Narinig Mo Ba is an independent psychological horror game that explores the spine-chilling urban stories and folklore of the Philippines. It is not blatant gore or creatures jumping out at the screen. It is a suffocating atmosphere and expert sound design creating fear.
You play as a single character, alone in their house, in the middle of the night. The location realistically recreates a typical Filipino rural or residential home, with familiar, daily items that still emanate an unnerving cold. Soon, the quiet of the night is disrupted by odd, unexplainable sounds ringing from outside. Players are forced to investigate and inspect the house as an unseen fear grows more and more hideous and warped with the sounds.
As the name suggests, Narinig Mo Ba is all about its sound design. The game pulls heavily from Philippine folklore and the supernatural. Specifically, the rules of sound pertaining to things like the Aswang or the Tiktik bird: if you hear a loud and clear cry, the creature is far away, but if the sound starts to die out, or sounds far away, or is just a whisper, then death is literally breathing down your neck. The psychological pressure on the players is great, because they must strain their ears for the smallest movement and at the same time dread the realisation of where the sound is truly coming from.
The game features the classic low-poly graphic style of the 90s PlayStation 1 period with some extra hazy CRT/VHS-like visual noise. The rough, blocky polygons, the gloomy colour palette, and the extremely limited visibility due to the darkness not only create nostalgia but also play with the imagination, leading to disturbing hallucinations. The living room is full of darkened corners and patches of shadow that constantly fool your eyes into believing they see something staring directly at you
The most attractive thing about the game is that it is a true depiction of the Southeast Asian mystical atmosphere. Narinig Mo Ba feels like a virtual representation of the ghost stories Filipino elders tell to terrify children into remaining indoors at night. This short indie title is a true test of nerves, with a claustrophobic first-person view, spine-tingling sound effects, and authentic cultural nuances. After you've shut the game off it creates a frightening impression that persists.
Prepare for a haunting, supernatural experience with Narinig Mo Ba!
