It would be easy to look at screenshots and video of psychological horror puzzler Shil and dismiss it for being too basic, but its simplicity is its greatest strength. The all-encompassing, void-like environments and clever design make for one of the most engrossing, addictive VR games I have played all year.

Most horror games ratchet up the frights with clever sound design, low lighting, and a musical score that rises and lowers at opportune times to disturb you. Shil goes the total opposite direction, stripping the world down to next to nothing in a two-tone art style that is disturbingly effective. You are often times looking straight at seemingly nothing, but you know something is there. You can feel it. No screenshot or video I can add to this article can put the feeling of playing this game across. It has to be experienced to be appreciated.

I may be alone here, but one of the worst situations you can put me in is leaving me alone in a room with nothing but my thoughts. This is a crude metaphor, but playing Shil felt like sitting in a doctor's office waiting on test results. My mind kept going to the worst-case scenario. I got that same feeling of dread walking through Shil's world. Fear of the unknown can be very powerful, particularly in an environment with precious little available to distract your mind other than the path ahead.

You are trapped within the recesses of your shattered mind, tasked by an AI guide to reclaim your lost memories.

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