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You've Changed is one of the most unique horror games I've played, supercharging Spot The Difference with all manner of curses to seriously raise the stakes on the picturesque puzzler format I've always considered a little bland. Looking at two images and trying to find differences has always struck me as akin to awaiting the moment paint finally transitions from its wet state to dry. You've Changed, with a Steam Next Fest demo out now, changes (ahem) the game – thanks to some creepy twists.
Add in the possibility that the differences I'm searching for are outright evil, that I'll receive jump scares, and that my heart may erode – and all of a sudden You've Changed has, well, made Spot The Difference a more sweat-inducing proposition. In fact, the way it puts me on alert, flicking between each image that represents a room, reminds me of the original Five Nights at Freddy's – a gameplay loop that I have to admit I still think is pretty strong. Our Steam Next Fest guide may help you find even more demos to give a go too!
Look closer
While a Story Mode is promised in the full release to explain more about the Anomalies – the differences you're searching for – my time with the game revolves around a simple tutorial and an arcade mode featuring one level with multiple difficulties: the house. Consisting of three rooms – a kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom – it has me juggling changes across all three if I want to make it through the night.
The 8-bit MS Paint-style graphics lend You've Changed an eerie atmosphere. Something about the style always makes me think of cozy times, meaning this haunted perversion feels a little bit extra cursed. But, importantly, the lo-fi graphics aren't just a throwback to an incredible aesthetic, but allow for an extra element of clarity crucial in elucidating the exorcism-worthy alterations that come my way.
Each round, a stopwatch allows for some time to get to grips with the non-haunted layouts of the rooms. Toggling between single-screen views of each room with a press of a button, I realize I'm actually really easily distracted – trying my best to say out loud any key features I want to be on the lookout for. "Bin: closed. Two knives. Calendar has a smiley face. One figure in the painting. Doll on the cupboard".
Anomalies can creep in after the stopwatch has finished, after which you need to survive until the timer is over. Allow one to exist for too long, and your heart in the top left will slowly disappear (which can't be healthy, right?). Anomalies only appear when you're not looking, meaning you'll need to steadily toggle between viewpoints until you feel like something is just off. Some can be quite subtle, perhaps a missing dish on the draining board, or a plant pot changing color. Others are much less so – a strange figure silhouetted in your shower, your attic door hanging open, or a great big tongue flopping out of your fridge.
No matter the change, you've got to quickly highlight it and mark the type of anomaly, such as 'mirror' for a duplicated item, 'extra' for something new, 'alteration' for a change, 'evil' for, erm, evil, or more. You can try again if you get the type wrong, but it costs you precious seconds. You'll quickly find your weaknesses too. While I can quickly notice if something has changed – if something is removed wholesale I'm apparently really hard at detecting it!
I've yet to really see much in the way of jump scares, though an adjustable toggle in the settings assures me they're present. Perhaps it's a consequence of just being too good – though I do shudder to think of what may lie in wait in the full game. It seems the Story Mode may have more of this.
Still, detecting differences even in this arcade mode does make me feel quite tense. The demo forces me to start on Easy, which does play maybe a tad too slowly, but does help me familiarize myself with the rooms, meaning by the time I do Normal I only succeed by the skin of my teeth. I just hope, come the full release, I'll be able to retain more information about what goes where, lest I suffer some serious haunting.
You've Changed is due to release on PC eventually, with the date TBC.
Want more chills? Take a look at our list of the best horror games!
