Fear Therapy
- December 24, 2021
- Black Flag Studios
- 4h median play time
Get on Steam"Fear Therapy" is a horror/puzzle game that takes place inside a mysterious asylum. The player must navigate through the asylum's dark and twisted halls, solving puzzles to uncover the truth behind the facility and its inhabitants. With a focus on psychological horror and exploration, players must face their fears and use their wits to survive.
Reviews
- The game provides a terrifying atmosphere with effective jump scares that keep players on edge.
- Playing with friends enhances the experience, making it both fun and scary, leading to memorable moments.
- The graphics and sound design contribute significantly to the horror elements, creating an immersive experience.
- The game suffers from numerous bugs and technical issues, including unresponsive controls and glitches.
- Gameplay can become repetitive, with players often running around searching for items without clear direction.
- Some players find the jump scares to be cheap and overused, diminishing their impact over time.
- gameplay78 mentions
- 26 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Fear Therapy" is characterized by a mix of puzzle-solving, item collection, and cooperative mechanics, but it suffers from numerous bugs, unclear mechanics, and repetitive tasks that detract from the overall experience. While some players appreciate the dynamic elements and jump scares, many criticize the game for its shallow mechanics and lack of innovation, leading to a frustrating and often tedious gameplay loop. Overall, the game shows potential but requires significant improvements to enhance player engagement and stability.
“The core gameplay involves solving puzzles, collecting items, and performing rituals to banish evil entities.”
“Its intense atmosphere, challenging gameplay, and emphasis on teamwork make it a standout title in the horror genre.”
“Players praise the game's dynamic gameplay and its ability to create a truly terrifying experience.”
“The gameplay is confusing at best, and at worst, non-functional and bugged.”
“The gameplay loop of glitches and poor-level design forces you to constantly ask yourself if the game is actually broken or if you're the problem and you're just stupid.”
“Between the bugs, boring gameplay, and cheap jumpscares, this game just isn't worth the time, let alone the money.”
- story52 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 69 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The story in the game is generally criticized for being shallow and repetitive, with many players noting a lack of depth and coherence in the quests. While some appreciate the horror elements and the multiplayer aspect, the overarching narrative is often described as basic or nonexistent, leading to a frustrating experience filled with aimless fetch quests. Overall, the game fails to deliver a compelling storyline, leaving players wanting more substance and engagement.
“❎ Very good: compelling story, well-developed characters.”
“In Fear Therapy, players find themselves trapped in a haunted house and must work together to complete quests and escape before Satan arrives.”
“Basically, you run around a creepy mansion looking for specific items; each item you find progresses the quest to find the next item, and the more items you get, the more intense it gets!”
“The story is 0/10.”
“Barebones generic story and short, cheesy 'reward' cutscene for completing the challenge make this a wholly unsatisfying experience. I would really only recommend it if you want to troll your friends' ears and bore them.”
“Repetitive jumpscares and lack of guidance in this game gave it a lackluster experience where I found myself just walking around forever with no real mission other than to find this.”
- graphics42 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the detailed and immersive visuals that enhance the horror atmosphere, while others criticize the presence of glitches and outdated elements. Many users note that while the graphics can be decent or even good at times, they are marred by bugs and inconsistencies, leading to a less polished experience overall. Overall, the game's graphics show potential but require significant improvements to meet player expectations.
“The game's graphics are detailed and immersive, effectively capturing the eerie and unsettling environments.”
“The artwork of the castle is astounding!”
“It's spooky and the graphics are nice and high quality, especially the lighting.”
“The graphics and sound effects in Fear Therapy are also subpar.”
“The visuals are mediocre at best, and the sound design is nothing special.”
“Obviously, the game is full of bugs and graphics errors.”
- humor26 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is a standout feature, with players frequently highlighting its comedic elements, particularly when playing with friends. Many reviews note that the glitches, emotes, and absurd character animations contribute to a lighthearted atmosphere, often overshadowing the intended horror aspects. Overall, the game is described as a blend of comedy and scares, making it a fun experience rather than a purely frightening one.
“Great jump scares and hilarious moments with friends.”
“The literal *hundreds* of dance and emote animations are absolutely hilarious and incredibly well-made, yet the in-game interactions and running animations are so jank that it feels like they're not even from the same game.”
“I died laughing when the bride rushed our group and you just hear every one of us unload our guns into her.”
- stability25 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is heavily criticized, with numerous reports of glitches that significantly detract from the overall experience. Many players describe it as unpolished and buggy, often rendering it unplayable or frustrating, despite some acknowledging moments of fun in multiplayer settings. Overall, the consensus is that the game suffers from severe stability issues that overshadow its potential.
“It's an unpolished, very buggy, shouldn't-have-been-released-yet version of Devour.”
“The glitches combined with this make the game basically unplayable, with one glitch downing you for no reason randomly.”
