Gwan Moon High School: The Ghost Gate
- March 11, 2021
- Studio AWE
Get on SteamHigh school students return to school late after hours, each with their own reasons and an ominous feeling. After midnight...the fears deep inside become a reality.
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Reviews
- The game features well-illustrated bad ends and a charming cast of characters, making it enjoyable for fans of character-driven stories.
- The art and scenery are well-drawn, and the music is decent, contributing to an engaging atmosphere.
- The game offers a variety of choices and multiple outcomes, providing a fun experience for players who enjoy exploring different paths.
- The narrative is linear and cliche, with choices often leading to immediate death, which diminishes the impact of player decisions.
- The game lacks depth in character interactions and the horror elements are mild, making it less appealing for those seeking a true horror experience.
- There are minimal sound effects and no voice acting, which detracts from the overall immersion and can make the experience feel repetitive.
- story16 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 56 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The story is described as a linear and somewhat cliché ghost narrative that leans more towards a teenage slice-of-life experience set in a horror backdrop, rather than a truly terrifying tale. While the writing is well-translated and the characters are developed, the lack of meaningful choices and multiple endings diminishes the overall impact, making it feel more like a light horror visual novel than a serious entry in the genre. Despite its shortcomings, the story is engaging and satisfying, with a decent mystery and good music enhancing the experience.
“The plot has an interesting mystery and I feel there is a decent tension to the tone.”
“The music is pretty good and I think the writing is good and well translated from Korean, I assume judging from the story setting.”
“This game has a pretty interesting, well written story.”
“The main story is too cliché.”
“Also, the story is absolutely linear, which is fine, but I was expecting at least two different endings that were not game overs.”
“It’s more of a teenage slice of life story in a horror setting than a serious genre representative meant to terrify, or spook, or repulse.”
- music7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally considered underwhelming, with a catchy main theme but a sparse soundtrack that quickly becomes repetitive. Many players feel that the lack of music and voice acting detracts from the overall experience, wishing for a more robust audio presence to enhance the game's atmosphere.
“The music is pretty good, and I think the writing is well done and well translated from Korean, judging by the story setting.”
“The main theme stood out and was pretty catchy, but it's clear that the soundtrack isn't something this game was banking on.”
“The music element is scarce, but when present, it adds a nice touch to the overall experience.”
“By far the biggest problem is the music, or the lack thereof.”
“What little music there is gets really old really fast, and almost ruined a few scenes for me, had I not turned off the music and played OSTs from other games.”
“I do really wish there was more music, but as it stands, with the lack of voice acting, the lack of music does set it back.”
- graphics3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -67 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The graphics are reminiscent of titles like "Corpse Party" and "Misao," featuring a strong art style that stands out for an indie visual novel. However, some reviewers feel that the potential for more intricate visuals is underutilized, despite the inclusion of intermissions and side stories that add variety. Overall, while the graphics are appealing, they may not fully capitalize on their potential.
“The art style is really good, especially for an indie visual novel.”
“Some intermissions and side stories did bring much needed visual variety, but I felt like the potential for being a lot more intricate was lost when it came to graphics as well.”
“In a way, it does remind me a bit of Misao due to the abundance of 'death ends'.”
“Some intermissions and side stories did bring much-needed visual variety, but again – I felt like the potential for being a lot more intricate was lost when it came to graphics as well.”
“Kind of similar to Corpse Party, but not nearly as graphic and the choices don't matter that much.”
- gameplay2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The gameplay features a point-and-click mechanic that some users found satisfactory; however, the lack of a meaningful save system diminished the urgency and impact of dying, which is crucial in horror games.
“The point & click mechanic was fine.”
“This mechanic didn’t just make the save system unnecessary (I ended up not saving at all), but also took all the meaning and urgency out of dying in the game, which in the horror genre has a significant impact on the overall experience.”
- character development1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -300 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The character development in "But Gwan Moon" is highly praised for its depth, featuring intricate background stories and engaging character interactions, making it particularly appealing to fans of visual novels.
“But Gwan Moon can certainly be appealing for people who like visual novels for what they are famous for – involved character development, a plethora of background stories, and lots and lots of character exchanges and banter, which is what this game 100% is.”
“The character development feels shallow and lacks depth, making it hard to connect with the protagonists.”
“I expected more from the character arcs; they seem predictable and fail to evolve throughout the game.”
“While the game has a rich setting, the characters themselves are one-dimensional and don't grow in meaningful ways.”
