Developer: Exit Plan Games
Platform: PC (Reviewed)
Genre: Action, Casual, Horror
Publisher: Exit Plan Games
Panic in the Woods is a horror survival and extraction game. The game was developed and published by Exit Plan Games. Panic in the Woods is similar to other games like Dead By Daylight, Friday the 13th, etc. The game is only available for Windows.
Panic in the Woods is a 1-4 player game where you and your friends are equipped with walkie-talkies and have to rely on one another as Boy Scouts to escape the creepy forest. You arrive at a creepy forest where your bus breaks down and you have to carry out a demonic ritual to banish the evil in order to escape. Players have to explore the vast forest where they need to find keys to unlock numerous hellish dimensions, retrieve precious artifacts, and carry out the ritual.
Panic in the Woods can be played in multiplayer with up to 4 people, and we personally found that it is a lot more fun to play the game with more people than yourself. The solo experience felt quite difficult, especially because when the monster has locked onto you, there is great difficulty in evading it. When playing as a team, being able to communicate with others and search for keys was a lot easier, as the map seemed much bigger than one would think. Now the game has an in-game voice chat feature where players are equipped with a walkie-talkie, and this was a great addition to the ambience because the voice would distort to resemble a real walkie-talkie. At the time we were testing this game, we did not find any public games that were available for us to join. I would suggest that the public game connection option be switched to something else because plugging in the cord does not make much sense in finding a lobby.
The controls for the game are very straightforward. Most of the keybinds are shown on the screen, and interactables light up with the keybind, so nothing is bound to be missed in the game. The controls worked very smoothly, and there was no evident delay. Panic in the Woods does a great job of creating a daunting environment where the main mechanic that players need to keep in mind is not making any noise. A lot of the things that players run into or touch can make a noise, and these show a volume icon that will trigger the monster towards you. The monster is extremely sensitive to sound, so even speaking through the walkie-talkies can trigger it. Being able to keep this mechanic in mind makes the game so much more fun because you need to be more stealthy rather than recklessly run away to avoid the monster.
The visual for Panic in the Woods is my favourite part of the game because it adds such a quirky charm to the horrifying atmosphere of the game. The main characters that you play in Panic in the Woods resemble these round squishable toys; even the animations for them are so adorable that they wobble left and right as they run away. The map design is quite nice, as there is a great amount of detail added to the fauna and layout that creates difficulties for players to maneuver around. There is a realistic yet slightly cartoonish look to the game, which allows for the game to be brought to life. Panic in the Woods uses an array of lighting with immersive sound effects that add to the eerie atmosphere. Another thing I liked about the visuals was the monster’s design, which seemed like that one toy Ed from Toy Story had messed together. The monster itself is terrifying with its daunting spider-like legs and menacing red eyes that have a sense of ‘red light, green light’ to them. I do have to say that the sound effects are extremely effective and scary, and the emphasis on being able to hear the monsters’ distant footsteps makes the gaming experience really fun.
For the price of Panic in the Woods, I highly recommend it because it’s a challenging horror extraction game that has a stunning visual charm. Every playthrough is unique, as you have a new setup with key objects and tools randomly scattered across the map. The use of the tools and items at your disposal are really helpful in trying to evade the monster and carry out the ritual. The game even requires some parkour and fending off light monsters to achieve your goal. Panic in the Woods requires players to play smart and be highly keen on the noise they are making, or else the game will be over for you.
We were provided with codes, and one of the other players, Vroggo, had the following to say: “Panic in the Woods was such a fun party game playing with friends. The jellybean characters and their running animation are cute and funny. The map was very well built with the various biomes, some of which had their own environmental hazards. Overall, the graphics contributed a lot to the fun experience.
The game stays true to its description when it describes the difficulty as a “High-Stakes Challenge.” It was difficult trying to get away from the big monster once it’s locked in on you, but it could’ve been more manageable if there were more hiding spots/places around the map to avoid it. At one point, the monster even camped around the jail cell where my friend was locked, which made it nearly impossible to free them.
Other than that, the game is pretty solid. The map is big, so there are a lot of places to explore, and the puzzles are fun to solve. The mini jumpscares around the map were a nice touch, and proximity voice chat never fails to be funny when you’re being chased.”
If you are looking for a high-stakes survival and extraction game where you need to be wary of the noise you make to evade the demonic demon haunting the creepy forest, then this game is just for you. You can play this game either by yourself or with a party of up to 4 players. The game features an in-game voice chat, terrifying sound effects, quirky cartoonish visuals, and a great selection of tools for you to be smart with. If Panic in the Woods sounds like a game for you, then be sure to check it out!
Overall: 8/10
This is S & S. We are world game explorers. We play games. We have played over 10,000+ games! We travel, we write reviews AND we play more games!!!!
