ENKI

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ENKI is a single-player adventure game offering around 5 hours of playtime, with multiple endings and occult symbolism. Players are trapped in a dark cellar and must escape by solving puzzles and finding items, with smart randomization making it challenging each time. The game features various endings based on collected secrets, with the possibility of uncovering more than one exit.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reviews

57%

Audience ScoreBased on 53 reviews

atmosphere6 positive mentions

replayability3 negative mentions

The game features a creepy atmosphere and good audio design that enhances the tension during gameplay.
Puzzles are engaging and provide a fun challenge, with some replay value due to randomized item locations and multiple endings.
It's a short experience, which some players appreciate, making it a quick play for those who enjoy escape room-style games.

The game suffers from significant bugs and crashes, making it frustrating to play, especially when trying to complete it within the time limit.
Lighting issues make it difficult to see and find items, detracting from the overall experience and making gameplay feel tedious.
The game is very short, with many players able to complete it in under 30 minutes, leading to concerns about its value at full price.

story
19 mentions
16 % positive mentions
68 % neutral mentions
16 % negative mentions
The story in the game is generally considered unimpressive and cryptic, with scattered details that fail to engage players fully. While some players appreciate the depth and multiple endings, the lack of clear narrative and the difficulty in accessing backstory through collectibles detracts from the overall experience. Despite its shortcomings, a few reviewers found the story intriguing enough to warrant a recommendation, especially at a discounted price.
- “Much small details to pay attention to that tell the story and create suspense.”
- “The story is very cryptic with a lot of depth; I may not be able to grasp it all yet, but I feel that it tells more than it shows.”
- “Story is interesting enough to keep you playing until you find everything.”
- “The graphics are barely visible, the puzzles are all sequence-based, there's nothing interesting to do with any of the interactions, and the little plot that is there, which is scattered about, is not interesting in the slightest.”
- “You can collect things to learn more backstory, but I never understood how it worked and never learned more than what the game gives you.”
- “It doesn't tell you the story and what you have to do, no voice acting, unpausable, and worst of all, the field of view is so low (which you can't change) that it makes it difficult to find the items.”
atmosphere
16 mentions
38 % positive mentions
44 % neutral mentions
19 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its creepy and immersive qualities, effectively enhancing the overall experience and intensity, especially with the inclusion of unsettling sounds. While some players noted that the atmosphere can become less impactful after repeated playthroughs, it remains a strong point that contributes to the game's appeal, particularly for fans of horror and puzzle challenges. However, many reviewers expressed a desire for a longer gameplay experience to fully explore the atmospheric potential.
- “This is the game's strongest suit and it helps to build a solid atmosphere, and paired with the time limit that is constantly ticking down, makes the game quite intense.”
- “The game sets a good, unsettling atmosphere which totally does the job.”
- “Immersive atmosphere that will scare you... a great indie game to support!”
- “The atmosphere is creepy, but after your first death, you barely notice it.”
- “Enki is a repeatable first-person horror game that relies solely on atmosphere.”
- “Oh, and for the first time ever: you know how a lot of post-Amnesia games have objects you can pick up and hover and rotate in front of your face, for no discernible reason other than to add a bit of 'world'-y atmosphere?”
graphics
15 mentions
47 % positive mentions
33 % neutral mentions
20 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the visuals and atmosphere, particularly noting the use of Unreal Engine 4, while others criticize the overall quality as poor or inconsistent. Despite some positive remarks about the graphics, issues like clunky controls and stuttering detract from the experience. Overall, while there are highlights, the graphics do not consistently impress across the board.
- “The good stuff is - I actually quite liked the graphics.”
- “Nice graphics and atmosphere; wish it had been longer, they could have easily fleshed out the concept to a 3-4 hour experience.”
- “Few things I liked are the graphics (Unreal Engine 4 awesomeness) and how the countdown timer made me panic thinking that I won't make it.”
- “The graphics are barely visible, the puzzles are all sequence based, there's nothing interesting to do with any of the interactions, and the little plot that is there, which is scattered about, is not interesting in the slightest.”
- “Very bad graphics quality.”
- “Clunky controls, stutters, rather poor graphics and audio.”
replayability
10 mentions
20 % positive mentions
50 % neutral mentions
30 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is mixed; while it features multiple endings and randomly generated puzzles, many players find that the short playtime (around 15-30 minutes) and repetitive nature of the puzzles limit the overall replay value. Some players appreciate the achievements and different endings, but others feel that the lack of depth in the story and puzzle design diminishes the incentive to replay.
- “The game boasts a high replayability factor due to randomly generated item placement and multiple endings that depend on how much you've learned about your captor, his previous victims, and his occult interests.”
- “And there's plenty of achievements to get - I'm still only at 40% as of this writing - so there may well be some replayability if you're determined to get your value for money.”
- “The only replay value comes from the different endings, but to experience them all you can do it within an hour, since once you figure out what solution each puzzle requires, you can quickly wrap up a single playthrough, even with the randomly generated item locations.”
- “They say that it is replayable, but all that means is that they annoyingly scatter the same clues to the same boring (and easy) puzzles over the small dungeon-cellar map you find yourself in.”
- “Also, the game has multiple endings to witness, so there's slight replay value, but the one thing that gives it barely any replay value is the advertised randomly generated puzzles each playthrough.”
gameplay
9 mentions
33 % positive mentions
33 % neutral mentions
33 % negative mentions
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the immersive setting and challenging puzzles, while others criticize the overly dark environment and the frustrating timer. The randomization of items adds a layer of challenge, but frequent crashes and bugs detract from the experience, leading to concerns about the game's replay value and overall value for money.
- “The fact that items are randomized every gameplay adds a lot of challenge; at first, it may seem silly, but from time to time you will be missing little things.”
- “For once, this actually seems like a relevant mechanic... you'll understand when you play.”
- “Puzzles can be seen getting harder as gameplay progresses.”
- “Horrible gameplay, putting a timer on an overly dark hunt and click game.”
- “I like the setting, I did like the puzzles, and I even like the graphics, but the advertised 'extensive randomization system' is a total joke, so there is actually no real reason for playing it again, and 9.99€ for 20 minutes of gameplay is clearly overpriced.”
- “The fact that items are randomized every gameplay is a lot of challenge; at first, it may seem silly, but from time to time you will be missing little things.”
optimization
4 mentions
0 % positive mentions
25 % neutral mentions
75 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is widely criticized, with users reporting severe performance issues, including freezing and crashing, particularly on lower-end systems. Limited settings for performance adjustments exacerbate these problems, leading to a frustrating experience for many players.
- “32-bit and ridiculously bad optimization.”
- “Poorly optimized; I couldn't play.”
- “The last time I reviewed Enki, I completely crucified it for its abysmal optimization.”
stability
2 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with frequent crashes, freezes, and bugs reported by users. These technical problems detract from the overall experience, as players often find themselves having to replay sections due to unexpected interruptions.
- “Incredibly buggy; crashes all the time.”
- “Crashes, freezes, and bugs are a constant issue. The random gameplay idea is great and positive, but when it crashes and you have to replay everything, it's frustrating because you can't replicate your previous progress.”
humor
1 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by the amusing confusion players experience, particularly in the initial room, where the lack of clear direction leads to a comical struggle to progress.
- “The beginning room was funny; I had no idea what to do and it took me at least 30 minutes to get out of that room.”