Happy Game

About

In "Happy Game" , players enter the nightmare of a little boy, attempting to navigate through three disturbing dreams filled with unsettling puzzles and eerie environments. Featuring the distinctive art style of the creators of Botanicula and CHUCHEL, players must confront suspicious smiley faces and pink bunnies, accompanied by the unnerving musical score of Czech freakfolk band DVA. The goal: to bring happiness back to the boy by surviving and escaping his haunting dreams.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

88%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,056 reviews

graphics89 positive mentions

grinding10 negative mentions

The game features stunning visuals and a unique art style that captivates players.
The puzzles are engaging and provide a fun challenge without being overly difficult.
The atmosphere is dark and surreal, creating a memorable and thought-provoking experience.

The game is very short, typically taking only 1-2 hours to complete, which may not justify the price for some players.
Some players found the gameplay repetitive and lacking in depth, with many puzzles feeling simplistic.
The frequent use of flashing lights and unsettling imagery may be off-putting or even harmful to sensitive players.

graphics
189 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
47%
50%
3%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their unique and haunting art style, which blends cute and creepy elements to create a surreal atmosphere. Many reviewers highlight the stunning visuals and sound design, noting that they effectively contribute to the game's unsettling vibe, despite some criticism regarding the simplicity of the puzzles and gameplay. Overall, the visuals are considered the main draw of the game, appealing particularly to fans of psychological horror and artistic expression.
- “The art style is spot-on, delivering stunningly creepy visuals that play with your emotions.”
- “The visuals are why you buy this game; this art style is very unique and makes every puzzle horribly demented.”
- “The visuals and audio just make it more horrifying in a trippy way.”
- “The visuals are disappointing when actually in game.”
- “What drew me to play this game were the visuals, which looked very unique and interesting, but after playing until the end, I have to say that's all the game has to offer.”
- “While the game is definitely weird and uncomfortable like many of their other titles, this one feels a bit amateurish in terms of puzzles and artwork.”
story
125 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
66%
10%
The game's story is often described as abstract and cryptic, focusing on a child's nightmares with little dialogue or clear plot progression, leading to mixed interpretations among players. While some appreciate the unsettling visuals and thematic depth, many feel the narrative lacks coherence and substance, relying heavily on shock value rather than a meaningful storyline. Overall, the storytelling is seen as a blend of intriguing imagery and vague symbolism, leaving players divided on its effectiveness and impact.
- “The atmosphere is really dark and unsettling, which falls in line beautifully with the story of the game.”
- “The story is about a small child and their nightmares that usually involve something they loved and lost, and it’s divided into 3 chapters.”
- “As you solve each scene, the story progresses, and this progression and the story moments blend seamlessly with the gameplay.”
- “It's all about the visuals and the disturbing imagery; there is no plot whatsoever.”
- “The story is shallow and the game lacks coherence, like they threw in random ideas.”
- “The lack of any sort of substantial storyline also meant that the frequent long, unplayable scenes I was forced to watch were incredibly boring and uninteresting.”
gameplay
98 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
64%
11%
The gameplay of the game is characterized by its simplistic point-and-click mechanics, which some players find engaging while others deem tedious and lacking depth. Many reviews highlight the game's short duration, with around 1.5 to 2 hours of main gameplay, and a reliance on trial-and-error mechanics that can frustrate players. Despite its artistic visuals and macabre themes, the gameplay often feels underwhelming and disconnected from a meaningful narrative, leading to mixed feelings among players.
- “Gameplay is interesting, avoiding traditional puzzles and forcing you to experiment with things, sometimes with unexpected outcomes.”
- “The gameplay and puzzles are, on the whole, simple, intuitive, and macabre.”
- “The gameplay revolves more around finding the right triggers and interacting with toys and objects.”
- “The gameplay feels overly simplistic, almost like it was made for kids, but it contains some gore and creepy creatures, so it's not allowed for kids.”
- “Game isn't fun, mechanics are simply dull and non-responsive, waiting between 10-20 seconds every time you click or hit a key to have a 'guess what you should be doing next' in non-logical puzzles is frustrating and stressful.”
- “The gameplay elements are so underwhelming that it could easily have been a cool short animation movie, not a video game.”
music
90 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
41%
3%
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its ability to enhance the atmosphere, with many reviewers praising the haunting and eerie soundscapes created by the Czech band Dva. The soundtrack is described as a blend of calming and unnerving melodies that perfectly complement the game's unique art style and themes, making it a standout feature. While some found the music memorable and immersive, a few noted that it could become repetitive over time, but overall, it significantly contributes to the game's charm and emotional impact.
- “The music and sound effects change between calming and relaxing to unnerving and frightening as something bad happens, with lots of weird eerie noises coming from the creatures you find.”
- “Dva’s soundtrack is perhaps the most impressive part because the duo proves it can craft creepy, atmospheric music.”
- “The graphics and soundtrack make a powerful combo; I've got goosebumps several times.”
- “Creepy rather than scary, the childish nightmares and weird concepts weren’t that shocking, the music and sound effects were barely noticeable and with a very short play length and limited replay value, I felt shortchanged.”
- “I didn't hate it (unlike in the previous games which dva provided the OST to, where it got on my nerves extremely quickly), but it was one of the most unmemorable experiences of game soundtracks for me.”
- “There isn't much music itself in this game, but there's one melody which repeats throughout the game a few times (it's also in the trailer for this game).”
atmosphere
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
42%
6%
