I was too old to get into R.L.Stine’s Goosebumps series when they first came out.  I was like in high school or college by that time.  And my little brothers were too young!  So I don’t really have a lot of familiarity with this series.  In fact, the only thing I remember about Goosebumps is that when my brother Jeff was little bitty and first started swimming lessons, one of the things he needed for the class was a beach towel.  So we let him pick out whatever one he wanted at the store.  And he chose a Goosebumps one, for whatever reason. But he thought he was SO COOL with that towel!  Anyway, when a review code for a new Goosebumps game recently dropped in my lap, I thought it would be only fitting to have my brother Jeff review it!  So here is his take on Goosebumps: Terror in Little Creek.  It’s available on all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on PC here.  –Cary

I love horror games. Well, I like “watching” people play horror games. When it comes to actually playing them, I am as big a baby as you could ever find (my friends had to literally be there with me making fun of the zombies to get me to play through Dead Space), so when Cary asked me if I wanted to review Goosebumps: Terror in Little Creek I was a little hesitant. “It could only be a kiddy horror game though being a Goosebumps game, right?” WRONG! Well, not really wrong. It is obvious this is not meant to be a “scream till you mess your drawers”-style horror game, but it does have some genuinely scary features. Playing through Goosebumps: Terror in Little Creek, I could only compare it to an actual adult horror game that was clearly an inspiration: Resident Evil.

As I started My First Resident Evil- ahem- Goosebumps: Terror in Little Creek, I was introduced in a quick intro to our main character, Sloane. Sloane and her three friends, the Quad Squad, are investigating some seriously weird things happening in their little town. There is a late-night curfew, police are out investigating, and none of the adults seem to want to talk about whatever is going on. If this keeps up, many of our protagonists’ school programs are going to be cancelled in order to keep everyone safe, but from what? That is what the Quad Squad is going to figure out!

Through a variety of block puzzles, investigating artifacts, and noticing subtle clues in the scenery, Sloane helps her friends get to the bottom of this mystery. All of these challenges are incredibly reminiscent of Resident Evil, as well as the save system which literally matches Resident Evil’s as you have to find typewriters as save points (even your health is shown as a heart monitor, though thankfully there is no inventory management). Before coming face to face with whatever creepy crawlies are harassing Little Creek, I found a number of different types of pellets for my slingshot, leading me to believe I was about to meet my first baddie. And OH BOY was this first bad guy creepy! Imagine the predator from Predator got left out in the rain a little too long, and you’re close to what this terror looked like. He was fairly easy to sneak around, but for my morbid curiosity I intentionally got caught and he literally starts clawing at you as you hold him away! If you don’t press space fast enough, Sloane gets a just-off-camera chomp as the Game Over screen plays. I understand the E10+ rating, but I was kind of expecting a little more cartoonish of an enemy here. At least jump scares are limited to closing doors and such.

Kid Factor:

Goosebumps: Terror in Little Creek is rated E-10 with an ESRB descriptor of Fantasy Violence.  Little ones who are into spooky stories and have read one or two Goosebumps books or movies would have an easy time getting into Goosebumps: Terror in Little Creek. The controls are easy and there are plenty of items to help keep Sloane going through her investigation. Enemies can be frightening, with claws and fangs ready to chomp down on our hero if she is found, so I do caution parents with little ones who are more easily frightened. There is no blood or injuries shown, but the scary visage of these monsters attacking Sloane can be distressing.  –Jeff Orth

Tags: Reader Reviews!