Hauntsville

About

Hauntsville is a single player and multiplayer simulation game. It was developed by Michael Janisch and was released on March 10, 2025. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Hauntsville is a western horror survival simulation game where you and up to three friends must build a homestead and survive hostile creatures in a cursed frontier town. Featuring a compelling story, wonderful graphics, and immersive atmosphere, it offers both single-player and co-op multiplayer modes. Despite its great gameplay, the game suffers from bugs and lacks optimization.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

+10

Skip User Reviews

74%

Audience ScoreBased on 164 reviews

gameplay15 positive mentions

optimization11 negative mentions

The game features a cool Wild West atmosphere with engaging monster designs and a unique blend of horror and survival mechanics.
Building and crafting systems are intuitive and enjoyable, making for a fun multiplayer experience.
The graphics and eerie sound design create an immersive environment that enhances the gameplay experience.

The game suffers from numerous quality of life issues, including poor optimization, bugs, and a lack of content, making it feel unfinished.
Fast travel and other mechanics often do not work as intended, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
The enemy AI and pathing are problematic, resulting in janky combat and immersion-breaking moments.

gameplay
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
54%
8%
The gameplay is described as engaging and immersive, featuring a mix of survival mechanics, crafting, and multiplayer elements that enhance the experience. While the core mechanics are solid and the atmosphere is captivating, players have noted issues with bugs, building restrictions, and aiming reliability that detract from the overall enjoyment. Despite these shortcomings, the game offers a fun and dynamic experience, particularly in co-op mode, with potential for improvement through future updates.
- “Its immersive atmosphere, engaging gameplay, and unique character roles make every session exciting and unpredictable.”
- “The gameplay is fun and something new for a survival game.”
- “The game world is so beautiful and big, the atmosphere is unbelievably fitting and the gameplay itself often gets really scary because you don't know what is going to happen next.”
- “The gameplay loop is pretty casual and it’s the skeleton of something great.”
- “The game needs a lot of work; optimization is lacking, and there are unbalanced crafting and mining mechanics, enemy respawns, and many other problems.”
- “The gameplay itself is plagued by frustrating bugs.”
graphics
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
59%
32%
9%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the stunning visuals and realistic atmosphere that enhance immersion, particularly in horror and survival contexts. However, some players note issues such as graphical bugs, optimization problems, and a mobile-like appearance that detracts from the overall experience. Overall, while the graphics are often described as impressive and atmospheric, there are calls for further refinement and optimization.
- “Hauntsville is a stunning game with very good graphics.”
- “The graphics look realistic.”
- “The stunning visuals and immersive environment truly transport you to the heart of the wild west.”
- “The gun when aiming down sights sits at the bottom of the screen and I have to look up to aim it. The running seems like a faster walk, the looting I can live with, but the graphics are so mobile-looking.”
- “Graphic bugs & glitches: the game’s visuals, while initially impressive, suffer from numerous graphical bugs.”
- “Graphics needed to be turned down to medium to run smoothly, as the game is not optimized.”
atmosphere
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
74%
16%
10%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive and eerie qualities, effectively blending elements of survival horror with a western theme. Players appreciate the haunting sound design, creepy visuals, and the tension created by unpredictable gameplay, although some note that the game requires further polishing. Overall, the atmospheric experience is engaging and captivating, making it appealing for fans of the genre, despite some criticisms regarding its execution and originality.
- “Its immersive atmosphere, engaging gameplay, and unique character roles make every session exciting and unpredictable.”
- “The atmosphere is delightful, with eerie music and ghostly visuals.”
- “This game delivers an incredible balance of tension, terror, and exploration, all set in a hauntingly atmospheric wild west world.”
- “We are promised an atmosphere of the wild west, however, the game has no significant differences from other zombie survival games.”
- “The atmosphere didn't capture me.”
- “Some audio levels are off, but it nails a creepy atmosphere, especially at night—you constantly feel like something is lurking behind you.”
optimization
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
30%
55%
Overall, the optimization of the game has received significant criticism, with many players reporting poor performance, including low frame rates, stuttering, and lag spikes, even on high-end systems. While some appreciate the game's potential and atmosphere, the lack of optimization and numerous bugs detract from the overall experience, leading to frustration and disappointment. Many users express a desire for improvements in this area to fully enjoy the game's mechanics and features.
- “The game has a dark mystical atmosphere, great music and voice acting, variety of loot and weapons, creepy monsters and secrets, good optimization, but few interactive details.”
- “I will follow the game in hopes that there are optimization improvements, as I love the concept!”
- “Controlls and performance are good.”
- “Not optimized enough and definitely not worth the price.”
- “The optimization seems pretty bad; I kept getting low FPS with high settings, which is funny since I meet the 'recommended specs' and can run other games with higher demand more stably.”
