Anomaly Guard

Some night shifts seem simple at first glance. Sitting in the guard room, looking at a few old camera screens, and waiting for dawn. But in Anomaly Guard, the 12 AM to 6 AM shift is like being trapped inside a decaying loop, where the abandoned school seems to still harbor something that refuses to disappear.

The game has a horror feel similar to Observation Duty, but instead of just sitting still and observing cameras, you are free to roam around the school grounds, check the power supply, and directly confront the strange phenomena occurring in the darkness.

Anomaly Guard Storyline

The game is set at Surarding School, an abandoned school in Malaysia where a mysterious incident occurred in 1998. The building has been sealed off for years and is scheduled for demolition soon.

You play as a security guard who takes on a last-minute job with a salary of 650 Malaysian ringgit for a night shift. It sounded pretty good... until the communication system started crackling, the power kept flickering, and the previous security guard quit without any explanation.

From here, things started to go wrong. Shadows appeared in the hallways. Objects moved on their own. Crying sounds emanated from nowhere. And worst of all, it felt like the school wasn't "abandoned" as people thought.

How to Play Anomaly Guard

Observe the cameras and report anomalies

The main gameplay of Anomaly Guard revolves around monitoring the security camera system to detect anomalies. A chair, a table, or any object that's just shifted from its original position can be a sign of something unusual. Sometimes you'll encounter things that are clearly much more dangerous, like an eye appearing on the camera or a shadowy figure standing silently in the dark hallway.

The game categorizes anomalies into several types, such as:

Object Displacement

Objects change position, disappear, or appear in illogical places. This is the most frequent type of anomaly and requires players to remember every small detail in the room.

Entity & Intruder

Not all anomalies are harmless. Sometimes, the camera will record strange entities or shadowy figures moving in the school area. The game even emits crying or footsteps, leaving players unsure of what is approaching.

Checking the Power Supply

The school's power supply is extremely unstable. You don't just sit still in front of the screen; you have to leave the security room to check the circuit breaker and the area outside.

This is also when the game shifts to a more direct horror feel. Dark hallways, empty courtyards, strange noises, and sudden scene changes make stepping out of the room to safety something no one wants to do.

Free Roaming Instead of Standing Still

Anomaly Guard's unique feature is that it allows players to freely move around the area instead of just observing the camera like many games in the same genre. However, this also significantly increases the feeling of unease. You are no longer the observer; you are right inside where the anomaly is lurking.

Anomaly Guard is an indie horror game with a rather interesting concept, combining anomaly detection gameplay with free exploration in an abandoned school environment. The game's atmosphere is heavily influenced by Southeast Asian horror, especially details related to Malaysian legends and ghosts.

Despite the sometimes chaotic experience, outdated cameras, and intentionally annoying segments with static or stuttering effects, the game still creates a very unique sense of unease. It's like an endless night shift where you don't know if you're watching the camera... or something else is watching you. If you enjoy horror games set in a tense office environment and night shift setting, then Poppy Office Nightmare is another worthwhile option to try.