Clock Tower: Rewind

Clock Tower: Rewind is an odd game that we feel comfortable recommending to survival horror enthusiasts who wish to experience absolutely everything the genre has to offer. Its visuals and gameplay are undeniably archaic, but there's nevertheless something quaint about its combat-free, point-and-click mechanics. The short experience is elevated greatly by the added extras included for this new release, and we'd fully recommend perusing all of it to help give context and aid appreciation of this pre-RE horror game. Not a must-play re-release, then, but one we would urge horror fans to experience at least once.

Clock Tower: Rewind turns back the clock as it gives players a look at an influential horror game from the 90s than few in the west got to play. Even with updates, it's still a bit cumbersome. And yet it's dripping in dread and atmosphere and has style as sharp as oversized scissors.

A classic horror game has finally gotten a new chance to shine

Clock Tower: Rewind is a deeply interesting curiosity. It's one of the origins of the horror games that would lead to Resident Evils and Silent Hills, and it's an early attempt to convey the idea of a weak and helpless protagonist facing a stalking evil. It all happened on the SNES. It's an incredibly noteworthy experience if you're invested in the history of game genres, and it's wonderful to have it available with an official translation. However, as a game, it hasn't aged particularly well, and you need a good amount of patience to put up with its foibles to see its strengths.

Survival horror adventure in a new guise that takes you back to the genre's beginnings. It still has a lot to offer, but overall it has received only minor changes and improvements.

Clock Tower is one of those games where I’m not sure I really liked it much, but I’m glad I played it. I’m not even talking from a historical perspective. Yeah, it’s an important game, but it’s also a very unique one. An SNES game with such a dark presentation and such heavy atmosphere isn’t all that common, and Clock Tower does an impressive job of it. I just wish it was less of a chore to play.

It has not aged impeccably and does not instill fear and tension as it did 29 years ago. However, in this new, rich edition, Rewind Clock Tower is still an enjoyable survival horror, original in its own way and widely replayable.

I did not enjoy my time with Clock Tower: Rewind. The game is serviceable, but the puzzles were dissatisfying, the story is nothing overly memorable, and the item pickups themselves are very simple. Few things which make it uniquely justifiable.

Despite some faults, including simple puzzles, a clunky control scheme, and tedious exploration, Hifumi Kono's seminal survival-horror game is worth playing, at least once.

Clock Tower Rewind is a brilliant example of how to revitalize a classic without losing its soul. It combines the tense atmosphere and intriguing narrative of the original with modern improvements to the gameplay and presentation. The game is both a love letter to fans of the franchise and an accessible entry point for new players who have the patience to adapt to 30-year-old design concepts.