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Black Swan

Black Swan Game Cover
23%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:story, graphics
Most mentioned negative aspects:gameplay, stability
23% User Score Based on 70 reviews

Platforms

PCWindows
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Black Swan Game Cover

About Black Swan

Black Swan is a single player casual action adventure game. It was developed by Space Monkey International and was released on May 24, 2016. It received negative reviews from players.

Explore the haunted history of a ballet school while guided by spirits from another dimension! Can you help guide these poor souls home? Find out, in Black Swan!

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Black Swan screenshot
Black Swan screenshot
Black Swan screenshot
Black Swan screenshot
Black Swan screenshot
Black Swan screenshot
Black Swan screenshot
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Reviews

23%Audience ScoreBased on 70 reviews
story13 positive mentions
stability12 negative mentions
  • Beautiful and detailed artwork with a gothic, melancholic aesthetic that suits the subject matter.
  • Engaging atmosphere and narrative focusing on supernatural mystery and emotional storytelling.
  • Good soundtrack with classical and rearranged pieces that complement the mood effectively.
  • Numerous bugs and glitches including frequent crashes, disappearing inventory bar, and game-breaking softlocks that prevent completion.
  • Unresponsive or extremely precise hitboxes and click detection cause frustration during hidden object and puzzle segments.
  • Poor localization with many typos, translation errors, and inconsistent item labeling that affect gameplay clarity.

  • story

    47 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    28% positive mentions, 57% neutral mentions, 15% negative mentions

    The story of Black Swan is a slow-paced, atmospheric ghost tale told through environmental clues and a detailed journal, appealing to fans of hidden-object and supernatural mysteries. While some praise its emotional depth, classical music integration, and visual storytelling, many criticize its confusing, sometimes juvenile narrative, lack of clear progression, and frustrating bugs that often disrupt or prevent completion. Overall, the story offers interesting elements but is undermined by technical issues and pacing problems, making it a mixed experience.

    • “Black Swan is a slow-burn, story-focused adventure that leans heavily on atmosphere, mystery, and traditional hidden-object mechanics to tell a tragic supernatural tale.”
    • “From this point forward, the game unfolds like a ghost story told through fragments—diary entries, spectral visions, scattered notes, and environmental clues.”
    • “Rather than relying on extensive dialogue, Black Swan allows its story to surface organically as players explore, encouraging close attention to surroundings and an emotional investment in the fate of the school and its former inhabitants.”
    • “Some of the puzzles have no clear instructions and the story itself isn't great; once you get to the end there's no real conclusion and it just takes you back to the main menu.”
    • “The story is really confusing, with a lot of jumping around; the quest markers do not always show where you need to go or be for the next step, but you can go from room to room or place to place using the fast travel map until you finally find something to interact with.”
    • “And if the story seems to be relatively well written in the beginning, it becomes more and more rushed and confusing as we progress.”

  • graphics

    24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    50% positive mentions, 37% neutral mentions, 13% negative mentions

    The game features beautiful, detailed graphics with a gothic, melancholic, and dreamlike aesthetic that effectively complements its atmosphere, often praised for its artwork and soundtrack. However, visual quality is sometimes inconsistent, with occasional pixelation and outdated elements, and frequent technical issues and bugs can disrupt the experience. Overall, the graphics are a strong point but marred by performance problems that may affect enjoyment.

    • “Graphically the game just shines, with every scene more beautiful than the last.”
    • “The locations artwork is beautiful and very detailed, even the journal has all the story details and objectives, the perfect journal for these type of games.”
    • “Beautiful graphics, dream like quality, semi-darkish theme, airs of gloomy dreamscape atmosphere with actually a really nice soundtrack that I'd recommend you listen to from the bonus section where you can hear full soundtracks of pieces in the game.”
    • “Ignoring the weird graphics (some kind of 2D images puppeted and shifted to look 3D) and the repetitive and nonsensical gameplay that you'd expect from one of these games, it ended up just crashing once you get to one of the early portions of the game near the lake.”
    • “The graphics in some parts seem much older than stated, and sometimes even when you know the right answer, you're stuck clicking the hint button as it's hard to find the exact right place.”
    • “Some objects were pixelated/blurry against a lot of high-quality artwork.”

  • music

    23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    52% positive mentions, 35% neutral mentions, 13% negative mentions

    The music in the game is generally praised for its atmospheric, ambient qualities and a superb soundtrack blending original and rearranged classical pieces that enhance the haunted, moody tone. While some find it repetitive or wish for downloadable tracks, the soundtrack is considered one of the game's strong points, often recommended alongside its visuals. However, bugs and gameplay issues sometimes overshadow the overall positive impact of the music.

    • “The voice overs were good, and the soundtrack consists of gorgeously-rearranged classical pieces that fit the mood of the game perfectly.”
    • “The music is a mixture of original classics and a dark remix of it which I loved!”
    • “Beautiful graphics, dream-like quality, semi darkish theme, air's of gloomy dreamscape atmosphere with actually a really nice soundtrack that I'd recommend you listen to from the bonus section where you can hear full soundtracks of pieces in the game.”
    • “Music is fine, but repetitive.”
    • “Sadly it seems they forgot to include the soundtrack files to download, but you can listen to them in-game after finishing the main story.”
    • “The translation is terrible, from simple mixups like 'cat' instead of 'dog' or 'ladder' instead of 'stairs' to actually misleading words like 'weight down' instead of 'lift up' or 'cut' instead of 'burn.' Some words aren't even real, unless a 'dompa' really is a musical instrument neither I nor Google has heard of.”