- “One of the biggest problems with Hauntsville is its terrible optimization.”
story
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
42%
16%
The story of Hauntsville is characterized by an intriguing and immersive narrative that combines horror elements with engaging gameplay mechanics. Players appreciate the captivating visuals and atmosphere, although some express concerns about the execution of the storyline, noting issues with quest progression and a lack of depth in storytelling. Overall, while the concept is appealing, there are calls for a more coherent and fleshed-out narrative to enhance the gaming experience.
- “I love the intriguing storyline and charming visuals.”
- “Hauntsville is a thrilling horror game featuring captivating graphics, intriguing puzzles, and an engaging storyline.”
- “The concept and storyline are very appealing, and the high-quality graphics and variety of game mechanics guarantee a complete immersion into the atmosphere.”
- “After getting gold ore, our mission still said we needed to find the gold mine and we couldn't progress anymore, so that's where we stopped.”
- “Performance-wise yes, but the main issue is the game lacks a basic concept of how a story should be told, and in video game format let the player feel the story unfolding.”
- “It shouldn't feel like a walking simulator, where the main quest line is on rails, with the 'survival horror/open world' trope added in (poorly, might I add), just to get some extra e-cred.”
stability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is severely compromised, with numerous bugs and glitches affecting both multiplayer and single-player experiences. Players report frequent freezing, crashes, and graphical issues that detract from immersion, alongside general gameplay problems like AI unpredictability and fast travel malfunctions. Overall, the game is perceived as unfinished and poorly optimized, leading to frustration and loss of progress.
- “Game keeps freezing right after I get off the wagon, or when I can play, you have to follow what's going on or it again freezes.”
- “General glitches: the game world itself is plagued with bugs, including monsters getting stuck in terrain, fast travel breaking and dropping players through the map, and AI behaving unpredictably.”
- “Worse yet, it frequently freezes or crashes, forcing players to restart and lose progress.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is a standout feature, with players enjoying its quirky moments and chaotic interactions, particularly during multiplayer sessions. Many found themselves laughing at unexpected glitches and the absurdity of certain mechanics, such as janky monster behavior and friendly fire mishaps. Overall, the blend of humor with eerie elements provides a lighthearted contrast to the game's challenges, though some technical issues detract from the experience.
- “Between dodging mischievous spirits and solving quirky puzzles, I found myself laughing out loud at my own jump scares.”
- “The graphics are delightfully eerie, and the humor keeps the chills at bay.”
- “While some of these glitches lead to funny moments, they ultimately undermine the tension and challenge of the game.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviewers highlight the character development as a captivating aspect of the game, noting its depth and the strong foundation upon which it is built. This intricate evolution of characters enhances the overall narrative experience, making players more invested in their journeys.
- “The character development is fascinating and deeply engaging.”
- “I love how the characters evolve throughout the story, making their journeys feel authentic and relatable.”
- “The depth of character development adds layers to the narrative, allowing players to connect with each character on a personal level.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy of the game has raised concerns among users, with some perceiving it as a potential cash grab, despite acknowledging the developer's solo efforts.
- “I feel for the dev, as it's a one-man show, but how many 'survival horror' games have we gotten that were just cash grabs?”
- “The monetization strategy feels exploitative, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending extra money.”
- “It's frustrating to see a game that could be great overshadowed by aggressive monetization tactics.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players generally view grinding in games as a potentially tedious activity, but many acknowledge that it can be rewarding when done effectively, providing valuable resources or progress.
- “Most farming in games feels like a waste of time, even if it rewards you when done properly.”
- “The grinding mechanics are tedious and often feel like a chore rather than an engaging part of the game.”
- “I find the repetitive nature of grinding to be frustrating, as it detracts from the overall enjoyment of the game.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviewers indicate that the game suffers from low replayability due to a lack of diverse content, limited progression options, and minimal variety in weapons. Players feel that the absence of engaging mechanics and upgrades diminishes the incentive to replay the game.
- “Overall, there is just a lack of animation, content, and replay value.”
- “Replayability: D. There is nothing to level outside of stamina, health, food, and water. No clothing, etc. Less than a handful of guns. (So far in my 5 hours, I've gotten 2.)”
music
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's music is praised for enhancing its dark mystical atmosphere, featuring eerie compositions that complement the ghostly visuals. Reviewers highlight the quality of the music and voice acting as standout elements, contributing to an immersive experience.
- “The game has a dark mystical atmosphere, great music and voice acting, variety of loot and weapons, creepy monsters and secrets, good optimization, but few interactive details.”
- “The atmosphere is delightful, with eerie music and ghostly visuals.”