Clock Tower: Rewind is more than just a remaster of a Japan-exclusive video game. Released in 1995, Clock Tower featured suspenseful run-and-hide gameplay compared to other horror games of the time. Thirty years later, Clock Tower’s influence can still be felt in modern survival horror games like Resident Evil, Silent Hill, and Alien: Isolation. Despite its significant influence on the genre, Clock Tower is not outdated. Rewind proves that this cult classic is timeless and relevant, thanks to the game’s stunning art style and visual aesthetics. For many, this remaster will be the first time players get to experience this cult classic, along with useful, quality-of-life upgrades added sparingly.
You play as a girl named Jennifer, one of four teenage orphans who have recently been adopted by a woman named Miss Mary. She takes them to her home where things very quickly go awry when she disappears. From there, you are alone in the mansion and chased by a ghastly monster called Bobby who wields massive scissors as a weapon. Your goal is to try and find Jennifer’s friends and escape. From its inception, Clock Tower’s distinct visual identity was shaped and influenced by Suspiria and Phenomena, horror films by Italian director Dario Argento. Argento’s exaggerated violence and eye-popping colors are painstakingly recreated in Clock Tower. Instead of being dark and drab, The Barrows Mansion is saturated with bright and vibrant colors. It both lures you in with a false sense of security and terrifies you with its violent imagery and dramatic, bold colors. Even dimly lit rooms are interesting and memorable because of the game’s art design. Rewind wisely retains and enhances the crisp and detailed pixel graphics of the original SNES release. The depth of field is impressive for the time; small details, like a tree in the foreground that partially obscures the background, adds a sense of scale to the environment. Rewind is a visual spectacle that I often found myself wanting to just stand and admire.
But, inevitably, you can’t just stand still and admire the view because you are almost constantly on the run. Rewind is a side-scrolling, point-and-click horror game. There is no map, and you’re expected to explore the corridors to find your way around based on the color or distinct landmarks. You control Jennifer using the shoulder buttons on your controller. If you stop her, she will slump to the floor and restore her stamina (a meter indicated by the color of her character portrait). If Bobby catches her while her stamina is full, you have the option to fend him off and escape by mashing the panic button. You can’t control Jennifer’s speed; she walks, and if she is being chased, she runs at a speed that is slow enough to still feel uncomfortable. Clock Tower rarely relies on jump scares to build dread and tension; it very effectively creates fear through its art design and gameplay.
Clock Tower: Rewind added a few quality-of-life upgrades, including the aptly named “Rewind” feature. When you press and hold the left shoulder button, this mechanic allows you to rewind up to ten seconds of gameplay. This is handy in case you take a wrong turn or want to try fending off Bobby again. It’s an interesting feature that fits the game’s themes and aesthetic nicely, though you may find Steam’s save states to be more useful. It is worth noting that there are a couple of game-breaking bugs in Clock Tower: Rewind, so having multiple save states is encouraged in case you encounter them. Included with the base-game, Rewind has a treasure trove of art galleries, motion comics, and creator interviews for players to peruse and enjoy. Clock Tower: Rewind establishes itself as the definitive version to play, incorporating addition from other ports of Clock Tower, such as new monsters and scenes.
Today, multiple endings in a horror game are nothing new, but it’s worth highlighting that Clock Tower was among one of the first to do so. The unlock conditions vary widely and are dependent on your choices. Some player decisions are significant, while others are as simple as looking outside a window during a storm. The endings themselves are interesting and varied, and it’s no surprise to see how this game would go on to influence future games like Silent Hill.
Clock Tower: Rewind is not only a wonderful introduction for those interested in the horror genre, but it’s also an important piece of survival horror history that, for so many years, was largely inaccessible. It’s a joy to experience one of the first survival horror games that went on to catapult the genre in new and bold ways. The game’s film-inspired art design gives it a unique identity.
Clock Tower: Rewind is available on Windows via Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Xbox series X/S.
The Mhelting Pot 