The Medium review – split-world horror stranded in unsatisfying limbo

Xbox Series X/S, PC; Bloober Team
This beautiful-looking exploration of intergenerational trauma is ripe ground for innovative storytelling, but fumbles its big themes

The nights are still coming in early this January lockdown, and the end of winter is a perfect time to depart the horrors of this reality for those of another. So I spent three nights playing The Medium, Bloober Team's latest dread-inducing, otherworldly game. On the first night I was thrilled, on the second night I was furious, and by the end I was confused and disappointed.

The Medium is a game about duality. Our protagonist, Marianne, inhabits both this world and a spirit realm, and we control her in sync as the screen splits to show us two places, two paths at once. This unusual cinematography and visual design is deeply impressive.