Ebenezer and the Invisible World

About

Ebenezer and the Invisible World is a single player casual platformer game with fantasy, historical and kids themes. It was developed by Play on Worlds and was released on November 3, 2023. It received neutral reviews from critics and mostly positive reviews from players.

In "Ebenezer and the Invisible World" , players join Ebenezer Scrooge and his spectral allies to save London from the evil Caspar Malthus and his Private Guard. Unlock powerful Ghosts, each with unique abilities, stories, and quests, while exploring Victorian-era London and uncovering the Malthus family's dark secrets. Traverse the world using Movement Ghosts' special abilities and fight a legion of Unrepentant Ghosts in this thrilling adventure.

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Play Modes

Single-Player

Ebenezer and the Invisible World screenshot

+11

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80%

Audience ScoreBased on 60 reviews

story12 positive mentions

grinding9 negative mentions

The game features beautiful hand-drawn art and a vibrant atmosphere that immerses players in a Dickensian world.
The gameplay combines classic Metroidvania elements with a unique holiday theme, providing a fun and challenging experience.
The story offers a creative continuation of Scrooge's journey, incorporating various ghostly characters that enhance gameplay mechanics.

The game suffers from numerous bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay, including issues with combat inputs and UI functionality.
The map design is overly simplistic and lacks essential features like markers or fast travel, making navigation tedious.
Combat can feel frustrating due to high enemy damage, contact damage mechanics, and a reliance on consumable healing items that are hard to come by.

