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Erica

If you enjoy narrative and choice based games, yes you should buy Erica. It’s not long, though, so if you want something more substantial, there are other games that would be better choices.
Erica Game Cover
78%Game Brain Score
story, music
gameplay, stability
84% User Score Based on 466 reviews
Critic Score 67%Based on 22 reviews

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Erica Game Cover

About

Erica is a single player casual action adventure game with drama and thriller themes. It was developed by Flavourworks and was released on May 25, 2021. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

"Erica" is a single-player thriller point-and-click game with an amazing story, splendid visuals, and beautiful music. The game allows players to explore the enigma of Delphi House and affect the action on-screen through interactive storytelling, with multiple endings based on choices made. However, the game is weighed down by bugs and can feel very grinding at times. Overall, it offers a unique atmosphere and a wholesome story, making it a must-play for fans of cinematic experiences.

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Erica screenshot
Erica screenshot
Erica screenshot
Erica screenshot
Erica screenshot
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Erica screenshot
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84%
Audience ScoreBased on 466 reviews
story151 positive mentions
stability13 negative mentions
  • Unique blend of cinematic storytelling and interactive gameplay, making it feel like a movie experience.
  • High production values with excellent acting and cinematography that enhance the overall immersion.
  • Multiple endings and choices encourage replayability, allowing players to explore different narrative paths.
  • Gameplay can feel tedious with excessive interactions that do not significantly impact the story.
  • Limited control options and occasional technical issues, such as crashes and lag, detract from the experience.
  • The story can be confusing and lacks depth, leaving some players unsatisfied with the overall narrative resolution.
  • story
    414 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story of "Erica" is described as intriguing yet flawed, with a mix of engaging elements and predictable tropes. While the acting is praised and the interactive choices can lead to multiple endings, many reviewers note that the narrative feels rushed, lacks depth, and often leaves players wanting more clarity and connection to the characters. Overall, it presents a cinematic experience that may appeal to fans of interactive storytelling, but it struggles with pacing and coherence, leading to mixed feelings about its execution.

    • “The story is so good and not too long, so you can comfortably do all the endings without feeling fed up. The soundtrack is beautiful and the pacing is excellent!”
    • “The story offers multiple endings, yet only the last few choices really matter. Still, when taken as a whole, the story succeeds in maintaining suspense and emotional engagement throughout its compact runtime.”
    • “The acting was surprisingly good and the plot flowed well, making it feel like an interactive movie that keeps you engaged throughout.”
    • “The story offers multiple endings, yet only the last few choices really matter.”
    • “For those expecting a traditional adventure game, Erica may feel more like a film with choices than a game with storytelling depth.”
    • “The story is confusing, but not in an interesting way; there's no completionist help, the sliding controls sometimes don't work correctly, and it's very frustrating.”
  • gameplay
    79 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay in "Erica" is primarily centered around player choices and tactile interactions, resembling an interactive movie rather than a traditional game. While some players appreciate the unique mechanics and emotional weight of decisions, many criticize the gameplay for being clunky, unintuitive, and lacking depth, with frequent bugs and a forced reliance on quick-time events. Overall, the experience is polarizing, with some enjoying the innovative approach while others find it cumbersome and frustrating.

    • “The gameplay experience in Erica is built entirely around player choice and tactile interaction.”
    • “The seamless blending between movie cinematics and interactive gameplay keeps players immersed in the world of Erica. The mystery is ever unfolding, leaving players craving more with each corner they turn.”
    • “Using a combination of cinematography and FMV-specific game mechanics, Erica never fails to hook you into its haunting world.”
    • “The gameplay is not intuitive; it is hard to understand what degrees of freedom you have throughout the game.”
    • “There's no real gameplay; rather, when Erica is placed in a predicament, you as the player get to choose what she does, what she says, or what crimes she commits.”
    • “The mechanics of the game are annoying and cumbersome; I can't play this way.”
  • music
    37 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its beautiful and atmospheric quality, effectively enhancing the emotional depth of the story without overshadowing it. Composed by Austin Wintory, the soundtrack is noted for its haunting minimalism and ability to adapt to the player's actions, creating an immersive experience akin to watching a film. Overall, the music is considered a standout element, contributing significantly to the game's engaging atmosphere and emotional resonance.

