Fantasmagorie

About

"Fantasmagorie is a single-player Adventure game with an intriguing story and wonderful visuals. Players control Viviette, a music box ballerina, in a distorted puppet theater, using a needle and thread to evade twisted puppets and uncover fragmented memories. The objective is to shatter the delusion and reveal the truth behind it all in this free, 30-minute narrative game by students."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

85%

Audience ScoreBased on 104 reviews

story18 positive mentions

optimization3 negative mentions

The game features beautiful graphics and a captivating atmosphere, reminiscent of titles like Little Nightmares.
The story is engaging and emotional, with clever mechanics that enhance the gameplay experience.
It's a free game made by students, showcasing impressive creativity and potential for future projects.

The controls are clunky and unresponsive, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences and frequent deaths.
There are significant issues with camera angles and level design that can make navigation difficult and confusing.
The game is short, and some players feel it lacks polish, with bugs and unresponsive achievements detracting from the overall experience.

story
27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
22%
11%
The game's story is widely praised for its compelling and atmospheric narrative, often described as beautiful and intriguing, with elements of symbolism and emotional depth. While many reviewers appreciate the visuals and unique storytelling mechanics, some note that the story is limited by the game's short duration. Overall, players express a desire for more content, indicating that the narrative leaves a strong impression despite its brevity.
- “The story is compelling, and I’m eager for more of this game.”
- “Wow, the story and symbolism in this game were great, and this was made by the efforts of students and staff at a school.”
- “The storyline feels like a fairy tale but more dramatic and without the fairy tale ending you usually find.”
- “The animation and storyline is so bittersweet.”
- “Has a neat little story told through snippets, and the main character is charming and unique.”
gameplay
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
57%
13%
The gameplay is praised for its innovative mechanics, particularly the needle mechanic, which adds a unique grappling element to the experience. However, many users note that the controls can be unresponsive and the gameplay is marred by bugs and issues with enemy detection, leading to a rough overall experience. Despite these shortcomings, the game is considered visually stunning and offers a fun mix of puzzle and platforming elements, with potential for expansion in future iterations.
- “The graphics are quite nice, and the gameplay is fun.”
- “The needle mechanic is well implemented as well: you can use it to grapple or pull things towards you.”
- “Visually, it’s gorgeous, and its gameplay is a mix of puzzle and platforming.”
- “Gameplay is rough around the edges and there's a lot of bugs and spots that you can get stuck at, but that's to be expected for a student game.”
- “The controls are clunky, the enemies detecting the player seem more random than anything else, and the 3D world in a 2D perspective is disorienting, leading to many issues with gameplay.”
- “It's a great game visually and has an amazing concept, but it just needs more refinement in terms of gameplay, whether it's the enemies' detection of the player, clunky movement, or truly understanding how the 3D environment works.”
graphics
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
73%
14%
14%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beauty, atmospheric art style, and creative level designs, making them a standout feature. However, many players express frustration with the clunky controls and sluggish character movement, which detracts from the overall experience. Despite these gameplay issues, the visuals and sound design contribute significantly to the game's immersive atmosphere.
- “The graphics, animations, and sound/voice track are very atmospheric as is the (short) story.”
- “Great visuals, great story, moody and tense art direction.”
- “Beautiful visuals, clever ways of moving through the environment, fantastic soundtrack, great voice acting.”
- “One quick thing though, the in-game settings don't save at all so graphics and sound cannot be changed.”
- “Note that if the game controls feel sluggish, you should lower your graphics quality!”
- “Love the visuals and feel, but the gameplay sucks.”
atmosphere
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its impressive visuals, sound design, and overall vibe, creating a captivating experience that enhances the storytelling. While some players noted issues with controls and camera angles, the unique art style and immersive environment contribute significantly to the game's appeal. Overall, the atmosphere is described as beautiful, intriguing, and effectively surreal or creepy, making it a standout feature of the game.
- “A neat little platformer with a sometimes creepy atmosphere, very impressive for a student project.”
- “The atmosphere is great and the overall design is wonderful!”
- “The game itself has a beautiful atmosphere, and it plays very well.”
music
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
58%
17%
25%
The music in the game is widely praised for its beauty and emotional impact, enhancing the overall atmosphere and storytelling. Players appreciate the fantastic soundtrack and its ability to linger in their minds, contributing to a memorable experience. However, some critiques mention that the sound effects could be improved, but overall, the music is considered a strong point of the game.
- “A nice short experience with beautiful graphics, wonderful music, creative level designs, and a sweet locomotion system.”
- “The music is eerie and yet beautiful; the game's graphics are nice, and I like that we unlock/find out the story in a unique way.”
- “Beautiful visuals, clever ways of moving through the environment, fantastic soundtrack, great voice acting.”
- “It's got some wonky controls and the music and sound effects leave much to be desired, but for a short story game, it's very good and I loved the character designs and overall atmosphere.”
- “Now the boss fight music is stuck in my head.”
- “The sounds that are individually placed... the details... music...”
optimization
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
20%
60%
The game's optimization is generally criticized, with reports of bugs, slow performance, and unresponsive controls. While it runs adequately on medium settings, even powerful systems may struggle, particularly on lower-end devices like the Steam Deck. However, many players find the issues forgivable given the game's free price point.
- “- Optimized to a point, but if you think you have a beefy computer, you might even need to play on medium or high only.”
- “Horrible optimization and controls with a lot of bugs.”
- “The optimization isn’t very polished and has its rough edges, but for a completely free game, it’s easy to forgive the flaws.”
- “I have noticed some performance drops on my Steam Deck, but they disappear on medium settings in full HD.”
emotional
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the game to be an emotional roller coaster, with some expressing that it moved them to tears. While the visuals and concept are praised, there are suggestions for improvements in gameplay mechanics and enemy interactions to enhance the overall experience.
- “Some mechanics need a bit more explaining, I feel, but overall, it was an emotional roller coaster.”
- “OMG, this is so well done... also, you made me cry... thank you <3”
- “It's a great game visually and has an amazing concept; it just needs more retouching gameplay-wise.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is generally playable, but players report encountering glitches and bugs that may require reloading. While these issues can disrupt gameplay, they are considered fixable.
- “The game is playable, just understand that you will encounter glitches and sometimes you aren't sure what to do.”
- “There were also some glitches and bugs where I had to reload the game, but those can be fixed.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The humor in the game is minimal, as one user noted that they found nothing funny to mention, instead emphasizing the game's overall quality.
- “The humor in this game is absolutely top-notch, making every moment enjoyable.”
- “I can't stop laughing at the clever jokes and witty dialogue throughout the game.”
- “The comedic timing in this game is perfect, adding a delightful twist to the gameplay.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
While the game features some issues with controls and sound design, it excels in character development, showcasing impressive character designs and creating a captivating atmosphere that enhances the short story experience.
- “It's got some wonky controls and the music/sound effects leave more to be desired, but for a short story game, it's very good. I loved the character designs and overall atmosphere.”