Dreadhalls
- March 9, 2017
- White Door Games
- 2h median play time
Get on SteamDreadhalls is a single-player horror platformer game with pretty visuals and a dense atmosphere. It features procedurally generated levels, immersive sound design with positional audio cues, and a focus on survival through stealth and resource management. The game is not for the faint of heart and delivers an intense and scary experience.
PC
Phone
Virtual Reality
Android
Cloud
Mobile Platform
NVIDIA GeForce NOW
Oculus Quest
Oculus Rift
Tablet
Reviews
- The game provides an incredibly immersive horror experience, utilizing VR to amplify fear and tension effectively.
- The atmosphere is well-crafted with excellent sound design, creating a constant sense of dread and unpredictability.
- The procedurally generated levels add replayability, ensuring that each playthrough feels fresh and unique.
- The gameplay can become repetitive, with limited mechanics leading to a lack of variety in encounters.
- Some players experience motion sickness due to the continuous movement mechanics, making it difficult to play for extended periods.
- The graphics and overall polish may feel dated compared to newer titles, which could detract from the experience for some players.
- atmosphere28 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 46 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its ability to evoke genuine fear and tension, reminiscent of classic horror titles like "Amnesia: The Dark Descent." Reviewers highlight the exceptional sound design and immersive environments that create a haunting and claustrophobic experience, effectively balancing unsettling ambiance with strategic scares. While some note limitations in graphics and maze design, the overall atmosphere is described as deeply engaging and terrifying, often leaving players on edge even without direct encounters with monsters.
“Where the game shines is its fantastic atmosphere, with especially great sound design.”
“The atmosphere is incredibly tense with a variety of ways to not only scare you but to just creep you out.”
“The atmosphere in Dreadhalls is spot on -- super creepy without being gory.”
“The oppressive atmosphere of always walking into the darkness.”
“The atmosphere of this game makes it just terrifying without encountering any monster.”
“The atmosphere is haunting, the sound strips all sense of comfort.”
- gameplay25 mentions
- 12 % positive mentions
- 76 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by its simplicity and repetitiveness, with a focus on exploration through procedurally generated levels and unique mechanics that enhance the horror experience. While some players appreciate the intuitive controls and atmospheric balance, others find the gameplay lacks depth and variety, particularly in its lore and certain mechanics. Overall, the game offers a solid horror experience with engaging elements, but opinions vary on its long-term appeal and complexity.
“Endless gameplay because all levels are randomly generated, making it different every time you play; no levels are the same.”
“The balance between atmosphere and jumpscares is maintained well, and the gameplay is very intuitive.”
“There are plenty of monsters with their own quirks to learn; the mechanics feel solid, and the motion controls felt very fluid.”
“I was expecting more of an Amnesia: The Dark Descent type deal; a fully fledged story wasn't a must, but the gameplay is just repetitive.”
“However, the gameplay is a bit too simplistic for me.”
“The minute-to-minute gameplay is reminiscent of old school dungeon crawlers, only without combat.”
- graphics22 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the immersive atmosphere and detail, while others criticize them as outdated or lacking polish, likening them to early VR or even GameCube-level visuals. Despite these shortcomings, many agree that the graphics effectively contribute to the game's horror experience, enhancing the overall sense of unease and immersion. Overall, while the visuals may not be top-tier, they serve their purpose in creating a creepy and engaging environment.
“Visually it is quite good, textures look real and generally the graphics are very good including the many foes that seek you just around the corner.”
“The visuals have gotten an upgrade since the last time I played the game, as the floating head and ghost girl in particular have gotten some much-needed redesigns to make them more menacing.”
“My short video 'review' speaks for itself, but I have to add that I'm amazed about Dreadhalls - it's a lovely VR horror experience with beautiful graphics, perfect sounds and music that adds to the immersion and gives the game a creepy feeling from the first minute of your gameplay.”
“Actually, the first impression was not good because of poor graphics.”
“Not a bad first impression, but the graphics and art just aren't good enough to be that scary.”
“Despite having graphics that look like they were designed for a cellphone (they were), Dreadhalls utilizes several very clever tricks and design elements to create one of the scariest experiences I've ever played.”
