Although cloaked in a horror game's packaging, Haunting Ground is really about walking, with brief, intermittent bouts of running. Sure, the activity occurs in and around the confines of a creepy castle, but it still boils down to plain old walking. At the start of the game, a buxom (of course) young lady named Fiona wakes up naked (of course) in a castle. She slowly remembers being in a car accident with her parents, who apparently didn't survive. The unfolding story confuses more than it clarifies, as evildoers conspire to keep Fiona in the castle. As Fiona, you quickly hook up with a sidekick dog named Hewie, who helps fend off villains, retrieves clues, and keeps you company. Hewie adds another dimension to the game, as you can guide him with basic commands. He proves invaluable when various creeps chase and attack Fiona, who survives mostly by hiding.
Haunting Ground moves at the speed of Fiona's discovery, so it can be maddeningly tedious. It seems to go on forever; just when you think you're nearly done, there's a whole new world waiting between Fiona and freedom. It's easy to get stuck, and often necessary to go to the Internet for help. As far as horror games go, Haunting Ground qualifies as "spooktacular," maybe even "scarifying," so the "M" rating seems unnecessary. It's more creepy than scary, but the creepiness wears off once the seemingly aimless wandering begins.
Beyond the gameplay: Over the course of the game, Fiona enters and exits more than 100 rooms, almost all of which are beautifully rendered.
Worth playing for: Its depth, which also qualifies as the answer to "Worth destroying for." Haunting Ground goes and goes and goes—more rooms, more buildings, more odd settings. There are hours of gameplay, with four different endings—and once players beat it, they can play a harder version.
Frustration sets in when: You wander aimlessly, clueless as to what comes next. On one hand, Haunting Ground literally spells clues out in red letters. On the other, players must at one point deduce that, in order to get a clue, Hewie must make an completely counterintuitive leap from a roof.
Final judgment: Haunting Ground certainly has interesting, entertaining moments, but the long walk translates poorly to a video-game setting.