“Very buggy, not fun, I don't recommend it. Don't waste your time; it's a very boring game.”
- atmosphere21 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 57 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The atmosphere in "Fear Therapy" is widely praised for its terrifying and immersive qualities, enhanced by effective use of lighting, shadows, and jump scares. While some players feel that the sound design does not significantly contribute to the overall experience, the game's visuals and intense ambiance create a compelling horror environment that keeps players engaged and on edge. However, a few critiques mention that the reliance on jump scares and certain gameplay elements detracts from a more profound sense of fear.
“The atmosphere in 'Fear Therapy' is nothing short of terrifying.”
“The use of lighting and shadows is masterful, creating an atmosphere that keeps you on the edge of your seat.”
“Full of intense jump scares and fantastic atmosphere!”
“It seems like the developers didn't put much effort into creating a truly scary atmosphere, instead relying on these cheap tricks to try and create a sense of fear.”
“The atmosphere is passable with dimly lit maps and a creepy enough ambiance, but every other facet of the game completely ruins it.”
“The atmosphere isn't as tense as Phasmophobia, but the game does amp up pretty fast near the end of the round.”
- music18 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its ability to enhance the horror atmosphere through ambient sounds and suspenseful tracks, while others criticize it for being too loud, low-quality, or repetitive. Players noted that the soundtrack can effectively contribute to tension and jump scares, but technical issues and inconsistencies in sound playback detract from the overall experience. Overall, while there are standout moments, the music's execution varies significantly among players.
“The ambient noises, chilling sound effects, and haunting music contribute significantly to the game's horror elements.”
“☑️ Excellent: outstanding soundtrack, enhances every aspect.”
“The suspense music was pretty good in order to put pressure on your mates.”
“The soundtrack is too loud and couldn't be turned down.”
“Poor: low-quality or repetitive sound/music, detracts from the experience.”
“Fair: basic sound/music, doesn't enhance the atmosphere.”
- replayability10 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is mixed; while some players appreciate the randomized events and procedural elements that enhance variety, others feel it lacks sufficient content and diversity for long-term engagement. Many reviewers noted that while there are enjoyable moments, the replay value may diminish without additional updates or content.
“Randomized events and enemy spawns ensure that no two playthroughs are the same, adding significant replay value.”
“☑️ Very good: diverse gameplay experiences, high replay value.”
“The jump scares were fresh, the procedural items were fun for replayability, and it ran super nice on my machine.”
“Not much replay value to be honest and they don't accept my insurance, so... there's that...”
“Replayability isn't quite what I would like it to be, but I think it's definitely worth the 5 bucks for a few nice sessions of chaos.”
“Although if more content isn't added, then it has less replay value, I guess.”
- optimization9 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
Overall, "Fear Therapy" demonstrates strong optimization, running smoothly across various PC configurations with stable performance during intense gameplay. While some users noted that multiplayer optimization and lobby issues need improvement, ongoing updates suggest that the game's performance continues to enhance over time.
“Fear Therapy runs smoothly on a range of PC configurations.”
“The developers have put considerable effort into optimizing the game, ensuring stable performance even during the most intense moments.”
“Optimizations are regularly ongoing, thus it keeps getting better and better.”
“Unoptimized, boring, janky as f***.”
“Ok... bad optimization for the multiplayer.”
“- Optimization and lobby issues should be fixed.”
- grinding8 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 88 % negative mentions
Players consistently describe the grinding aspect of the game as tedious and frustrating, with many feeling that the item-searching mechanics detract from the overall experience. The lack of engaging content and the repetitive nature of gameplay lead to a sense of annoyance rather than enjoyment, resulting in a general lack of recommendation for the game.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“This game is basically going around looking for loads of items around the map, but it just feels tedious and the cheap jump scares.”
“The game's supposed 'therapeutic' elements are few and far between, and do little to alleviate the tedious gameplay.”
“Overall, I found this game to be more tedious and dull than scary, so I cannot recommend it.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional impact of the game is significant, as players report feelings of distress and sadness, particularly in response to unsettling events, such as witnessing a friend's distressing experience. The game's mechanics, like motion blur and head bob, further contribute to a sense of discomfort, enhancing the emotional turmoil.
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The monetization of the game is perceived as a cash grab, with players feeling that the overall experience is cheap and repetitive. However, the inclusion of a well-produced live-action cutscene stands out as a surprising element, suggesting a disparity in quality within the game's content.
“Most, if not all, of this game felt extremely cheap, boring, and repetitive. Our group was pretty confident this was just an easy 'multiplayer horror game' cash grab.”
“The monetization strategy is aggressive and feels like a blatant attempt to squeeze money out of players rather than provide a fair gaming experience.”
“It's frustrating to see a game that could have been great reduced to a series of paywalls and microtransactions.”
