Gate to Site 8
- September 9, 2021
- Derek Golliher • Orange Crow Studio
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Get on itch.io Store"Gate to Site 8" is a narrative-driven game that explores the story of a troubled individual returning to their childhood home. The game features a slower-paced, emotive experience with horror elements, encouraging players to uncover the protagonist's past and reconcile with their childhood trauma. With unique storytelling prompts and a runtime of 30 minutes to 1 hour, the game is best experienced in one sitting with headphones. The game's haunting soundtrack is composed by Jurrivh.
Windows
Reviews
- The game offers a poignant and emotional story that effectively explores childhood memories and dark secrets.
- The atmospheric world is beautifully crafted, with impressive sound design that enhances the experience.
- It provides a short but engaging experience, with light horror elements that add to the intrigue without relying on jumpscares.
- The gameplay can feel monotonous due to the repetitive cabin layout and lack of significant variation in environments.
- Technical issues such as unreliable crouch mechanics, low audio mixing, and performance problems detract from the overall experience.
- The story's pacing and some plot twists may come off as predictable or anticlimactic, leaving players wanting more depth and originality.
- story14 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The story is centered around personal memories involving themes of family trauma, particularly focusing on an abusive father and the protagonist's relationship with their brother. While some players found the narrative engaging and emotionally impactful, others criticized its simplicity and the mismatch between the story's dark themes and the game's cheerful background music. Overall, it is described as a short, linear experience that leans more towards psychological exploration than traditional horror.
“A wonderful experience driven by the story.”
“One of the best games I've played at any price, not based on anything but story and ending.”
“For a play time of roughly 45 minutes, the story engrosses you with all elements from love to the horrors of one's mind.”
“The story is pretty basic; you go through your memories of the past that involve your brother and an abusive, alcoholic father.”
“It just doesn't match the claims for a 'dark story' and 'horror elements'.”
“Short, extremely linear story with a generic environment, including a few houses that have identical layouts and furnishings.”
- graphics7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The graphics are generally considered decent, with minimal differences between high and medium settings, but a significant drop when switching to low. Users noted issues with brightness fluctuations when transitioning between indoor and outdoor environments, and some experienced crashes when adjusting settings. Overall, while the graphics are described as crisp, there are concerns about performance and the need for improved settings management.
“The graphics are crisp and the background music soothes the soul.”
“The graphics were pretty decent.”
“Controls are very simple, graphics are okay.”
“I didn't like the constant change in brightness when going inside and outside (which was much more noticeable with low graphics).”
“Downsides: graphics aren't great, as well as the performance; it has a quite unnecessary plot twist at the end.”
“The graphics were pretty decent (but not much difference between high and medium, but then a huge gap from medium to low?).”
- music7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The music in the game is described as calming and beautiful, with a standout piano theme that enhances the relaxing atmosphere. However, some users feel that the upbeat background music does not align with the game's narrative, suggesting that a more ominous or somber score would better suit the plot and increase the overall tension.
“Also, the piano theme song is absolutely fantastic.”
“Relaxing soundtrack.”
“The graphics are crisp and the background music soothes the soul.”
“I get that there is a story to be experienced, but the background music was just too happy and calming, which makes the game feel more like a regular ordinary walking sim.”
“It perhaps would have done better with more ominous or somber music, especially considering the plot.”
“It's a bit too slow-paced with calming background music to be considered any kind of scary.”
- atmosphere5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is effectively crafted, with impressive sound design enhancing the experience, though it leans more towards a spooky ambiance rather than outright horror. Players appreciate the atmospheric world and storytelling, noting that while it lacks intense scares, it successfully creates a captivating environment.
“The game dev has created a truly atmospheric world.”
“The use of sound and sound effects in these moments (and across the game) is very impressive and adds so much to the atmosphere.”
“It was nice to see the attempt of creating a spooky atmosphere.”
“The game is a walking sim, so I don't expect a scary atmosphere (and there wasn't, though perhaps one very light half jumpscare?).”
“It was nice to see the attempt at creating a spooky atmosphere.”
- gameplay3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized as a stripped-down walking simulator focused on exploration and item collection, which triggers emotional monologues related to childhood memories and dark secrets. This indie game emphasizes a personal narrative, creating a somber and introspective experience for players.
“Another somber, quiet, emotional, and sad little indie game about childhood memories, strange happenings, and dark secrets that seems very personal to the developer; using the genre of stripped-down walking sim/exploration games and the collecting of items which trigger monologues as its only gameplay mechanic.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is characterized as a deeply emotional indie experience that explores themes of childhood memories and dark secrets through a somber narrative. Utilizing a minimalist walking simulator format, it engages players with item collection that triggers poignant monologues, reflecting the developer's personal connection to the story.
“Another somber, quiet, emotional, and sad little indie game about childhood memories, strange happenings, and dark secrets that seems very personal to the developer. It uses the genre of stripped-down walking simulation and exploration games, with the collecting of items that trigger monologues as its only gameplay mechanic.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has been criticized for subpar graphics and performance issues, which detract from the overall experience. Additionally, some players found the plot twist at the end to be unnecessary, further impacting their enjoyment.
“The graphics aren't great, and the performance is lacking, which detracts from the overall experience.”
“The game suffers from poor optimization, leading to frustrating performance issues.”
“There are significant optimization problems that make the gameplay feel sluggish and unresponsive.”