The game's atmosphere is consistently described as dark, unsettling, and surreal, effectively enhancing the overall experience with its haunting visuals and sound design. Players appreciate the unique blend of creepy and whimsical elements, which create a captivating yet disturbing environment that complements the gameplay. While some find the atmosphere engaging and rewarding, others note that it may not deliver traditional horror thrills, focusing instead on a more abstract and artistic interpretation of fear.
- “The dark and disturbing atmosphere of this game truly makes for a unique experience, keeping you entertained and mildly creeped out all the way through.”
- “It delivers a surreal experience that kept me captivated from start to finish, blending clever puzzles with unsettling imagery and a chilling atmosphere.”
- “Starting with the good, the atmosphere is on point; you have these creepy vibes mixed with a warm/calm feeling, the aesthetic is creepy as you would expect, and the sound design is great.”
- “A lot of people talking about how good the art style is, but all I see is the same good old Amanita visuals wasted on a creepy horror atmosphere.”
- “The game is permeated with a dark oppressive atmosphere.”
- “They probably wanted to make a horror/disturbing theme by employing many classical horror elements, but for one it doesn't have the right atmosphere for a horror, for two the presentation is just... horrible.”
humor
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is a blend of absurdity and dark comedy, often juxtaposing childlike innocence with disturbing visuals, which some players found both hilarious and rewarding. While many appreciated the quirky sound design and funny character interactions, others felt that the humor could have been more pronounced, especially given the game's over-the-top elements. Overall, the game successfully evokes laughter amidst its creepy atmosphere, making for a unique and entertaining experience.
- “Sound design is awesome, music is nice, the protagonist is adorable and it has some hilarious moments.”
- “You constantly go from an apparently idyllic, calm world - a happy game - to the terrifying, impetuous and psychedelic reality of the nightmare, with touches of humor that are sometimes cruel and absurd.”
- “Even though the imagery can get seriously creepy, it's all adorable and funny, as you'd expect from a little boy's nightmares populated by many bizarre characters.”
replayability
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
63%
19%
Overall, the game's replayability is considered quite low, with many reviewers noting its short playtime of around 2-3 hours and a lack of substantial content to encourage multiple playthroughs. While some players find value in revisiting the game for its themes or achievements, the simplicity of the puzzles and the absence of end-game content limit the incentive to replay. Many suggest that watching a playthrough might be a more fulfilling option for those seeking to experience the game without the repetitive gameplay.
- “In my opinion, it's very much worth the full asking price, as I think there's replay value in decoding the game's meaning.”
- “In my opinion, this game is for sure worth full price because you can definitely play this game through a couple of times; it has a little bit of replayability.”
- “Replay value - you'll know how to get through all of the puzzles and interactions, so yes and no.”
- “Creepy rather than scary, the childish nightmares and weird concepts weren’t that shocking. The music and sound effects were barely noticeable, and with a very short play length and limited replay value, I felt shortchanged.”
- “The replayability is close to nonexistent; however, it will stick to your mind like super glue.”
- “The game is all done in just 2 hours, most of which you spend just dragging your character to move forward, with obviously no replayability, so that's also a shame.”
grinding
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
7%
21%
71%
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for being tedious and repetitive, with players expressing frustration over uninteresting puzzles and slow, unresponsive controls. While the game features a variety of environments and characters, the lack of gameplay diversity leads to a monotonous experience that detracts from overall enjoyment. Many reviewers noted that the mechanics feel laborious, making the gameplay feel like a grind rather than an engaging challenge.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “The game is slow and tedious; some of the puzzles are uninteresting, long, unintuitive, or straight-up idiotic, which kills any sense of tension and momentum in the game.”
- “There is variety in the different areas you visit and all the wacky and cursed characters you encounter, but there is no variety in your gameplay, which quickly becomes tedious.”
- “Very tedious and just repetitive puzzles; you do a lot of repeating the same action several times to get the solution, and it gets pretty annoying after a while.”
emotional
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of Amanita games is characterized by a unique blend of wholesomeness and unsettling themes, evoking a wide range of feelings from joy to distress. Players often find themselves deeply affected, experiencing moments of overwhelming emotion that challenge their expectations of the studio's typically lighthearted style. This juxtaposition of cute aesthetics with darker undertones creates a memorable and impactful emotional journey.
- “The overall experience is more akin to being an inattentive parent flipping through their emotionally distressed child's sketchbook.”
- “I'll be honest, it's been a while since any piece of media has made me feel the way this game did.”
- “Emotionally, this is the most difficult and pressing project of Amanita Design Studio, clearly demonstrating that these guys are capable of anything.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
While the game features impressive graphics and a strong aesthetic appeal, players have reported occasional glitches that detract from the overall stability.
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development received mixed feedback, with some users expressing dissatisfaction with the character design and color choices, feeling that these elements detracted from the overall experience. Additionally, the puzzles and story did not compensate for the shortcomings in character development.
- “The character design and color were not for me, and the puzzles and story didn't really save it for me.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The optimization of the game has been criticized for its poor execution, with players reporting distracting visual inconsistencies such as black bars and missing elements, which detract from the overall experience.
- “It's like watching a theater performance with the backstage visible past the curtains, but worse, because you see rendered game, then black bars, then more rendered game with occasional missing elements and artifacts.”
- “The optimization is so poor that it feels like the game is constantly struggling to keep up, leading to frustrating stutters and frame drops.”
- “I can't believe how many graphical glitches and performance issues there are; it completely ruins the immersion and enjoyment of the game.”