The Devourer: Hunted Souls is a first-person survival horror experience that combines paranormal investigation, exploration, puzzle solving, narrative discovery, and cooperative play. Developed and published by ZTEK Studio, it sends a group of investigators into a sinister forest where a supernatural curse has transformed an already unsettling location into a dangerous hunting ground. Instead of concentrating entirely on identifying ghosts through equipment, the game uses investigation as the foundation for a larger adventure in which players uncover a tragic history, confront hostile entities, and search for a way to break the curse.
Atmosphere is one of its most convincing qualities. The Unreal Engine 5 presentation gives the forest and surrounding locations a suitably realistic appearance, while darkness and limited visibility create constant uncertainty about what might be nearby. The game also incorporates MetaHuman characters and an adjustable bodycam effect that can make exploration feel like recovered footage from an ill-fated paranormal expedition. Being able to customize the bodycam intensity is useful because the visual movement and distortion associated with this presentation can be immersive for some players but distracting for others.
Exploration is closely connected to investigation. Paranormal equipment can be used to detect entities and locate unusual objects, encouraging players to examine their surroundings instead of simply following obvious objective markers. The equipment is not merely there to determine which category of ghost is present. It contributes to environmental puzzles, searches, and the gradual reconstruction of the events that caused the forest's supernatural condition. This gives the game a stronger sense of progression than a sequence of unrelated hunting sessions.
Puzzles provide another important layer. They can be approached alone or with other players, and the dynamic puzzle system is intended to adjust according to the number of participants. This is particularly valuable because the game supports groups of up to five investigators without making a full team mandatory. A smaller party or solo player can therefore continue progressing without encountering objectives that absolutely require several people. Cooperative groups still benefit from communication and division of responsibilities, especially when searching large areas or dealing with threats while attempting to solve a problem.
The five available investigators have their own skills and special abilities, adding some individuality to multiplayer sessions. Rather than everyone functioning as an identical character carrying different equipment, these distinctions encourage players to consider how their abilities can complement the group. Cooperative horror inevitably loses some of the isolation associated with playing alone, but it replaces that loneliness with unpredictable moments of panic. Friends becoming separated, someone attracting a creature, or a teammate suddenly disappearing can create entertaining situations that scripted scares alone cannot reproduce.
Hostile supernatural creatures prevent exploration from becoming too comfortable. Investigators may find themselves being hunted while searching for clues, resulting in chases, jumpscares, and moments where survival takes priority over solving the mystery. The contrast between quiet investigation and sudden danger works well for this type of horror. Long stretches of uncertainty allow tension to build, while unexpected encounters provide the release. Players who prefer atmospheric suspense mixed with bursts of pursuit should find more to appreciate here than those expecting a combat-heavy horror game.
Death is handled in an especially interesting way. Instead of immediately reducing a defeated player to a spectator, the investigator's soul is transported into another realm. The dead player then has an opportunity to escape while surviving teammates continue their investigation. This is a clever solution to a common multiplayer horror problem, since being eliminated does not necessarily mean sitting idle until everyone else finishes. It also fits naturally with the paranormal setting and makes death feel like another stage of the supernatural experience.
There is a meaningful narrative component beneath the cooperative mechanics. The forest contains evidence of a tragic past, and investigating what happened is central to understanding the curse. Environmental details, discoveries, puzzles, and decisions help move the story forward. This approach makes curiosity an important motivation: entering another dark structure or investigating a suspicious area is not only about obtaining an item but potentially learning another part of the mystery.
The biggest concern is the game's Early Access condition. Its ideas are promising, but the experience should be approached as an unfinished project rather than a fully realized horror campaign. The Steam page itself carries a notice concerning the extended period since the developers last provided an update, making the future of its originally planned development uncertain. This matters because additional chapters and continued expansion were important parts of the project's ambitions. The existing content can still provide entertainment, particularly with friends, but purchasing it primarily on the expectation of substantial future additions would be difficult to recommend.
Steam Deck compatibility is officially categorized as Playable rather than fully Verified. Performance with the default graphics configuration is considered suitable, and the game can run successfully on SteamOS. However, handheld players should expect compromises. Some functionality is not fully accessible through the default controller configuration, touchscreen interaction or a community controller layout may occasionally be useful, and text entry can require manually opening the virtual keyboard. Some interface text may also appear small, while certain prompts can display keyboard, mouse, or non-Steam Deck controller icons. It is therefore functional on the Deck, but the experience is less seamless than a fully optimized handheld release.
Overall, The Devourer: Hunted Souls presents a surprisingly ambitious combination of cooperative survival horror and supernatural investigation. Dynamic puzzles, specialized investigators, paranormal equipment, environmental storytelling, dangerous creatures, optional VR, and the alternate realm encountered after death give it more personality than a basic ghost-hunting formula. Its eerie visual presentation and cooperative design provide the strongest reasons to play, while uncertain Steam Deck support and an apparently stalled Early Access development cycle are its most substantial drawbacks. What exists demonstrates worthwhile ideas and can produce memorable horror sessions, but its unfinished status prevents the experience from reaching its full potential.
Rating: 7/10