    • “His music alternates between haunting minimalism and swelling emotion, never overwhelming the story but constantly guiding the player’s emotional rhythm.”
    • “The soundtrack is very good and really makes certain scenes feel more intense or grand.”
    • “Of course the music is so amazing that it immerses the player into the story, making you forget that you're playing an interactive 'game', but more like watching a movie that you're a part of.”
    • “Nothing makes me more sad than a game that has a musical instrument that you can't play.”
    • “Like I'm having to tilt my head towards the screen (because that totally helps with headphones) to hear people talking over the music.”
    • “This is a solid experience and I'm going to file a small complaint about the music.”
  • graphics
    34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many praising the impressive visual fidelity and movie-like quality that enhances the storytelling experience. However, some users expressed disappointment, citing issues like stuttering gameplay and audio sync problems, which may be attributed to hardware limitations. Overall, the visuals are generally regarded as excellent, contributing to a haunting atmosphere and engaging gameplay.

    • “Amazing story and graphics.”
    • “Great visuals and movie-like gameplay that create an unsettling atmosphere.”
    • “The graphics for this game look unreal.”
    • “I found the graphical fidelity of the game pretty disappointing.”
    • “The video and gameplay stuttered a little for me and at times the audio was out of sync, but this might be due to my older graphics card.”
    • “It is probably for aesthetic reasons to not make the screen too crowded, but I don’t think it does very well when it comes to conciseness, as sometimes the wording is quite confusing and does not properly convey what actions the words represent.”
  • optimization
    27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The optimization of the game is a mixed bag; while it boasts high production values, strong performances, and an immersive atmosphere, players have reported issues such as crashes, freezing, and frame drops during interaction scenes. Despite these technical shortcomings, the engaging narrative and quality acting help maintain player interest, though some found the pacing and certain puzzles lacking. Overall, the game's cinematic quality is commendable, but technical stability could be improved.

    • “The game's engaging storyline, excellent acting performances, and haunting atmosphere kept me on the edge of my seat.”
    • “As an interactive adventure, the game overflows with quality: resolution and quality of the film, actors' performances, dubbing in different languages, music...”
    • “I recommend this game for those that are looking for a cinematic choose your own adventure with an excellent story and performance.”
    • “I think it's a bit of a shame that there's a strange silence and rigidity, especially in the central film scenes, and you might think that all the actors and their performances were recorded individually and somewhere and that the editing didn't manage to create a natural conversation out of these scenes.”
    • “In terms of performance, there was a certain bit where the game crashed, which made the scene skip to the choice at hand directly.”
    • “I've tried multiple things but at best the performance is bad, at worst the game crashes at launch.”
  • replayability
    25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's replayability is a mixed bag; while it features branching paths and multiple endings that encourage exploration, many players find the inability to skip previously seen scenes frustrating. Some appreciate the depth and narrative richness that invites multiple playthroughs, but others feel that the repetitive dialogue and limited impactful choices detract from the overall experience. Overall, the replay value is present but can be hampered by design choices that make replays feel tedious.

    • “Flavourworks has constructed a narrative that encourages replayability without relying on artificial gimmicks.”
    • “The branching paths and multiple endings add great replay value, encouraging you to explore different choices.”
    • “It seems like the replayability factor is quite high; there seem to be many loose ends.”
    • “Not a bad story, but the replayability is severely hampered by your inability to skip scenes you've already seen.”
    • “Unfortunately, the replay value suffers somewhat from all the choices and, above all, many of them are without consequence, because there are really only a few nodes in the game where really different paths arise.”
    • “I personally don't like the idea that you have to play multiple times to get the full story as it feels like a cheap tactic at replayability, especially since you cannot skip scenes you have already seen, so a lot of time you'll be sitting listening to the same dialogue over and over again to find everything.”
  • atmosphere
    21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere in "Erica" is widely praised for its haunting and immersive qualities, enhanced by a compelling score and strong performances. The game's full-motion video style creates a cinematic experience that draws players into its psychological thriller narrative, fostering introspection and emotional engagement. While some found the pacing slow at times, the overall ambiance, combined with great visuals and acting, successfully establishes a dark and eerie tone that captivates players.

