Game review: take on the horror of Sony's Until Dawn

Like many geeks of my generation, I've got a soft spot for 1980s horror flicks. You know the ones: the cabin in the woods, the campsite in the middle of nowhere, the remote or isolated house. A group of horny teens, a crazed killer on the loose. Friday the 13th, Halloween, A Nightmare on Elm Street - but especially, The Evil Dead series.

Those movies were pivotal in creating the whole mythos behind what's now largely entrenched in our fear-ridden souls. And like the meta-madness of the brilliantly horrific satire The Cabin in the Woods a few years back, Until Dawn (Sony) is a gaming godsend to those who worship at its altar.

The set-up is delicious, a skilful blend of the simple and the ridiculous: six American stereotypes arrive at a secluded cabin to mark the one-year anniversary of their friends' disappearance in the very same spot. Sure, why else would they be there? I mean, it's not like their buddies died there in bizarrely mysterious circumstances. And it's not like you're surrounded by a morgue, a sanatorium, an old mineshaft and a ridiculous number of hostile wild animals.

It's all very tongue-in-cheek of course, and you're constantly switching between characters as they engage in cheeky genre tropes. Jealous couples fighting in the forest, sex in preposterously dangerous spots, taking a bath with headphones on, writing off extremely loud noises as "nothing".

But make no mistake: this isn't a spoof, it's a satire. Each lazy chestnut is given the due respect that only a long-time cliché could ever deserve. Nowhere is that better showcased than in your ability to make decisions about your characters' actions, the game every so often popping up with a "butterfly effect" choice that alters the game's narrative. The concept isn't particularly original - developer Sony used it to similar effect in another movie-inspired release, Heavy Rain - but it's the context that's particularly clever.