Review: Save Room is a Complicated, Stressful, but Aesthetic Experience

You skulk through the decrepit halls of a mysterious mansion, casually glancing over your shoulder at threats that aren’t there. At any moment, an undead could pop out from behind a corner and bring your life to an unceremonious end. As you inch towards an unfamiliar, decaying door, your mind drifts to the scenarios that might await. It’s not like you have a ton of ammo left, so if one of them is in the room, you might have no choice but to book it. Carefully, you grip the doorknob and twist —

— music. A wave of relief washes over you as the realization sets in. Whatever nightmares that await you on the outside will have to wait. Because this … is a save room.

If you have ever played a Resident Evil game, chances are … you know exactly how this feels. It’s a mix of relief and abject horror — while the zombies can’t reach you, the only thing standing between them and you … is you. In these iconic save rooms, there is (usually) a typewriter to save your progress. And, there’s almost always a large cargo container where you can store or retrieve items.

It was Resident Evil 4, in fact, that evolved this mechanic into a minigame in its own right. In that game, your inventory was made up of a set number of squares, and each weapon / item took up space. So, if you wanted to be fully prepared for the biological nightmares that awaited you … the only way was to learn inventory management. While I admit the inventory management became a minigame unto itself, never in a million years would I have thought it’d become a full game. Enter: Save Room.

Review Takeaways

• Save Room is a great concept that wears its inspiration on its sleeve, and as a result, fails to define what it is.
• It sticks the landing when it comes to aesthetic, capturing the feeling of hopelessness present in most Resident Evil games.
• There is definitely room for growth here if there ever is a sequel; more levels, higher difficulty and stakes.
• It feels like a mobile game at times with its jump in/jump out mechanics.
• Final Score: 8/10

Inventory Management: The Game

In Save Room, developed by Fractal Projects and published by Ratalaika Games, that’s the game. You’re presented with a uniquely shaped diagram comprised of squares to your right, and a random assortment of items to your left. These items can be weapons like a shotgun, a handgun, or a rocket launcher. But, you can also expect ammo boxes, grenades, and eggs, among other items. Your goal here is to make each item fit within the diagram, which is a lot easier said than done.

In order to make the weapons and items fit, sometimes you’re expected to rotate and combine items. For example, if you have a shotgun and shotgun ammo, you’d combine them in order to … wait for it … save room in your inventory. It can sometimes feel like Tetris, if the goal of Tetris was to fill the box perfectly. It most certainly is not the goal of Tetris, but that sure hasn’t stopped me …

An Aesthetic To Die Reload For

You could be wondering why I made the comparison to Resident Evil earlier. If Save Room is an inventory management sim, there’s nothing that inexorably ties it to the infamous survival horror series by Capcom, right? I’ll put it this way — in the main menu of any given (original) Resident Evil title, and you start a new game, you hear an iconic, deep voice reading the name of the game.

“RESIDENT EVIL,” the voice says as the screen fades to black. If you’ve played a single game in that series, there’s a good chance you just played it back in your head. It’s that memorable. In Save Room, it does the same thing. As you select the START option, a deep voice will say, in an ominous tone, “SAVE ROOM.” It’s honestly hilarious the way it’s executed, and sets your expectations for this unorthodox puzzle game.

I loved how, the entire time you’re playing, there’s this simultaneously haunting, yet calming melody that goes a long way in terms of aesthetic. That, paired with the light drizzling of rain, makes me feel like I am right back in the depths of the Spencer Mansion in a way that I probably wouldn’t, lest I decide to replay the original Resident Evil.

Effective, But Not Perfect

I found the puzzles, overall, to be both effective and engaging, yet … something was missing. It largely felt like a mobile game in that the puzzles are the game. It begins with level 1 and ends with level 40, and there is absolutely nothing else involved in the experience. Now, it should be said that nothing else needs to be involved in the experience. But, there is definitely room to experiment with this formula in a sequel.

I mean, what if there were certain levels where there was a time limit? If the music got more tense, and you had a limited amount of time to complete it, lest the hordes of undead break in? I get that that’s not kosher with the way Resident Evil games typically work, but this isn’t a Resident Evil game. It has freedom to play around with the tropes and gameplay elements to create something all its own, while also being heavily inspired by the infamous survival horror experience.

I would’ve also liked to see more than 40 levels. Sure; considering the mechanics of Save Room, I think 40 levels is more than a fair number. But, what I’m saying is that it could have more, if they continued to tweak the formula. I could see it having at least 100 (if not more) levels, if the difficulty kept rising!

Raising the Stakes

What if, at some point, we had to somehow fit multiple types of weapon? Like, if there wasn’t just one pistol, or just one shotgun, but multiple varieties? And if you chose to get rid of one of them, and there ended up not being enough room for it because you should’ve gotten rid of the other one, it drove a stake in your plan and you’d have to restart?

It wouldn’t even be that different from a mechanic that’s already in the game! At some point, you’re introduced to herbs that can be combined to be more effective. And, you are expected to know which herbs to combine, which to consume, and in what order — if you don’t do it right, your run is ruined. It adds a level of tension to this game where you can’t physically be attacked, and I think applying this to weapons as well as consumables would raise the tension even further.

In Conclusion

Save Room is a flawed, yet enjoyable experience; simple, yet stressful. It perfectly captures the hopeless feeling of being trapped in a Resident Evil save room, knowing that a zombie is skulking around on the other side of the door. But, at the same time, it relies too heavily on that inspiration. It could do more to carve out its own identity if there ever is a sequel.

Related: Save Room: Levels 1-10 Solutions

In terms of a relatively short, jump-in/jump-out experience, Save Room is an exceptional concept. But, at the end of the day, a great concept is still just a concept. I believe it could be so much more.