Clock Tower

RETRO NEWS

Today's retro news brings three more Game Boy Advance games to Nintendo Switch Online.

Meanwhile, AYANEO has provided shipping updates for several of its handhelds. The Pocket Advance is nearly caught up on preorders, the KONKR Pocket Block is expected to begin shipping shortly, and the Pocket Micro 2 has been pushed back to early November.

Finally, EverDrive creator Krikzz is working on a plug-and-play optical drive emulator for the original PlayStation, allowing games to load without physical discs. The best part? No soldering required, making it a potentially appealing option for anyone who wants to keep their original PlayStation running without permanently modifying it.

PRESS START

An Introduction To Today’s Game

Plenty of horror games hand you a weapon and wish you luck. Clock Tower hands you a cursor and a pair of tired legs.

Released for the Super Famicom in Japan back in 1995, Clock Tower took a different approach to horror. Forget shotguns, rocket launchers, or even a lousy kitchen knife. You're Jennifer Simpson, a teenage orphan trapped inside an enormous mansion, and there's a lunatic running around with a pair of scissors big enough to trim a hedge.

For nearly three decades, English-speaking players had to rely on fan translations to experience it. Thankfully, that's no longer the case. We can finally play this little horror classic in English, complete with all the panic, confusion, and questionable decisions that come with being chased by a maniac.

BEHIND THE PIXELS

Let’s Dive Into The Game

If you've never played Clock Tower, imagine a point-and-click adventure where every wrong turn might get you killed. Jennifer Simpson is one of four orphans adopted into the Barrows household, a wealthy family with a mansion that probably wouldn't pass a home inspection.

Shortly after arriving, Jennifer's friends begin disappearing, and a mysterious killer known as Scissorman starts hunting her. You can't fight back in the traditional sense.

Instead, you move Jennifer around using a cursor, investigate rooms, and interact with objects that might help you survive. Running is an option, but Jennifer has limited stamina, and exhausting her at the wrong moment can be a death sentence.

One of my favorite things about the game's design is how it makes something as simple as running away feel stressful.

A small portrait in the corner of the screen tells you how Jennifer is holding up, and watching her become increasingly exhausted while Scissorman closes in is enough to make anyone nervous.

Your best bet is to hide, use the environment to your advantage, or find some way to slow him down. If he catches you, you'll have to mash a button to escape, assuming Jennifer has enough strength left.

Between encounters, you're exploring the mansion, collecting items, and trying to piece together what's happening. Some rooms and items change locations between playthroughs, and with nine different endings, there's plenty of reason to return.

Just don't expect the game to hold your hand. Even the original Famitsu reviewers warned about its difficulty, with one suggesting players keep a walkthrough nearby. Considering my ability to get lost in video games, that sounds like excellent advice.

What's especially impressive is how much personality Human Entertainment squeezed out of the Super Famicom.

The mansion was laid out in a 3D space during development, even though the finished game uses 2D backgrounds. Several characters were created using digitized photographs of real people, and Jennifer's animations were based on a real person acting out her movements.

Director Hifumi Kono was heavily inspired by Italian horror filmmaker Dario Argento, particularly his 1985 film Phenomena, starring Jennifer Connelly. Jennifer herself even resembles Connelly, right down to her appearance and clothing. Interestingly, some of Kono's colleagues reportedly weren't convinced that a horror game built around running away instead of fighting would work. Kono stuck with the idea, and it became the defining feature of Clock Tower.

The sound design deserves some credit, too. Clock Tower isn't constantly throwing creepy music at you. Instead, it lets you wander through long stretches of uncomfortable silence, listening to footsteps and wondering when those scissors are going to show up again.

Then something happens, the music kicks in, and suddenly you're wishing Jennifer could run a little faster. It's a simple trick, but an effective one, and something the original Famitsu reviewers praised.

The modern Clock Tower: Rewind release adds new vocal theme songs and a music player, but I think there's something wonderful about how the original game knew when to shut up and let your imagination do the work.

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GAME INFORMATION

WHERE TO PLAY

• Clock Tower: Rewind

• Original Copies of the Game (All prices in USD)

  • Loose: $80

  • Complete: $225

  • New/Sealed: $585

COVER ART

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GAME OVER

Why You Should Play This

So, is Clock Tower worth playing today? I think so, especially if you enjoy seeing where survival horror came from. Thanks to Clock Tower: Rewind, released in October 2024, you no longer need to hunt down a fan translation. It's available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox Series X and S, and Steam, marking the game's first official release outside Japan.

The collection gives you two ways to play. Original mode preserves the 1995 experience, while Rewind mode brings in additions from the 1997 PlayStation version and a few welcome improvements. Jennifer gets better controls and more opportunities to defend herself, but Scissorman has learned a few new tricks as well. Apparently, being chased around a mansion wasn't stressful enough already. There are also save states, an art gallery, a music player, and interviews with director Hifumi Kono. Personally, I'd lean toward Rewind mode for a first playthrough.

Just know what you're getting into. Clock Tower is slow, occasionally confusing, and sometimes downright unfair. The controls take some getting used to, and you might spend more time wandering the mansion than you'd like. But there's something appealing about a horror game that makes you feel genuinely helpless instead of turning you into a walking ammunition depot.

It's a relatively short adventure, and with nine endings to discover, there's good reason to give it another shot. Just remember to rest whenever you can, check your hiding spots, and maybe reconsider your life choices if someone invites you to live in a creepy mansion.

Especially one with a suspicious number of oversized scissors.

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RETRO HARDWARE

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