10 Things You Didn’t Know about Gylt

Gylt is a horror game that has been released for the Google Stadia. It isn’t being hailed as the next masterwork in horror gaming. However, there are some characteristics that cause it to stand out, which is why interested individuals might have heard its name in recent times. Here are 10 things that you may or may not have known about Gylt:

1. Made By Tequila Works

It is interesting to note that Gylt was made by Tequila Works. Given the name, some people might expect it to be a Mexican studio. However, that isn’t the case. Instead, Tequila Works is a Spanish studio based in Madrid, which has had a fair amount of experience with making adventure games for various platforms.

2. Platform Exclusive for Google Stadia

One of the reasons that Gylt has managed to get noticed is because it is a Google Stadia exclusive. To be exact, it is the one Google Stadia exclusive to be available to interested individuals upon the platform’s launch, meaning that there are a lot of expectations placed upon it. Said state of affairs may or may not be fair, but it is as it is.

3. Gateway Horror

There are some people who have described Gylt as an example of “gateway horror.” Essentially, it is meant for younger individuals as well as inexperienced individuals who are curious enough about the horror genre of games to look for something to serve as an introduction. As a result, Gylt isn’t the scariest experience that interested individuals can find out there, though that is very far from saying that it has no merits of its own.

4. Centered On a Girl Named Sally

For those who are curious, Gylt is centered on a girl named Sally, who is approximately middle school-aged. In short, Sally’s cousin Emily has gone missing, which is why Sally has set out on a search for her whereabouts. Thanks to this, interested individuals can expect to delve into Sally’s relationship with Emily as well as the history of the one-time mining town of Bethelwood where they both live. As such, while Gylt is a horror game, it can be considered a mystery game as well. Something that can be particularly interesting for those who enjoy both genres.

5. Loose Ends

It isn’t uncommon for either horror games or mystery games to provide some of their narrative through collectibles as well as other kinds of side material, meaning that if players know to be very thorough if they want to get a complete picture of what is going on. However, Gylt is worse in this respect than a lot of its counterparts for one simple reason. In short, some of its loose ends are never tied up by the game in either the main narrative or the side materials. There are circumstances in which this kind of thing can work out well, but there are plenty of players who will just find it to be unsatisfying.

6. Very Typical

Since it has been said that Gylt is “gateway horror,” it should come as no surprise to learn that it is very typical in some respects when it comes to its game design. For instance, interested individuals can expect to spend much of the game crouching in cover while waiting for their enemies to look the other way before moving on to the next patch of cover. Likewise, there is a lot of backtracking, which consists of getting key items before using them to open up previously inaccessible locations.

7. Some Unusual Parts

Having said that, it would be exaggerating to say that Gylt is nothing but a package of the usual design choices, which is perhaps unsurprising because that would be rather unusual in its own right. Instead, there are some places where more originality shows up, with an excellent example being how shadows work in the game. In short, there are a lot of games in which shadows function as perfect cover. In Gylt, they make it more difficult for enemies to spot the player character without actually making that altogether impossible, which is something that can trip up those who aren’t prepared for this particular quirk.

8. There Is Some Combat

Sally might be a middle schooler. However, she is actually capable of engaging in combat to some extent with the right tools. One such tool would be the flashlight, which can be used to just burn away certain monsters that can be encountered in the game. Another such tool would be the fire extinguisher, which can be used to freeze some of the monsters as well. Besides combat, both of these tools are also used for other kinds of problem-solving under less urgent circumstances.

9. Good World-building

One of the most common pieces of praise for Gylt is that it has excellent world-building that does a good job at supporting its narrative. This is particularly impressive because the game has not one but two narratives woven into one. First, there is the one about the relationship between Sally and Emily, which is relatively down to earth but perhaps that much more relatable because of it. Second, there is one in which there are actual supernatural monsters roaming about the town where they live, which are a very different kind of horror. In any case, pulling off the storytelling for just one narrative can be a real challenge, thus making this competence when juggling two narratives that much more impressive.

10. Don’t Expect a Sequel

As stated earlier, there are loose ends that are never tied up in Gylt. Due to this, some players might be curious about the potential for a follow-up. If so, they shouldn’t get their hopes up. Theoretically, it is possible that Tequila Works will make a second title in the same setting as Gylt at some point in time. Unfortunately, precedent suggests that the chances aren’t very high. So far, the studio has made a number of titles. These titles have shared certain elements, with examples ranging from a sense of creepiness to a fondness for puzzles. However, none of them have been a sequel to another. In fact, it is possible to make an argument that none of them have even been in the same genres as the rest in spite of their occasional similarities.