I’m reviewing this project as part of “Dark Fable Studio,” and interestingly, we chose the same serial killer concept for our own project.
The art style really stood out to me it looks great and gives the game a unique and charming identity. The cutscenes also fit surprisingly well into the experience and helped present the story in a nice way.
However, the level design could be improved. There are long, extended hallways without a clear purpose, and the suitcases placed on the ground felt more like obstacles than meaningful gameplay elements. Instead of adding to the experience, they sometimes just got in the way.
The ghost puzzle was extremely difficult to figure out. After about 40 minutes, I finally solved it, but when I pressed the “E” key, nothing happened. I left the room, and then I suddenly got chased. The chase itself was actually well done, but it wasn’t clear whether this was intended as the puzzle’s solution or if I had done something wrong. I also wasn’t sure if getting caught was supposed to happen.
The game isn’t really scary, but in my opinion, that’s not necessarily a bad thing given the cute art style. However, since “scare factor” is part of the rating criteria, it becomes difficult to judge fairly in that category.
One aspect that worked well was the story presentation. The drawn scenes were very charming and did a good job conveying the narrative. What I felt was missing, though, was environmental storytelling. A story can also be told through the world itself for example, through objects or visual clues. Something like a skeleton lying in the same room where the ghost appears could imply a connection without needing text. Adding this kind of detail would have strengthened the immersion a lot.
The atmosphere overall does what it’s supposed to do for this type of game and fits the style nicely.
In the end, this is a cute and clearly well-worked-on project, but it felt a bit too short. I reached the end screen, although I’m not entirely sure if that was intended or possibly a bug. Still, I can definitely see the effort that went into this project.