  • gameplay

    21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    19% positive mentions, 62% neutral mentions, 19% negative mentions

    The gameplay of Black Swan centers on traditional hidden-object mechanics and narrative-driven exploration, emphasizing mood and story over complexity or innovation. While some find its deliberate pace and familiar structure thematically fitting and immersive, others criticize its repetitive, buggy, and convoluted mechanics that hinder progression and lead to a tedious experience. Overall, gameplay appeals to fans of classic casual adventure games but may frustrate those seeking modernized or polished systems.

    • “Black Swan is a slow-burn, story-focused adventure that leans heavily on atmosphere, mystery, and traditional hidden-object mechanics to tell a tragic supernatural tale.”
    • “Rather than prioritizing challenge or mechanical complexity, it builds its identity around mood, narrative discovery, and the gradual unearthing of a haunting past, making it a deliberate and contemplative experience aimed squarely at fans of classic casual adventure games.”
    • “However, the variety of puzzle types and the steady introduction of new areas help maintain engagement, particularly for players who enjoy methodical exploration and narrative rewards over mechanical innovation.”
    • “Ignoring the weird graphics (some kind of 2D images puppeted and shifted to look 3D) and the repetitive and nonsensical gameplay that you'd expect from one of these games, it ended up just crashing once you get to one of the early portions of the game near the lake.”
    • “The mechanics are convoluted and unexplained, the controls buggy and the progression system makes no sense.”
    • “So after 6-7 hours of gameplay I was forced to start the game from the beginning.”

  • stability

    12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The game suffers from numerous stability issues, including frequent crashes, bugs, and glitches that disrupt gameplay and progression. These technical problems, such as unpredictable item interactions and poorly designed mechanics, often force players to restart or lose progress, significantly impacting the overall experience.

    • “Not only did the game crash right at the end, causing the inventory to disappear after restarting, making it impossible to finish the game, but it is also generally buggy, with unclear item usage mechanics, poorly designed hidden object scenes, and fairly annoying minigames.”
    • “The game runs in 4:3 ratio; if you want widescreen, the image is just stretched. Worse, it has stability issues and glitches that can break the game and stop progression.”
    • “I lost six hours starting the game over repeatedly due to different glitches occurring in the middle of the story.”

  • atmosphere

    8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    50% positive mentions, 50% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive, gloomy, and dreamlike quality enhanced by detailed visuals and a strong, evocative soundtrack that complements its supernatural mystery theme. Fans of hidden-object adventures appreciate the emotionally resonant and cohesive setting, though some find the slow pacing and bugs—ranging from frustrating glitches to crashes—detract from the overall experience. Fixing technical issues could elevate the game to a standout atmospheric experience.

    • “Black Swan is a slow-burn, story-focused adventure that leans heavily on atmosphere, mystery, and traditional hidden-object mechanics to tell a tragic supernatural tale.”
    • “For fans of hidden-object adventures who value atmosphere, ghostly storytelling, and exploratory puzzle solving, it provides a cohesive and emotionally resonant experience.”
    • “Beautiful graphics, dream-like quality, semi-dark theme, airs of gloomy dreamscape atmosphere with a really nice soundtrack that I'd recommend you listen to from the bonus section where you can hear full soundtracks of pieces in the game.”

  • grinding

    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The game's grinding aspect sticks closely to a traditional formula, which some players may find comforting but others perceive as tedious. Additionally, the gameplay and puzzles can feel monotonous, with unclear objectives that contribute to a sense of frustration.

    • “The game does little to modernize or subvert its mechanics, instead committing fully to a familiar formula that may feel comforting to some and tedious to others.”
    • “The storyline was juvenile and the gameplay was tedious.”
    • “The puzzles vary from pretty easy to very tedious, meaning they don't provide clear guidelines on what is expected from the player.”

  • emotional

    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Black Swan delivers an emotionally resonant experience by letting its story unfold organically through exploration and atmospheric puzzle-solving, fostering a deep emotional connection to the school and its former inhabitants without heavy reliance on dialogue. Fans of ghostly, immersive tales will find it particularly engaging.

    • “Rather than relying on extensive dialogue, Black Swan allows its story to surface organically as players explore, encouraging close attention to surroundings and an emotional investment in the fate of the school and its former inhabitants.”
    • “For fans of hidden-object adventures who value atmosphere, ghostly storytelling, and exploratory puzzle solving, it provides a cohesive and emotionally resonant experience.”

  • replayability

    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game offers strong replayability with 20 hidden object scenes and 11 mini-games that can be played repeatedly, providing extended engagement and variety for players.

    • “20 replayable hidden object scenes”
    • “11 replayable mini-games”

  • character development

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 100% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Users appreciated the character development, particularly noting the ghost designs which evoked a nostalgic, Nightmare Before Christmas-like aesthetic that they found enjoyable.

  • optimization

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 100% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The provided text does not contain relevant information about the game's optimization, focusing instead on the story's beginning. Therefore, no summary regarding optimization can be made from this input.

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Play Times

7h Median play time
7h Average play time
7-7h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 1 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Black Swan is a casual action adventure game.

Black Swan is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 7 hours playing Black Swan.

Black Swan was released on May 24, 2016.

Black Swan was developed by Space Monkey International.

Black Swan has received negative reviews from players. Most players liked Black Swan for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

Black Swan is a single player game.

Similar games include Hope Lake, 1 Moment Of Time: Silentville, Apothecarium: The Renaissance of Evil, Enigmatis: The Ghosts of Maple Creek, Contract With The Devil and others.