Routine

Just as our only natural satellite orbits us, our thoughts have often revolved around the moon when the mysterious needs an explanation. It has been linked to insanity and werewolves, and in fiction, its dark side has given rise to one of the best albums of the 1970s and imaginative notions of hidden Nazi bases. Thus, it's not only the moon that is attracted to us, but we are also attracted to it. It feels relatable because it's so close to us, but it can still hold mysteries that surpass our wildest imagination.

British Lunar Software has clearly also been struck by moon madness. They announced their debut title back in 2012, and after what can only be described as an unusually long development period filled with challenges, Routine is now ready to step into the spotlight.

Routine is built around two central ideas. The first is retrofuturism, which takes its cue from the 1980s, with its clunky computers placing it close to Alien in its expression. The second idea is a focus on the physical and tactile. All interfaces are in the game world, represented by your C.A.T. scanner, which can access terminals and be used to save the game and check your goals. You can see your limbs, look around corners, stand on your toes, lie down completely, and when you sprint, the screen shakes violently while your breathing becomes heavy.

Accessing your scanner and switching between modules with different functions is a bit tedious, but otherwise the approach works fine, although I can't help thinking that it would have worked significantly better in VR.

Another concept that is inextricably linked to Routine is, of course, the moon and the secrets it may hold. At the start of the game, you arrive at a kind of recreational moon base, where it quickly becomes clear that something has gone completely wrong. The abandoned rooms and corridors are littered with personal belongings, electrical cables have been torn out of the walls, and in several places, something that is at best tomato soup and at worst blood is stuck to the walls. It's a familiar starting point, too familiar in fact, but Lunar Software deserves praise for the pace at which they peel away the layers of mystery. You quickly discover that something has caused the security robots to act hostile, and when you find out why an hour later, it raises new questions. The balancing act between maintaining the mystery without keeping the player waiting too long is anything but easy, but Routine actually succeeds in doing so. It's not that the story is wildly surprising, and the themes of the danger of handing over control to machines and how we are both frightened by and drawn to the unknown have been explored countless times in sci-fi and horror. But even if what Lunar Software says may not be particularly original, they manage to be eloquent while doing so.

As mentioned, Routine was announced back in 2012, a time when "run-and-hide" horror was all the rage. And mechanically, Routine feels very much like a product of that time. Methodically, you explore the moon base while solving puzzles that can bring you closer to solving the mystery. However, you don't have peace and quiet to do the job. The aforementioned robots patrol the corridors, and they don't ask questions before they attack. Initially, they may make your hair stand on end a little, but since they are neither smart nor fast and can even be disabled using your C.A.T.'s short-circuit function, it doesn't take long before they lose their ability to scare you.

Therefore, it's a gift to Routine that another threat is introduced about halfway through the game. I won't reveal exactly what it is, but it definitely surpasses the robots in terms of scare factor. And on top of that, it's faster than you! On the other hand, it's a little frustrating that while the robots have to get you twice before you meet your end, it only takes one dance with our mysterious friend, which leads to a greater degree of trial and error. It's never the coolest thing, however, it can also be slowed down using another module on your C.A.T, which is definitely a mitigating circumstance.

Let's dwell on this useful tool for a moment. You will continuously find new modules for your scanner and solve many of the game's puzzles with their help. The first module can short-circuit circuits, while the Ultraview module, as the name suggests, is a kind of ultraviolet light that you can use to spy on codes on keypads by looking at fingerprints or, in an excellent puzzle, decode symbols at locations that you find using a series of Polaroid photos. In general, the game's puzzles are among its strengths, as they often require you to search for knowledge in the documents scattered around and use it practically, such as when you make a decontamination fluid in a laboratory and have to read up on which components can work together. With a few exceptions, they feel natural in relation to the progress necessary for your mission, which enhances the immersion that is, in many ways, Routine's raison d'être. However, it's disappointing that the physicality displayed in the control of your character and the way you approach your interface is not found in the game's puzzles. It's almost always about interacting with screens, while physics never come into play.

This makes Routine feel a bit limited, and that feeling is only reinforced by the aforementioned cat-and-mouse sequences against enemies. You dodge using rudimentary hiding places and then take them down with a shot and run for your life. It feels like the start of the 2010s in a boring way. And then the concept of solving puzzles at the risk of being caught should be retired. It's not intense, just annoying.

At least the sequences are usually not particularly difficult, so there is no frustration, but we will soon have to move on and make this type of gameplay more engaging, for example by giving the player more tools to use tactically to create opportunities to get past the enemy. And then, of course, a more cunning AI. Perhaps Alien: Isolation 2 can show the way?

Where Routine has its ups and downs mechanically, Lunar Software hits the nail on the head in terms of atmosphere. The retro-futuristic moon base exudes life, and every moment and space has an incredibly high level of detail that really sells the location. Everything is held together by a thread, and flashing lights and exposed electrical panels indicate that even that is on borrowed time. The accomplished atmosphere also helps to elevate the game's weaker elements. As I said, I found the encounters with enemies often underwhelming, but the build-up was almost always thrillingly intense.

In that way, I ended up liking Routine quite a lot. Admittedly, I can find something to complain about in all of the mechanical elements, whether it's the rudimentary encounters with enemies or the lack of physicality. And neither the choice of setting nor the themes are particularly original. On the other hand, it's an incredibly atmospheric journey, where every room feels important to your progress, slowly but surely bringing you closer and closer to madness, but perhaps also to the truth. Routine may not write a new chapter in the history of horror, but it retells the old ones in a stylish way.