The game has some interesting ideas and it focuses more on the mysterious plot and puzzle solving than out right action. The most unique mechanic that developer Action Forms have introduced is the idea of body temperature. Your body temperature is synonymous with your health and if you want to avoid permanently freezing you have to spend some time warming yourself at heat sources. Whether it’s a naked light bulb, some hot pipes or a fire, the heat you can absorb is essential for your survival. This re-enforces the atmosphere and really makes you feel like you are in the arctic.
Perhaps less original your character has an ability called “Mental Echo” which allows you to go back in time. You can witness the events leading up to whatever disaster befell the North Wind but these flashbacks are not just limited to ghostly visions you can also take control of characters and even change events. The purpose of this is generally to solve a puzzle or remove an obstruction which is blocking your progress back in the present. Sadly the whole thing is very linear and like most FPS games there is no real choice in terms of route or approach.
The main menace you encounter is zombie like creatures who leap at you and provide a number of jumpy scares. There are also a few other enemies to defeat, some armed with weapons, but the combat game-play feels unpolished and secondary. The weapons are slow and awkward, they are dated and this is no doubt a deliberate attempt to increase the tension but sometimes it is frustratingly tough to beat the creatures throwing themselves at you. The actual control of your character feels a bit sluggish, as though the cold has slowed everything down, and manoeuvring in the claustrophobic confines of the ship environment can be a little tricky.
