Southeast Asia is known for its original horror movies. Japan, in particular, has terrified the entire world with successful flicks like The Ring and The Grudge. Well, game developer Hudson Soft decided to capitalize on this fact and design a game that will have all the elements of the classic Asian horror movie. Behold the videogame Calling.
Basically, Calling has all the right scary stuff—the long black hair, creepy dolls, dilapidated hospital and school corridors, mysterious phone calls and the works. However, it’s a general rule in gaming that once the primary shock wears off, the game should still be able to keep you interested. Unfortunately, Calling has failed to do just that. The first two levels are exciting enough. The sudden appearances of faces in the window and the attack of scary ghosts are really good for some fun. But as the game progresses, the player barely does anything more than wander along dark corridors and enter doorways.
The cell phone feature is also incorporated in the game. Basically, the player receives scary phone calls and can also make calls in order to pass from one stage to the other. However, the fact that you need to remember each and every phone number definitely subtracts from the urgency of the game and turns it into one long memory exercise. Apparently, mobile phones in Calling do not have the redial feature.
Most players also found the puzzles quite slow and boring—which is quite ironic since they were probably thrown in to interrupt the game’s overall monotony.
All in all, the only redeeming factors of the Calling are the nice graphics and the consistently creepy atmosphere.

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