I played the original The 7th Guest as a kid and had really wanted a remake for some time. For whatever reason, I just never really enjoyed the brand of adventure games where you clicked to move to different areas instead of controlling a character. The game did get a remake in 2023, but it was VR. I can’t do VR, so I figured I’d just be missing out. This, however, is a non-VR version of a nearly three-year-old game. While the controls and interface have been rejiggered, this is indeed the exact same game that VR players have had for years now, so is this worth playing with the VR being stripped out?
The 7th Guest Remake is about a person visiting the mansion of a man named Stauf, who had invited six individuals to solve puzzles in his mansion. The titular seventh guest arrives after the fact, and the basic gist is that each room in the mansion contains a set of puzzles that you have to solve. Once each room is cleared, another one opens up. The game can be considered similar to escape room games, although you’ll typically be rewarded with specific objects needed to solve the puzzle room as you complete each puzzle. Maybe you’ll get an item you need to solve a final puzzle, or maybe you’re completing a set.
The game is legitimately enjoyable even without the VR view or controls. The art direction is attractive, and the unique story sequences shot with real people in three dimensions still look very neat. The puzzles are generally well-designed, the rooms ooze atmosphere, and it’s just fun to explore the house and try to figure the puzzles out. In case you’re worried that the game isn’t all that great without VR, there’s no need for it. I had a very good time, even if some of the puzzles could be a bit obtuse for my tastes here and there.
However, there are certain issues that crop up. For one, the keyboard controls for most of the puzzles are fairly poor. They often feel unnatural or awkward, and I could have trouble naturally doing what I wanted while using a mouse and keyboard. Granted, The 7th Guest Remake was designed to give you far more control. Thankfully, I found the game played much better with a controller, as that made for a much more intuitive experience. Make no mistake, though, while the game is still very good and worth playing, you’re absolutely going to get a worse version of it if you play it this way.
This extends to the general interaction as well. The game allows you to pick up and manipulate a huge number of objects, but this again feels awkward without VR controls. Even more, doing so can feel pointless, as there’s often no reason to manipulate most objects in this way; it’s just expected for a lot of VR games. With that said, even this isn’t too bad on a controller, although I did find it to be more lacking on mouse and keyboard, just like the puzzle controls. Walking around and looking the place over definitely feels good with a mouse, though. Just don’t be surprised if you feel the need to use a controller for this one, as it’s that much better.
If you want to play The 7th Guest Remake and don’t have a VR headset, you really can’t go wrong here. Some awkwardness with the controls is a small price to pay for getting to go through the Stauf mansion, as there’s still a lot to enjoy about its rooms, atmosphere, and puzzles. If you have a VR headset, there’s not really much reason to play this version, though. Any owners of that game (and anyone who buys this version) will automatically get the other free of charge, which is a great touch. Regardless, now’s as good a time as any to solve puzzles and figure out just what happened to the other guests.
Your next read:
