Once more, the search for Ethan begins in The Vanish of Ethan Carter. With 4k resolution support and a new mode that allows free roam of the town of Red Creek Valley, Wisconsin. Search for clues to figure out what happened to this small town and why it involves a seemingly innocent young boy named Ethan. Dive into a world of mystery and intrigue with each revelation bringing you closer to the truth. If you haven’t taken your first steps into Red Creek Valley then it’s time to do so in The Vanishing of Ethan Carter.

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter tells a supernatural-like story as you explore an open world filled with mystery. Solve various events as you piece together clues to get closer to the truth of what happened in this small town in Wisconsin. Can you piece together the mystery of what transpired? Keep your mind open and be prepared to enter the world of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter.

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter follows a supernatural investigator—Paul Prospero—as he recently heads to a small town in Wisconsin called Red Creek Valley. Paul is guided to this town after he finds himself being called upon by a young boy named Ethan Carter who sent Paul a fan letter. Paul quickly arrives in Red Creek Valley and notices that things are very amiss in the town. Using his talents, Paul will soon be put to the ultimate test as he begins to unravel what befell the residents of Red Creek Valley and why Ethan Carter has seemingly vanished from the town. Paul’s journey begins as he steps through a tunnel and arrives in the small town seemingly hidden away from the world…

Back in 2014, an indie developer team called The Astronauts released The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. Surprising many players, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter was possibly one of the best adventure games ever to be released by an indie team and gained a huge amount of popularity with critics stating its excellence. Now, several years later in 2018, Xbox One owners who had never gotten the chance to play The Vanishing of Ethan Carter—seeing as how it only released on the PC and PS4 prior—finally get their chance to revel in this glorious title. However, is the Xbox One version of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter worth replaying for those who have already and has the game aged well? Here at Honey’s Anime, we plan on finding out in our review of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter for the Xbox One.

Immediately, when you begin The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, you are warned that this title doesn’t hold your hand while playing. That should give you an idea of what to expect once you begin to lose yourself in Paul’s world in The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. Totted as a horror adventure title—though its not truly scary if we’re being honest—The Vanishing of Ethan Carter has players exploring an open world filled with various mysteries and strange puzzles. As with any adventure game, the main way these titles shine is through their gameplay. The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is no exception and we will say the gameplay is truly pretty dang good.

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter has players controlling Paul as he scours Red Creek Valley for clues in finding out what transpired in town. Players do this by finding random items and spots of intrigue to then understand what transpired in that area and how its important to the main narrative. You’ll find yourself searching every nook and cranny of Red Creek Valley looking for clues at times but thankfully most clues are locked to a specific area making this mission a little less daunting. That means if you’re trying to solve a mystery of what happened in a mining area for example, you won’t need to leave that area to find all the clues. They are all in that one area and are just hidden away to make you really dig around to find them.

For some gamers, this might seem more tedious than fun. Well the reason why it’s fun in The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is because the story is woven into each mystery puzzle. You’re going to want to find clues because you’re going to get immersed in the narrative being presented. Each new clue leads to a new discovery and in turn leads to more story being revealed in The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. It’s very—and we mean very—rare that a title can accomplish this but The Vanishing of Ethan Carter does a phenomenal job of keeping the players hooked in this short 2-hour story. While we say 2 hours by the way that’s only if you know where to go, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter can take several hours to play if you’re trying to 100% the game and you’re going to try that if you enjoy nabbing the true ending of the story.

If there is any complaint about the gameplay portion of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter it would be that at times it can be rather annoying when you reach the end game. It is here where players will have wanted to solve every mystery in Red Creek Valley as the true ending is locked behind having done everything story specific prior to reaching this point. We won’t spoil why that’s the case—it does make sense on the grand scheme of things—but expect some backtracking if you just run through The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. Though for some this might also not be a bad thing because of the other element that makes The Vanishing of Ethan Carter so amazing.

Graphically, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is superb even 4 years later. Clearly developer The Astronauts put some higher quality visuals into the Xbox One version and with 4K resolution support you can tell the difference. Grass looks more lifelike and even the draw distance is greater than it was before. Needless to say, even without 4K resolution, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter looks stellar. The same can be said of the voice acting and music which keep the world of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter feeling real and engaging. When you’re in small abandoned homes or in wide open fields the background music keeps you truly immersed. We said that word a lot today in our review of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, but that’s what makes this title so amazing truly. Immersion is rare with horror adventure games, but The Vanishing of Ethan Carter does this by using supernatural themes in the art and music to make players glued to the screen in anticipation of what they can discover next not jump from jumpscares.

Now, here’s the last point we wish to discuss about The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. Should you buy if you have played the PC or PS4 versions? Aside from a new free roam mode—which we didn’t talk about as it literally is just the ability to walk around aimlessly in Red Creek Valley and nothing more—and updated visuals, there isn’t much to regain if you have fully completed The Vanishing of Ethan Carter before. For only $19.99, you’re getting a great deal if this is your first romp through but for many of us we have played The Vanishing of Ethan Carter numerous times before over the course of 4 years. That’s why we’re saying this: Only buy The Vanishing of Ethan Carter for the Xbox One if you truly are a die-hard fan of the game and or haven’t ever played it before.

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter has been out for quite a while on the PC and PS4 but even still it is one of the best first-person adventure games we’ve ever played. While the Xbox One version of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter doesn’t offer a lot of new content, the free roam ability is a small nice touch and for those rocking 4K monitors the enhanced resolution will make the journey through look quite impressive. Plus, for only $19.99, if you haven’t played The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, you’re getting quite an experience for a great price of admission. Though, if you already own The Vanishing of Ethan Carter we can’t say download it again unless you really want an Xbox One version. However, we do recommend The Vanishing of Ethan Carter to everyone else as this tale is one you need to playthrough and experience at least once in your gaming life.

When The Vanishing of Ethan Carter released in 2014, many of us here at Honey’s Anime played it and loved it back then. While 4 years have passed, the amazing world of Paul Prospero stills holds a power of keeping us truly immersed in this strange but amazing world. We can understand some skipping on the Xbox One version of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter as there isn’t a lot here to make you play through it again—especially if you 100% the game like we did—yet for those who have been looking for a great adventure title that keeps you hooked from beginning to end you need to play this and you will love every moment in doing so. Have you played the original version of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter or are you really psyched to enter this world for the first time on the Xbox One? Comment down below to let us know and for all your gaming news and reviews be sure to keep stuck to our hive here at Honey’s Anime.