Angel Engine is a game that’ll appeal to a niche audience. For some, it’ll be too stressful or demanding – but for others, it’ll end up being a dream addition to their existing library of indie horror games.
I found Angel Engine to be a delightfully unsettling experience, with plenty to love as a mascot horror and horror management geek. While it’s not a perfect game by any means, it’s a hell of a lot of fun – here’s a full review, completed on PC.
Strangely compelling
Angel Engine is best described as a horror resource management game with biblical themes. It’s incredibly niche but compelling, with some truly gnarly monster designs and tricky minigames to contend with.
In Angel Engine, you’re working as a surgeon of sorts for the Angel Engine Initiative. The game takes place in your surgery room, where you’ll be tasked with operating remotely on strange, unsettling test subjects, completing minigames to sew up wounds, saw through flesh, or inject medication.
While you’re completing the minigames required to finish up surgeries, you’ll need to manage your test subject’s oxygen levels and anesthesia, all while collecting lore snippets and dealing with other strange occurrences in the laboratory.
I won’t spoil when the jumpscares happen, but it’s a decently jumpscare-heavy game, so it’ll keep you on your toes while playing through.
Not only do you have to manage your surgeries and test subjects, but you’ll also have to contend with demons and equipment that’s likely to fail or overheat.
There are a lot of moving parts in Angel Engine; it’s not the sort of game where you can kick back and observe the story unfolding. It requires you to constantly be on the lookout for threats and juggle multiple tasks at once.
I’m always hesitant to bring up other game series or franchises in my reviews, as I like to let the games speak on their own, but it would feel wrong not to mention the earlier Five Nights at Freddy’s games here.
I’m a huge FNAF geek, and the style of play in Angel Engine immediately scratched that itch for me. Juggling the different surgery minigames, test subjects, and other hazards in the secret laboratory felt reminiscent of the harder nights in FNAF, particularly as I was uncovering the game’s story in the process.
Divisive minigames
The core gameplay loop in Angel Engine is minigame-based, with each action in surgery being associated with a particular minigame. To inject medicine, for example, you’ll need to precisely align the needle and time the injection to avoid injuring the patient or causing further imperfections.
The style of play in these minigames could be divisive for some players. I enjoyed the repetitive style of play, finding it meditative at points, then stressful as the difficulty increased, but it may not have enough variety for fans of more story-oriented horror games.
Outside of the core gameplay, the story was compelling and kept me intrigued as I played through the various surgeries. The computer contained plenty of little lore snippets and strange messages to uncover, slowly revealing more about the strange world of Babel 2, which originated in a web series.
Something important to highlight for fans of the original web series is that this game does not report any use of generative AI. According to the Steam page, the web series used GenAI tools, but this game did not. Some folks won’t be fussed either way, but for others – like myself – this is a huge positive.
Visually, Angel Engine was intriguing, with a dark, murky, and unsettling style. The laboratory felt uncomfortable and claustrophobic, and I loved the religious imagery scattered throughout the game.
Performance-wise, Angel Engine ran well, with no notable quirks or issues. I found the controls a little fiddly in some of the mini-games, particularly the injection one, but it became much more enjoyable after some practice.
Angel Engine is going to be a dream game for some indie horror lovers. This biblical surgery simulator feels unique and challenging, with plenty of fun – if a little cheap in places – jumpscares to keep you on your toes. The gameplay loop might not be for everyone, but if you like horror management games, you’ll likely have a blast.
FAQs
Angel Engine is a horror-themed surgery simulator with gameplay revolving around resource management and minigames.
I’d describe Angel Engine as unnerving for the most part, with a strong atmosphere and some jump scares
While Angel Engine does have some sci-fi horror elements – namely the setting and core concept – I’d say that the Biblical imagery shines through as the core theme. It’s not as heavy on the sci-horror as something like Dead Space, for example.
Yes, Angel Engine is Steam Deck Verified.
