Anthology of Fear
- October 4, 2022
- Piotr Rycabel
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io Store"Insomnia: Awaken" is a narrative-driven horror game that explores the perturbing depths of the human psyche. As the unnamed protagonist, players must navigate a labyrinthine hotel, solve challenging puzzles, and confront their deepest fears to unravel the mystery of their insomnia. Every decision made impacts the story's outcome, leading to multiple endings in this chilling anthology of fear.
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Windows
Xbox One
PlayStation
Xbox
Reviews
- The game features a captivating story that blends psychological horror with emotional depth, keeping players engaged throughout.
- The atmosphere is well-crafted, with excellent sound design and visuals that enhance the eerie experience.
- There are some genuinely creepy moments and effective jump scares that contribute to the overall horror experience.
- The game is quite short, with many players feeling it ends abruptly and lacks sufficient content for the price.
- Gameplay can feel repetitive and tedious, often requiring players to backtrack through similar environments without much progression.
- The story can be confusing and poorly explained, relying heavily on notes and documents that may not provide a satisfying narrative.
- story118 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The game's story has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its emotional depth and intricate narrative that evokes a range of feelings, while others criticize it for being confusing, poorly explained, and abruptly concluded. Many reviewers noted that the story draws inspiration from notable horror influences but lacks sufficient development and resolution, leaving players wanting more clarity and engagement. Overall, while some found the storytelling compelling, others felt it fell short of expectations, particularly in terms of length and coherence.
“This game is a 2.5 hour Silent Hill atmosphere walking simulator with a story that could rival a 50 million dollar Hollywood movie; it has a really awesome story.”
“This game covers nearly every emotion from happiness, contentedness, sadness, hatred, vengeance, fear, confusion, etc. It does this very well all while telling an intricately crafted story that can be hard to put together at times but is overall understandable.”
“Perfect blend of story and horror!”
“The story was a little hard to follow (either that, or I'm slow...), which I would have liked a little more character development or a longer story explanation.”
“The story is all over the place and eventually comes together in the end but it ends so abruptly, there’s not much resolution.”
“As for the story... well... it would be an okay story, if there was more than 40% of it ever put in the game.”
- atmosphere38 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 45 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its eerie and immersive qualities, drawing comparisons to iconic horror titles like Silent Hill and Jacob's Ladder. Players appreciate the effective use of sound and visual style, which contribute to a sinister and unsettling experience, although some find certain elements to be generic. Overall, it delivers a compelling psychological horror atmosphere with well-timed jump scares that enhance the tension throughout the gameplay.
“Some of the best atmosphere and jump scares I've ever seen in a psychological horror game.”
“Overall a good, atmospheric and well presented experience.”
“The atmosphere is generic and bland (except the first tape, which stands out in its weird liminality).”
“The atmosphere that the game puts you in is eerie and does a good job of making you uncomfortable at points of the game.”
“- maintained a sinister atmosphere throughout”
- graphics26 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the stylish and cohesive visuals, especially for an indie title, others find them somewhat dated and not as impressive for a horror game. Overall, the game is noted for its smooth performance and beautiful imagery, though some users mention occasional graphical issues.
“The graphics feel like more realistic layers of fear, and the added head bobbing and other effects just made this a pleasure to look at while playing.”
“Great graphics for an indie game, for sure.”
“Level design and visuals are cohesive and stylish.”
“The graphics are not as I expected, especially for a 'horror' title, but again it was ok.”
“As for negatives, the game could have been a bit longer, the graphics are a bit dated, and the story could have been explained a bit better.”
“[u][b]cons[/b] - padding, story, lack of content, sound and graphical issues[/u]”
- gameplay22 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 73 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by repetitive mechanics typical of walking simulators, featuring an obscure storyline and an edgy protagonist. While it includes well-executed puzzles and occasional action sequences that enhance the experience, many players found the overall experience confusing and lacking in genuine scares, failing to deliver on its promise of a psychological horror experience. The game’s pacing and length also drew criticism, with players expecting more content for the price.
“The game was a little confusing with the storyline and it ended kind of weird, but it did keep my attention throughout the whole gameplay.”
“The main gameplay takes place walking around spooky liminal spaces with good scares, surprisingly well done puzzles, and excellent occasional action gameplay that works well and doesn't feel out of place.”
“The main gameplay takes place walking around spooky liminal spaces with good scares, surprisingly well done puzzles, and excellent occasional action gameplay that works well and doesn't feel out of place.”
“Repetitive gameplay.”
“Gameplay feels like the typical walking sim with an obscure backstory and an edgy yet concerned main character working with/for someone.”
“The game promised to be an 'ultimate psychological horror experience' but it wasn't even close at all; it wasn't scary at all, maybe 2-3 jump scares in the whole gameplay.”
- music20 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The music in the game received mixed reviews; while some praised the soundtrack as excellent and engaging, particularly noting its rock elements and haunting qualities, others criticized the lack of variety and memorable tracks, highlighting issues with repetitive loops and insufficient eerie or suspenseful music. Overall, the soundtrack's effectiveness seems to depend on personal taste, with some finding it a standout feature and others feeling it fell short.
“The music was also excellent.”
“Soundtrack is a banger, honestly.”
“Music is nice, but there is barely any, mostly variations of the main title track - a haunting, Silent Hill-esque tune.”
“Really hated the 5 second looping music.”
“- no eerie music to recall or very little that was memorable.”
“Meh, there's no action, no suspenseful soundtrack.”
- grinding6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players consistently find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively mundane, slow, and repetitive, leading to a tedious experience that detracts from overall enjoyment.
“This is really mundane and tedious.”
“Did I mention how slow, tedious, and repetitive this game is?”
“[i]Very[/i] slow and [i]very[/i] tedious.”
- stability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is criticized for poor optimization, leading to frequent microfreezes that can disrupt gameplay, such as causing characters to unexpectedly turn. While there are some glitches, they are generally considered manageable, though the overall experience is negatively impacted.
“Optimization is horrible; the game often microfreezes, causing your character to do a 180.”
“There are some glitches that are not too bad, but the ending was not the best.”
- emotional4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is polarizing; some players report experiencing profound feelings unlike anything they've encountered before, while others find the journey repetitive and lacking in meaningful emotional engagement.
“This game was entirely different and made me feel something I haven't ever felt before.”
- optimization4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The game generally runs smoothly, achieving over 100 fps on high-end hardware (i7-6700k & 1080 ti), with satisfactory graphics. However, some users noted occasional camera jumps when transitioning to new areas, which can be somewhat distracting.
“Runs smoothly with more than 100 fps (i7-6700k & 1080 ti) and graphics are fine.”
“Performance-wise, I didn't experience any issues; there were some camera jumps, especially when going to new places, which was a little annoying.”
“Performance-wise, I didn't experience any issues, but there were some camera jumps, especially when going to new places, which were a little annoying.”
- replayability4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users consistently highlight the game's "infinitely replayable" nature, indicating that it offers a compelling experience that encourages multiple playthroughs. This aspect significantly enhances its long-term appeal and engagement.
“Infinitely replayable!”
“The game offers endless replayability with its dynamic choices and varied outcomes.”
“Each playthrough feels fresh and exciting, making it a game I can return to time and time again.”
- character development2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that character development is lacking, with players expressing a desire for more depth and clarity in the characters' arcs and motivations. The complexity of the story further complicates the understanding of character growth, leaving some players feeling disconnected.
“The story was a little hard to follow, which made me wish for more character development or a longer story explanation.”
