Heartworm | Review

EDIT: September 4 This review was updated to meet the new review guidelines of Source Gaming.
Thank you to DREADXP and Vincent Adinolfi for providing Source Gaming with a review copy of Heartworm. Thank you to Wolfman for editing and proofreading this review.

Since playing titles such as SILENT HILL and Mouthwashing last year, having set their spots within my top five games of 2024, my itch to play more horror titles grows strong. My twenty years of not playing many horror games weren’t out of disinterest. I’ve loved watching people play Resident Evil and Five Nights at Freddy’s. The fear of something or someone looming in the dark, the unexpected shuffling of the floorboards when no one else is in the house, or the way that simple figures and imagery feel more imposing without anything to distract their darkness-altered presence; it’s uncomfortable, yet deliciously addicting. I just needed the courage to finally say, “I want to do this,” – and now I want more. Thus, when I spotted Heartworm’s stellar key art on Steam and saw the first two screenshots highlighting its inspired PlayStation 1 3D graphics, I knew I didn’t want to see more until I played it for myself. Now, having that experience, my hopes were met in more ways than one.

In the year 1999, far in the mountains, Heartworm places you in the role of Sam, a young woman who takes interest in an abandoned home after hearing of it on forum posts and chat rooms. According to rumors, there exists a room within the house that will lead you to the other side and be with those that you’ve lost one more time. However, this journey will be more than just a trek to see who she’s lost, as she encounters unexpected horrors and familiar locales from her past, all connected through The Archive – a massive, yet small library with a torn book at its center.

Heartworm’s tackling of these environments went beyond my expectations. As soon as I headed into this trashed abode, its darkness immediately left me startled, causing me to step right back out. Fortunately, as a photographer, Sam’s well-equipped for the task. Her camera’s flash lights up the obscured surroundings. There isn’t a limit to how often you can do this, and the times it’s most useful are among the tensest in the game.

But, more than just a secondhand flashlight, Sam’s camera serves as her means for fending off different hostiles. Using it as an over-the-shoulder shooter lets you incapacitate enemies by startling them or momentarily distorting their existence. Additionally, when you’re worried about being on the cusp of entering a dangerous situation, aiming the camera can allow you to catch glimpses of what’s around the corner.

That second-hand flashlight ability is not something you’ll always need. Despite featuring unnerving instances in an unlit familiar home or the streets of a noise-infested neighborhood, Heartworm also features surprising moments of solace and beauty. That includes the save rooms, but their biggest impact comes in areas that are close to Sam’s heart. As you make way into her old home from the neighborhood streets, the path to her bedroom reveals itself as a void of homes backdropped by a soothing gradient and calming music.

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Music and sound are other aspects that Heartworm excels at. It’s calming and beautiful in those lighter moments, and when the horrors commence, nothing gets held back. The shackles of a beast as you enter the room, the unexpected turning of a statue, the distortion of the audio to sudden screeching; they all freeze you up as much as the incoming danger and lack of options. One effect that I truly loved, to the point that I’m still not sure if my brain was playing tricks on me, is how music interacts with the puzzles. Enter a room with a puzzle, and it’ll have a theme, just like every other room. However, once you finish the puzzle, the composition seems to become more haunting, with new sound effects or elements.. Even in success, I felt unnerved.

There’s a lot more praise Heartworm deserves, like its accessibility toggles and playstyle options. Afraid of spiders? Turn on arachnophobia mode. Not digging the tank controls for some reason? Make the gameplay with a more modern control setup, or maybe revert the camera control to a classic style. Not digging its retro look? Turn off the filters to get a clean look – though I think its intended look is best.

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However, I think there are times when the narrative suffers. The story is quite simple with what it has to say and how it concludes, at least with the ending that I got, but Heartworm loses a bit of its mystery with the journal entries strewn about the game. Some are way too on the nose in telling the player, “Hey, this is something from Sam’s past, or these are reflections of something else that happened,” when the environment or map can tell you in fewer words. In enough instances, Sam will also speak on the situation herself, but I feel the context of it could be better framed. As part of her journey is about uncovering if the reported rumors and skepticism are true, recording her monologues would feel more appropriate. If they were set up as something for other people to potentially hear, their impact would feel more narratively intriguing rather than what feels as utilized for ensuring the player understands the story, alongside learning more about Sam.

Those instances and their utility, in combination, cause Heartworm to lose some of the strength within its otherwise interesting narrative. If less was said and certain moments of buildup were allowed to just sit within the player’s mind, questioned without necessarily being answered, it would’ve made the overall game even stronger. However, with the survival aspect of the game not being that difficult, having died only once through my normal mode playthrough, it allowed for more of my attention and memory to be directed towards its narrative and puzzles.

Heartworm has stayed in my mind, just like SILENT HILL did. I think its message, especially as an artist, is something I enjoyed experiencing and probably needed to hear. I also think it passes the horror game test: if it makes you scared enough to put off gaming sessions until morning, it’s doing well. I already want to play it again to uncover the other endings, unlock the other outfits and secrets, and thankfully, it’s not long. My playtime clocked in at 5:17. It’s only $15 on Steam, so I think this is a horror game that is worth your fear.

7 / 10