Intruders: Hide and Seek is a first-person stealth game. You play Ben, whose massive, secluded family home in Longwoods has been invaded by a sinister trio of thugs who seem hell bent on getting some information from your research boffin father. They beat him and tie both him and your mother up in the basement. You manage to escape to the safe room with your sister Irene, who is suffering from some kind of awful respiratory illness or another, and needs her pills. Your task is clear: "Survive the night. Save your family."
The controls are pretty simple; you Run (very slowly) with 'L3' (click the left stick) and Crouch with 'R3'. Your flashlight is switched on with 'X'. 'A' selects/picks up/operates everything and 'B' puts things down. Walking slowly is advised as the intruders have excellent hearing and will hear your footsteps if you blunder around.
Getting caught means a violent scene as your discoverer kicks at, grabs or swings for you, then the screen fades to black and the Xbox controller buzzes like it's going to take off. If you manage to nip into one of the many hiding places (which might be under a bed or a louvre-doored cupboard so you can see out) you can wait until the seeker wanders off, or if they saw you but you managed to get into another room or around a corner and hide in the nick of time you can calm your thumping heart by pressing the 'L' Trigger in time with the on-screen heart monitor's blip.
The game moves smoothly but the graphics and lighting are at best functional by today's standards, and their VR origins are obvious. The character models are basic, as is their animation, but the game still manages to conjure up moments of terror and the occasional jump scare and plenty of atmosphere with some apt music and voice acting. The stealthy gameplay is a bit too simplistic, and could have done with giving you the opportunity to take some revenge on the intruders and set some traps, Home Alone-style.
The massive, modern house is spread over 3 floors. Initially it can be quite confusing, but, for a pleasant change in a stealth game, the map really does help and always shows your position and your next objective.
The budget price of £17.99 is realistic, as Intruders isn't going to take you more than 3-4 hours to complete, and that's if you stop to look for collectibles, of which there are quite a few. The backstory is a sinister one, and reading all the collectible documents will fill in the macabre details. Thankfully there's a chapter select option available when you finish the game in case you want to revisit, and find 'em all.
Many thanks to Tessera Studios, Daedelic Entertainment and PressEngine for the review code.