter’s masterpiece. The game is heavily dimmed, creating an eerie and unsettling atmosphere.

Inheritance

Layers of Fear: Inheritance is a direct follow-up add-on to the first game. This time, the player controls the painter’s daughter, who has apparently relapsed into trauma after returning to her old house. A definitive port for the Nintendo Switch, entitled Layers of Fear: Legacy, was released on 21 February 2018. It features Joy-Con, touchscreen, and HD Rumble support, as well as the Inheritance DLC. A limited physical retail release for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 was available starting October 2018.

A sequel titled Layers of Fear 2 was released on May 29, 2019, and a second sequel, also titled Layers of Fear, launched on June 15, 2023. The Layers of Fear franchise has gained popularity among those who enjoy horror games that rely on atmosphere, storytelling, and puzzle-solving. The game itself is majorly influenced by P.T., the teaser to Silent Hill that’s often praised and rarely found.

The Plot

The game is set in the 1920s in the United States, and the protagonist is an unnamed artist who has returned home from a court hearing. Upon arriving, he goes to his workshop to begin work on his “magnum opus”, but as he works, he begins to have hallucinations and visions about his past encounters and experiences.

As the game progresses, it becomes clear that the artist’s mental state is deteriorating rapidly, and his past is explored as the player navigates through a Victorian mansion, solving puzzles and uncovering secrets. The artist had used his pianist wife as a model and muse for his paintings, but after she gave birth to their daughter, he became increasingly neglectful of his family and developed a drinking problem. He muzzled their dog, and soon after, he was plagued by auditory hallucinations of rats.

The artist’s talent begins to decay, and he drives away his friends by painting disturbing works, including a set of illustrations for Little Red Riding Hood. His wife decides to burn his paintings, including his most cherished work, “The Lady in Black,” which provokes him to beat her in a drunken rage. She leaves with their child, but he makes multiple attempts to reconcile, which she rejects. Later, he receives a phone call explaining that his wife was a victim of a fire, and was horribly scarred, though their daughter survived unharmed.

The artist brings his wife and child home to care for them, but his alcoholic tendencies continue to develop, and he blames his family for his distractions. His wife commits suicide in the bathroom by slitting her wrists, and in the present day, it is revealed that the artist has fully lost his sanity. The game hints that he may be using parts of his wife’s body in his paintings, including her skin as the canvas, her blood as the overlay, her bone marrow as the undercoating, a brush made from her hair, her finger for the smearing, and her eye as the spectator.

The Ending

Depending on the player’s actions, three different endings are possible. In the “Loop” ending, the artist completes his painting of his wife, only to see it devolve into a mutilated version that taunts him. In the “Selfish” ending, the artist completes a portrait of himself, finally satisfied, and hangs it in the upstairs room. In the “Family” ending, the artist completes a painting that includes his daughter and wife, realizing his terrible behaviour and mistakes, and that he cannot bring them back. He sets the paintings on fire and lies down to allow the flames to consume him as well.

The Inheritance DLC tells the story of the painter’s daughter, who returns to her childhood home to face her past after leaving “The St. Martin de Porres Home for Problem Children”. The player explores the destroyed home with a flashlight, reliving her experiences and witnessing the full scope of the tragedy that has swallowed the family. Depending on the daughter’s actions, different outcomes are possible, leading to either a “Good”, “Bad”, or “True” ending. The DLC explores the daughter’s relationship with her father and the legacy of mental illness that has been passed down through the family.

What Has Changed?

Not much is different from the first Layers of Fear released in 2016. The lighting is richer, the graphics are far more impressive, and the general interactions with the game come much easier than before.

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The clasping hallways and the spiralling rooms still get trying after a few hours. The shock value drops and it falls just short of the jumpscare goal.
Overall, the psychological horror game is a great idea that wasn’t executed quite as it should’ve been.

What is Layers of Fear about?

Layers of Fear is a psychological horror adventure game where the player takes control of an artist who has returned to his studio to complete his magnum opus. However, as the player navigates a Victorian mansion, they begin to uncover secrets about the artist’s past and become aware of his psychological instability.

What are the different endings in Layers of Fear?

Depending on the player’s actions, three different endings are possible. In the “Loop” ending, the artist completes his painting of his wife, only to see it devolve into a mutilated version that taunts him. In the “Selfish” ending, the artist completes a portrait of himself, finally satisfied, and hangs it in the upstairs room. In the “Family” ending, the artist completes a painting that includes his daughter and wife, realizing his terrible behavior and mistakes, and that he cannot bring them back. He sets the paintings on fire and lies down to allow the flames to consume him as well.

What is the Inheritance DLC, and what does it explore?

The Inheritance DLC is a direct follow-up add-on to the first game, where the player controls the painter’s daughter, who has apparently relapsed into trauma after returning to her old house. The DLC explores the daughter’s relationship with her father and the legacy of mental illness that has been passed down through the family. Depending on the daughter’s actions, different outcomes are possible, leading to either a “Good”, “Bad”, or “True” ending.