14 DAY TRIAL // 
Most survival games often focus on survival mechanics leaving the narrative in the back row, but The Pale Beyond does both, and does it very well. With some solid, yet unforgiving survival mechanics and stellar narrative, The Pale Beyond manages to capture the eerie atmosphere it wants the player to sink into.
Developed by Bellular Studios, The Pale Beyond puts players in the shoes of Robin Shaw, second-in-command of The Temperance, the sister ship of The Viscount, which mysteriously disappeared near the South Pole.
It’s been five years since The Viscount and its crew disappeared into The Pale Passage in search of absolute magnetic South. A mysterious benefactor has decided to sponsor an expedition to find The Viscount after claiming that it received proof that at least some of the ship’s crew has survived.
Under the guise of an interview, you can customize a few traits of the character you’ll be playing, which will provide some additional insights at some point during the mission, as well as help you with some decisions.
Although it starts a bit slower, The Pale Beyond quickly turns into a very brutal game of resource management. The crew you’ll soon lead requires two important commodities: food and heat. That means that the ship’s chef and engineer are the most important characters in the game immediately after you, the decision-maker.
The moment your ship gets stuck in ice, the game becomes a race to survive the cold and desolation of The Pale Beyond. Depending on how well you manage your resources, your crew’s morale might drop or rise. Some will be very unhappy with the decisions you make, while others will become close allies.
Although some of the decisions you make at the beginning of the game don’t seem important, it turns out that you can even lose some characters later on if you made the wrong choice. It’s a bit frustrating, especially if you become attached to that character. If there’s one thing that The Pale Beyond does very well is making you love every member of your crew.
Each character has their unique personality turning the decision-making aspect of the game into a very complex system that can make or break the cohesion of the crew. The few factions that you need to control or turn into allies act independently and often against characters they don’t like.
Even though all characters are very well written, The Pale Beyond becomes a resource management game after the first hour or so. Unfortunately, for all the many things the game does right, the UI isn’t the best and the occasional glitches sometime ruin the experience. The Pale Beyond might feel frustratingly hard if you don’t make certain decisions before your ship gets stuck in ice.
The game ends after a certain number of weeks, so all you have to do is survive, but that’s easier said than done. With little to no resources and only a handful of places to gather what’s needed to survive another week, you’re bound to regret how you managed your crew before shit hit the fan.
My first run ended miserably after 20+ weeks, but my second run got me through the finish line because I knew how to manage my resource before a certain event. The game doesn’t do a great job when it comes to warning players that something major is about to happen until it’s too late.
Visually, The Pale Beyond is inspired by the Victorian era. The hand-drawn art style is just as gorgeous as the writing. Perhaps a bit more tunes would have made the soundtrack less boring, but the first few hours were great for me.
The Good
- Excellent storytelling and writing
- Gorgeous art style
- Deep characterization
The Bad
- Minor UI glitches
- Some trivial decisions have brutal consequences
Conclusion
The first playthroughs will always be frustrating, but that’s because the game doesn’t prepare players for what’s coming. When all is said and done, The Pale Beyond is an enjoyable experience if you love survival games, but if you’re looking for a purely narrative experience, look elsewhere.
Review key was provided by the publisher.
