Condemned is a hardcore horror game, From the moment you lose your gun and you hear the footsteps of the John Carpenter-esque psychos running in the decrepit buildings, your adrenalin surges like crazy and even moving from one room to the next becomes an unsurmountable challenge. And in this game, like its spiritual predecessor, Manhunt, some of the most horrific acts of violence are those you must commit yourself to survive.
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OK, the end of level 8 in Condemned is almost over the edge of what a could be expected from reasonable playing experience. It is even more unpleasant than watching a horror movie with constant shock effects (e.g. 'Shutter') and gore, because you are that much more involved in the game. Condemned has just the amount of mystery and good (although simple) gameplay to keep you in the game through such hardships, and the previous levels had left me brazen and cold, just running through the levels, aggressively attacking anyone who came in my way; but level 8 had a crescendo of unpleasantness, leading up to a big, bony fist of horror and shock to the face, which left my ears ringing and my heart beating like crazy. That really wasn't very nice. I think it subtracted about two days from the length of my life.
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The game reaches an artistic peak a few chapters into the story, when you start seeing shadows of a feathered figure in inaccesible doorwars, birds bursting through a eerily lit window, and the psychopathic hobos start to act less human than seems reasonable. The game hints of something larger, and the good and bad news is that the larger theme is never fully discovered. But - hey ho - perhaps the sequel will tell more of the story. I will play it, that's for damn sure.