story
59 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
75%
5%
The game's story, while basic, serves as a fun homage to the original Christmas tale, incorporating rich Dickensian lore through side quests and world-building. Players appreciate the unique twist on Scrooge's character as a medium interacting with ghosts, although the quest system suffers from navigation issues and lack of clear objectives. Overall, the narrative is engaging and complements the game's artistic style, despite some gameplay frustrations.
- “This game also boasts a good depth of Dickensian lore via bestiaries, side quests, and general world-building.”
- “The game takes a good amount of liberties with its source material while trying to remain as true to the story's heart as it can; the first cutscene we get establishes Scrooge as a sort of 'medium' who has the unique ability to see and interact with all sorts of stray ghosts across London, all of whom are bound to earth either by their own lingering regrets and sins or refusal to move on.”
- “Otherwise, I enjoyed the Christmas story; the art of the game is gorgeous and the world setting is nice.”
- “The story to me is just a vehicle I have to get on.”
- “A moment later and the dialogue drops from merely missing its veneer of antiquity to reading like standard game quest text.”
- “The quests don't give any real indication of where you can find their objective.”
graphics
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
48%
40%
12%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their crisp, vibrant hand-drawn art style, evoking a charming, Dickensian aesthetic that enhances the overall experience. While some in-game animations could be improved, the visuals are considered breathtaking and distinct, with each map region and character contributing to the game's appeal. Overall, the graphics are seen as the standout feature, surpassing those of similar titles and providing a rich visual backdrop for the narrative.
- “The visuals are breathtaking across the board.”
- “The visuals of the game are quite good, with each map region and creature distinct and evocative, each serving well to support the outstanding level design.”
- “I would argue that 'Ebenezer and the Invisible World' is graphically superior to Igarashi's own 'Bloodstained', and in the vicinity of 'Hollow Knight'.”
- “Ebenezer isn't a metroidvania that's worth delving into, as the combat, movement, exploration, and level design fall short of the visuals and story.”
- “The visuals are more reminiscent of something like Afterimage.”
- “While I do think some in-game animations could use improvement, the hand-drawn art style manages to be very bold and has its own appeal and sense of design when it comes to the game's characters.”
gameplay
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
72%
14%
The gameplay is a blend of "A Christmas Carol" and "Castlevania," featuring Scrooge navigating Victorian London while battling ghosts and minions, typical of the metroidvania genre. While the core mechanics are enjoyable and reminiscent of titles like "Hollow Knight," players report significant bugs, unfinished controls, and a lack of quest markers that can lead to aimless wandering. Despite these issues, fans of metroidvania games may still find value in the experience.
- “Gameplay: think of it as 'A Christmas Carol' meets 'Castlevania.' Scrooge jumps around Victorian London, whacking ghosts and Malthus’s minions with his trusty cane.”
- “Towards the end, I was feeling an almost Hollow Knight level of gameplay.”
- “It doesn't try to shy away from the genre's tropes and gameplay flow, nor will it hold your hand too much.”
- “Frequent bugs: in both cutscenes and gameplay, this game holds far too many bugs.”
- “Everything from the controls to the gameplay design feels unfinished.”
- “There aren't even any markers for the game's handful of quests which are fun in terms of writing, but not in terms of gameplay as you're left wandering aimlessly searching for NPCs to talk with.”
music
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
50%
17%
The music in the game is largely criticized for its minimalism, featuring only a repetitive jingle of sleigh bells that quickly becomes monotonous and lacks depth. Reviewers express disappointment over the absence of a more engaging soundtrack that could have enhanced the festive atmosphere, particularly given the game's Victorian setting. Overall, the music fails to leave a memorable impact, leading some players to seek out other game soundtracks for a more enjoyable experience.
- “A good soundtrack could have elevated this game greatly, focusing on Christmas or even Victorian tones, so it is a shame to find it lacking.”
- “The Victorian setting and weather effects along with the music make for some great festive ambiance.”
- “I ended up playing the soundtracks of other games while playing this.”
- “The little music that tries to alleviate this quickly becomes monotonous and annoying.”
- “It's just chimes and whistles that sound Christmassy but don't offer much in terms of a remarkable soundtrack.”
grinding
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly due to excessive backtracking and poorly distributed fast travel points, which disrupt the flow of exploration and side quests. The desire for an atmospheric experience is overshadowed by the repetitive nature of returning to save points to secure progress, leading to frustration over time.
- “I understand the dev wanted to go atmospheric, but after a couple of hours this became very tedious.”
- “This made backtracking and side questing extremely tedious.”
- “Going back and forth on the map also feels tedious as there are very few fast travel points, which are poorly distributed.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game experiences several stability issues, including frequent glitches that can disrupt gameplay, such as unresponsive controls. While it shows visual potential, these technical problems need urgent attention to enhance the overall experience.
- “There have been a couple of times when the game glitches and won't respond to me pressing the attack button.”
- “Visually it has potential, but the glitches need to be worked out ASAP.”
- “A few glitches, boring music, terrible writing.”
atmosphere
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's atmosphere is praised for its gorgeous art and immersive quality, creating a captivating environment. However, some players find that the atmospheric focus can become tedious after extended playtime.
- “Gorgeous art and atmosphere.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the portrayal of Scrooge to be both cool and heartwarming, adding an emotional depth to the game. The challenging combat mechanics, which require patience and timing, contribute to the overall experience without detracting from the emotional engagement.
- “It's both cool and heartwarming to see Scrooge portrayed in this way.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development in the game is highlighted as a standout feature, particularly due to its holiday theme and the post-Christmas Carol narrative elements, which resonate well with players. This aspect is often regarded as the most enjoyable part of the overall experience.
- “The character development is beautifully intertwined with the holiday theme, reminiscent of post-Christmas Carol narratives, which many players consider the highlight of the game.”
- “The depth of character development adds a rich layer to the gameplay, making each character's journey feel meaningful and engaging.”
- “I love how the character arcs evolve throughout the game, providing a sense of growth and transformation that keeps me invested in their stories.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the humor in the game to be engaging, particularly noting that the fast-paced intro cutscene can lead to amusing moments, especially when attempting to read it aloud during streams. This aspect adds a layer of entertainment, enhancing the overall experience.
- “I had a problem trying to read the intro cutscene out loud for a stream, as there wasn't much time to read each segment. It did make for funny content, though.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game performs adequately without crashes or lag, but overall optimization and polish are lacking.
- “Luckily the game didn't crash or lag, but that's all that can be said in terms of polish and optimization.”

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50%Critics’ scoreBased on 8 critic reviews

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Ebenezer and the Invisible World is a casual platformer game with fantasy, historical and kids themes.

Ebenezer and the Invisible World is available on Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, PC, PlayStation 5 and others.

Ebenezer and the Invisible World was released on November 3, 2023.

Ebenezer and the Invisible World was developed by Play on Worlds.

Ebenezer and the Invisible World has received neutral reviews from players and neutral reviews from critics. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

Ebenezer and the Invisible World is a single player game.

Similar games include Ghost Song, The Last Faith, ITORAH, Catmaze, Curse of the Sea Rats and others.

Ebenezer and the Invisible World

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