Being trapped in an alternate horror world once is a traumatic experience that many would not repeat. But when you accidentally stumble inside once more, you must hold out hope you can survive. Even if it takes three years until salvation comes. When you see your chance, that’s when the real threats to your survival kick in. Can you still escape with your life and be happy afterwards?
The Coma 2B: Catacomb takes place at the same time as The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters, but from Youngho’s perspective. The core gameplay remains the same but with tougher enemies and puzzles. Unfortunately, some gameplay elements are harder than usual and the story feels inconsistent. Thankfully, that doesn’t detract from the experience too much and it’s still a good horror game.
The Coma 2B: Catacomb by Dvora Studio Co., Ltd is a horror adventure game where you play as Youngho, a Korean highschool student. He’s just emerged from his first trip into the Coma and is excited to get back to school life. What he doesn’t know is that he bungled his first exit from the Coma. It wasn’t bad enough that he’s going to die, but the improper escape means he’s stuck. He spends three years in the Coma before he finds a way out.
This is the third game in the series, but not a direct sequel. The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters focused on Mina, Youngho’s childhood friend, as a protagonist. Anyone who has played the first two games will feel right at home. Seeing Youngho’s perspective is refreshing and it’s great to have more insight into his survival. You also learn what he was dealing with while Mina was exploring the Coma. Watching both plot points intertwine is interesting and you can’t wait to see more. Unfortunately, most of the game’s best moments don’t work without prior knowledge.
For example, the dangers of the Coma are easy to see in the initial adventure. But the reason Youngho can’t just escape is covered in The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters. It’s also difficult to understand Youngho’s existing relationships with characters like Yaesol without playing the first game. While you can get the general outline of the plot without playing the previous games, it’s confusing without them. Youngho’s actions also look really silly without that prior knowledge.
It doesn’t help that The Coma 2B: Catacomb also introduces new plot points that don’t make much sense. For example, Youngho helps Mina throughout her adventure in subtle ways. But given what we learn in Catacomb, what Youngho does puts Mina in more danger. Some of his attempts to help her are also silly, such as using someone else’s phone to warn her. While there is some desire to protect Mina, Youngho was better off directly involving himself more.
The game also has slow pacing, best seen in the beginning of the game. Youngho repeatedly experiences a time loop before he learns how to break out. That loop goes on for a while and it takes time before you see any action. This doesn’t include the fact that you repeat the loop for potential romance options if you want one of the achievements. That pacing tires you out and makes you wish for more horror, rather than continuing a decent story.
When you do get to the gameplay, it’s more challenging than the other games. Youngho has to search dark areas while solving puzzles and navigating obstacles. He’s often hunted by powerful beings twisted by the Coma’s influence. You can’t fight the beings and must find hiding spots to avoid them. But these powerful beings now have assistants to make the job even harder, adding more difficulty onto an already difficult game.
On one hand, the difficulty is a welcome shake-up. There have always been dangers to watch out for, like stationary spirits that swipe you or poison gas plants. But the introduction of assistant spirits forces you to be more aware of your surroundings. Even if you aren’t chased by a pursuer, you can still die because other spirits aggressively pursue you too. When a pursuer is in the area, it becomes an adrenaline-pumping hiding experience like no other.
On the other, this difficulty is sometimes taken to extremes. Puzzle-solving often involves multiple rounds of backtracking and some ingenuity. Instructions aren’t always clear which means it’s easy to confuse the solutions. In some cases, you have to mentally rotate pieces of paper to figure out the solution. Piecing together information is already difficult when you are hunted by a pursuer. Doing more mental work on top of that can be even more taxing.
In some cases the game can lie to you as well. One instance at school has several doors you can unlock with codes. Sheets of code slips are handed out but they aren’t labeled properly. This means you could spend hours trying to open a door whose code is incorrect. It makes the game’s horror less about surviving and more about dealing with puzzles whose solution you couldn’t reasonably obtain.
Fortunately, the core gameplay is still enjoyable and heart-pounding. Pursuers are even harder to shake off, moving faster or having quieter footsteps. The adrenaline pumping experience of hiding and waiting for them to pass has never gotten old. You now have a flashlight that can help you find items and money, as well as lighting up the room. The flashlight does clue enemies in to your location, forcing you to consider its usage.
There’s also more Korean voice overs that somewhat immerse you in the experience. You might not notice it much after the beginning, but it’s a nice touch. The imagery is now even creepier, with even normal-looking characters gradually shifting appearance due to the Coma. It is hand-waved to the extent that it adds to the creepiness, showing you how weird the Coma world is.
The Coma 2B: Catacomb is not perfect but it is a worthy addition to the Coma series. If you ever felt you needed more adrenaline after playing the game with Mina, picking up with Youngho is perfect. You still run and hide from enemies like before, but with a veteran of the Coma world. Just don’t get too frustrated with the puzzles and hope that there’s a guide created shortly.
Victor played The Comba 2B: Catacomb on PC with a review code.
