Review for Vlad Circus: Descend Into Madness

Vlad Circus: Descend Into Madness is a story-rich trek into a world of tragedy, nightmares, and the struggle to belong. Players enter the world as Oliver Mills, a performer who called the Vlad Circus his home prior to a horrible fire that plunges the clown into an utter lack of direction. An adventure title with psychological horror themes and retro pixel graphics, Vlad Circus blends light survival mechanics with point-and-click-style puzzles to create a compelling story of loss, family formation, and determination. 

Dropping the players into the early 1920s, Oliver Mills has been released from an asylum under the continued care of his mental health physician. Empowered with soothing tonics and a desire to find his lost companions, Mills balances between nostalgia for his circus life and identity as a clown – and an increasingly unstable line between reality and madness. The cast of fellow circus performers is a varied, interesting assortment of personalities. Conversation with each of the other returning performers provides insight into the history of the circus, the horrific fire that claimed their home, and tips for Mills’ next steps while solving puzzles.

Vlad Circus recommends and offers controller support, and the game has a polished, enjoyable set of controls that provides smooth interaction with the world. The inventory system is rather limited, particularly at the beginning of the game. Fortunately, players can find discarded sacks around the property to increase their inventory limit. Use, combine, and wield mechanics make for a simple and efficient system, and there are only a few moments where storage might have come in handy. But Vlad Circus allows the player to drop items in most locations, then tracks their current spot on a list in the journal. 

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Combat is infrequent and minimal, as Mills treks further into madness and encounters grotesque monsters on property grounds. Although the circus might have been labeled a “freak show” in 1920s-era vernacular, the only freaks to be found in the local mansion are monsters who strain your sanity and attack in the stormy night. Fortunately, weapons are gradually recovered from various hiding places, allowing Mills to defend himself with brutal efficiency. Furthermore, Mills carries a rosary belonging to his late mother, and players can “pray” to recover their sanity. Instead of a health bar and damage mechanic, Mills loses sanity when he’s attacked and must ward off being completely overwhelmed by madness.

As the story unfolds, players are rewarded for their trek into madness by a plot that is tragic and inspiring. Despite everything, Mills refuses to give up on his people. The found-family element is strong, and as he updates his journal, players learn more and more about Mills, his fellow performers, and the corruption behind the circus. Flashbacks to an earlier time provide insight into puzzles and progression, all while Mills wonders if he is succumbing to hallucinations and paranoia. He is an unreliable narrator, but the world of Vlad Circus feels increasingly maddening, and Mills becomes the most reliable person in the whole mansion. 

The game takes 4-5 hours to complete and offers at-will save points and chapters. Mills’ journal is a valuable tool for not only tracking your dropped items but also currently unsolved mysteries, details about people he encounters, and his memories. Walking around in the stormy night with only an oil lamp lends to the unnerving atmosphere, and players must find sources of oil and other ways to replenish consumables to keep progressing through the story.

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Ultimately, Vlad Circus: Descend Into Madness is a nostalgic trek into a retro-inspired adventure title with a rewarding story, compelling characters, and living nightmares. The understated survival elements – like your slowly extinguishing oil supply – keep up the pace and urge the player forward, and the battle of madness versus sanity is the perfect backdrop for the psychological horror vibe of the title. Players can choose between two difficulty settings, depending on if they favor the story and a chill experience or want to battle with creatures of the night with a bigger risk of loss. 

Fans of adventure games, especially point-and-click procedural puzzles, and psychological mystery fans have a lot to enjoy in Vlad Circus: Descend into Madness. Despite counting itself among the more horrifying releases in the genre, the darker aspects are fairly benign and the dangers in story mode are fun to overcome rather than scary. Mental illness is a topic overused in the genre, especially inaccurate depictions of many conditions, and Vlad Circus manages to portray Mills as a traumatized but determined survivor with some challenges rather than making him an evil, deranged clown. Players have enough scaffolding with the story and supplies to keep Mills out of a survival horror situation, but that makes for a dip into a story with plenty of tragedy but enough hope to land it in the realm of "pleasantly uncomfortable".