Ufophilia

UFOPHILIA is not without an idea, and its best abduction visuals prove there is a creepy alien-horror game hiding inside it. The problem is that everything surrounding those moments feels undercooked. As an Xbox horror release, it is rough, derivative, and too sluggish to recommend beyond the most patient genre completists.

You’ll seek out various types of aliens and artifacts using a variety of equipment, but you’ll also need to be very patient with lackluster play and sloppy execution

Overall, UFOPHILIA plays well for the most part and has many similarities to Phasmophobia in its mechanics. However, it could use some additional polish in places, the addition of multiplayer would be welcomed, and a friendlier tutorial area which allows you to learn the equipment would make the learning curve a little easier.

Fans of the great outdoors have a real treat in store, courtesy of Jandusoft and k148 Game Studio.

UFOPHILIA pivots the investigative horror formula toward alien encounters with a deep tool system. While the tutorials are frustratingly vague and the visuals can feel generic, the tension of the abduction mechanics creates a unique thrill. It is a fantastic game for UFO enthusiasts, provided they have the patience to learn its complex systems.

UFOPHILIA has the bones of a great game. The atmosphere is thick, the concept is highly original, and the scares are earned. If you are a die-hard fan of extraterrestrial lore and don't mind navigating some early-access-style bugs and design flaws, it is worth the $12.99 price tag. However, if you are looking for a polished, seamless experience to play with your squad, you should probably wait in the RV until the multiplayer patch drops. – Flare

UFOPHILIA is just meh, all the work you do to uncover an alien’s spawn point just feels needless. And when it comes to snapping a photo, you need to get stupidly close. Which sucks since they are able to spot you easily and lock doors. I’m a little disappointed in the actual designs as well, due to me thinking there might be some cool looking aliens. That was not the case. The tutorials did not give me much hope to begin with, as some of the tools would not even spawn. It also comes across too much like a ghost hunting game rather than aliens. I do like catching footage of the aliens on camera, but the fact that it does not count towards evidences is just plain silly. Since the feed goes to the laptop, the same way as audio. In the end, the game just comes across as cheap, from the tools to the actual aliens themselves. So, I am gonna give UFOPHILIA the Thumb Culture Bronze Award.

Overall, UFOPHILIA has some fun ideas and genuinely strong sound design, but it feels mislabelled as a horror game. As scary as staring at a screen trying to figure out which alien you’re hunting can be, the aliens themselves simply aren’t scary enough to support that label.