- story16 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The game's story is described as intriguing but ultimately underdeveloped, with a short main storyline that players can complete quickly. While there are classic survival horror elements and interesting lore, many reviewers found the gameplay repetitive and felt that the randomly generated dungeons detracted from a cohesive narrative experience. Overall, the story mode offers a glimpse into the game's world, but players may find themselves more engaged with the exploration and atmosphere than the plot itself.
“Classic survival horror elements: lantern that’s always running low on fuel, exploring twisting maze-like corridors, trying to piece together the story of what’s going on, and hiding from the monsters.”
“I'm genuinely curious to piece this world's story together.”
“There is a main storyline which is well put together and generates random labyrinths each time.”
“I was expecting more of an Amnesia: The Dark Descent type deal; a fully fleshed-out story wasn't a must. This game has some interesting lore, but the gameplay is just repetitive.”
“I can't tell you the plot or how it ends, but not because of spoilers; rather, it is that I cannot bring myself to finish as I rip my headset off.”
“Overall, I can recommend Dreadhalls with a warning: it seems like the 'main story' isn’t very long.”
- replayability9 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 22 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The game offers solid replayability primarily due to its random level generator, which creates varied experiences with each playthrough. While some players note that familiarity with enemy spawn points may reduce replay value over time, the overall consensus is that the game's design allows for a fresh experience, especially in VR.
“One of the better VR horror games I've played, good replayability with the option to play a randomly generated dungeon.”
“The game has a random level generator so you can have lots of replayability.”
“Because this game is created to produce a different experience every time, it has great replay value and will pay for itself without question!”
“It's a good game, but I don't think it will have too much replay value as the creatures all spawn in the same spot, and once you've gone through it once, you'll know exactly where they will be.”
“There's probably replayability, at least in VR, if you have it.”
“Gave the random level generator a try, and I am pleased it gives some replayability.”
- music3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -67 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews; while some players find it contributes to the immersive and creepy atmosphere, others criticize it for feeling low-budget and repetitive, relying on a limited ambient loop and abrupt sound effects. Overall, the effectiveness of the music seems to vary significantly between different experiences within the game.
“I'm amazed by Dreadhalls - it's a lovely VR horror experience with beautiful graphics, perfect sounds, and music that adds to the immersion and gives the game a creepy feeling from the first minute of your gameplay.”
“The music in the game enhances the atmosphere, creating a sense of tension and dread that keeps you on edge throughout your experience.”
“The sound design, including the music, plays a crucial role in building the game's immersive environment, making every moment feel intense and engaging.”
“It's just walking around, seeing monsters, hiding, and waiting until the danger music stops to try to progress.”
“It admittedly feels a little low-budget here and there, using the same ambient music loop throughout the entire game and a few sound effects that cut abruptly, letting you know they got them off of a royalty-free site at the end credits.”
- stability3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The game's stability is generally good, with smooth performance on high settings and low resource usage. However, some users report glitches and a lack of depth in certain features, which may detract from the overall experience.
“It runs great too; on max settings, I'm only using between 2 and 3 GB of VRAM and about 7 to 8 GB of normal RAM to run it smoothly.”
“Stealth is cool, but it was very bare bones and had a few glitches for me.”
“Play this game if you enjoy experiencing giant visual glitches.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players report that the emotional impact of games like Dreadhalls in VR can evoke intense and tangible feelings of fear, with some describing the experience as overwhelmingly powerful and even physically unsettling. This level of emotional engagement is noted as a rare occurrence in their gaming experiences.
“Playing Dreadhalls in VR made me feel the most intense, tangible fear that I can recall experiencing in my 47 years of life on this planet.”
“Made me feel sick, which is rare.”
- humor1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players find the humor in the game to be enjoyable, particularly in the comedic moments related to opening doors. However, the frustration of closing doors during chase sequences detracts from the experience, suggesting that improvements in physics mechanics could enhance the comedic elements in a potential sequel.
“Opening them is quite funny, but closing them in a chasing situation is impossible. I can't, not even to save my life, close them. If this game gets a sequel, I would love to see some physics objects, especially with the doors.”