    • “Where Erica truly shines is in its atmosphere and performances.”
    • “The game's engaging storyline, excellent acting performances, and haunting atmosphere kept me on the edge of my seat.”
    • “Great actors, great camera work, great soundtrack, and a dark and eerie atmosphere into which you immerse completely.”
    • “The theme presented in the plot evokes an atmosphere of psychological thriller.”
    • “Great visuals and movie-like gameplay that create an unsettling atmosphere.”
    • “Erica is an FMV adventure created with a lot of attention and commitment to things that contribute to the atmosphere and the overall experience of maladaptation and going through nightmares.”
  • emotional
    15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's emotional impact is mixed, with some players finding it beautifully produced and engaging, while others feel the emotional connections are superficial due to infrequent character interactions. The narrative effectively guides players through a range of emotional experiences, though it may lack the depth of top-tier narrative adventures. Overall, it evokes strong feelings, with some players reporting significant emotional responses, while others feel distanced from the characters and story.

    • “Her performance anchors the narrative, making the player’s decisions feel emotionally weighted rather than mechanical.”
    • “His music alternates between haunting minimalism and swelling emotion, never overwhelming the story but constantly guiding the player’s emotional rhythm.”
    • “Still, when taken as a whole, the story succeeds in maintaining suspense and emotional engagement throughout its compact runtime.”
  • stability
    13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The stability of the game has been widely criticized, with numerous users reporting frequent bugs, crashes, and freezes during gameplay and upon exiting. While some players have experienced minimal issues, many others have encountered significant technical problems, including unresponsive controls and a malfunctioning achievement system. Overall, the game's stability remains a major concern, with ongoing reports of these issues as recent as 2025.

    • “Very buggy, can't even start the game, and when it somehow opens for no reason, the achievement system doesn't work.”
    • “Closing the game just freezes it; I have to close the window from the task manager.”
    • “I had several random crashes and freezes, and when I quit the game, it also freezes, requiring me to kill the process manually via task manager.”
  • grinding
    13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for being tedious and repetitive, with players noting that the lack of scene skips and the necessity for multiple playthroughs to unlock achievements contribute to a frustrating experience. Many find the required interactions overly simplistic yet cumbersome, leading to a sense of boredom and wasted time. While the story is appreciated, the overall execution leaves players feeling that the grinding elements detract significantly from the enjoyment.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “A bit grindy sometimes.”
    • “In a word, the game is tedious, repetitive, confusing, and half-assed.”
    • “Sadly, on subsequent playthroughs there are no scene skips for scenes you've already seen, so it gets a bit tedious. The achievements are spread across 5-6 playthroughs, and after the 3rd one, you'll be plenty bored with it.”
    • “The game is very interesting and has a sense of mystery, but to see the different endings, you have to play the game all over again multiple times, with no way to skip the cinematics or jump to a specific point, making it kind of tedious.”
  • humor
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is characterized by its absurd scenarios and quirky character interactions, such as the lack of supervision for the girls and the detective's comical decision-making. Players find amusement in unexpected moments, like a character's humorous remark about "society" and the ability to play a funny remix on a piano, contributing to an overall lighthearted and entertaining experience.

    • “The setting and the way people acted made me laugh because it is just so far-fetched in some aspects, like how the girls have no supervision whatsoever.”
    • “It's funny, I didn't know this game existed and found out about it in a strange way.”
    • “I thought it was hilarious when they came back to Erica's flat and the door was open, and the detective just lets her go in first instead of him going first.”
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67%Critics’ scoreBased on 22 critic reviews
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5h Median play time
5h Average play time
2h Main story
11h Completionist
5-5h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 1 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Erica is a casual action adventure game with drama and thriller themes.

Erica is available on PC, PlayStation 5, Phone, PlayStation 4 and others.

The main story can be completed in around 2 hours, while the entire game is estimated to take about 11 hours to finish. On average players spend around 5 hours playing Erica.

Erica was released on May 25, 2021.

Erica was developed by Flavourworks.

Erica has received mostly positive reviews from players and mostly positive reviews from critics. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

Erica is a single player game.

Similar games include The Bunker, Late Shift, She Sees Red, The Complex, Blacksad: Under the Skin and others.