Inner Chains

Starting at $1.10Buy now

Inner Chains is a first-person horror/adventure game set in a nightmarish, biomechanical world. Players must navigate through desolate environments, solving puzzles and battling grotesque creatures to uncover the truth behind their confinement. With a focus on exploration and immersion, Inner Chains offers a unique and harrowing experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

Reviews

44%

Audience ScoreBased on 137 reviews

graphics46 positive mentions

gameplay18 negative mentions

Stunning visuals and art design inspired by H.R. Giger and Zdzisław Beksiński, creating a captivating atmosphere.
Engaging gameplay mechanics that allow players to use environmental traps creatively against enemies.
Rich environments that encourage exploration, with a unique approach to storytelling through collectible letters.

Poor optimization leading to frequent frame drops and performance issues, even on high-end hardware.
Lack of a coherent story and character development, making it difficult for players to connect with the narrative.
Clunky combat mechanics with limited enemy variety and underwhelming weapon effectiveness, resulting in a tedious gameplay experience.

graphics
86 mentions
53 % positive mentions
43 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their stunning visuals, intricate art style, and immersive atmosphere, drawing comparisons to the works of H.R. Giger and Zdzisław Beksiński. However, many reviewers noted performance issues such as frame drops and long loading times, as well as a lack of graphical options for optimization. Overall, while the visuals are a highlight, they are often seen as the game's only redeeming feature amidst criticisms of gameplay and sound design.
- “The design is awesome; they crafted a great alien world, attention to detail in all assets is superb, the aesthetic, color palette, music, everything is great.”
- “The visuals of this game for me are enough to make me set aside the clunky sluggish gameplay and the overall glitchy experience.”
- “Absolutely stunning art style and visuals.”
- “The framerate micro-stutters often, occlusion is far too tightly vectored causing the sensation of things constantly popping in at the edge of corners as you round them, and at one point the visuals for an entire area took several minutes to load in after the initial parts of it did.”
- “The art is kinda interesting to look at with how detailed it is but that was tempered by the aging graphics, e.g. the low res textures and simplistic lighting.”
- “Inner Chains looks unfinished, unoptimized and we barely have any option to change in the graphics menu.”
gameplay
84 mentions
13 % positive mentions
65 % neutral mentions
21 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Inner Chains" has received mixed to negative feedback, with many players finding it dull and repetitive. While the game features a visually striking biomechanical world and some interesting mechanics, the combat is often described as clunky and unengaging, with limited enemy variety and a lack of depth in gameplay mechanics. Overall, players feel that the game fails to deliver a compelling experience, overshadowed by technical issues and a vague story.
- “The gameplay is a mix of walking simulator and FPS; I was excited at the prospect of an FPS in this already cool-looking game.”
- “Graphics look good, gameplay is smooth once you get used to the mouse speed.”
- “Despite the plethora of weapon upgrades that one can acquire, the gameplay is exceptionally shallow.”
- “The gameplay is a mix of walking simulator and FPS; I was excited at the prospect of an FPS in this already cool-looking game, but the gameplay is dull and bland. You get 3 guns that you acquire as you progress into the game.”
- “The gameplay in particular is too mediocre to really recommend it, and the bad performance is the final nail in the coffin.”
- “I cannot recommend it though due to the repetitive gameplay, the horrible optimization, and the clunky combat.”
story
78 mentions
10 % positive mentions
78 % neutral mentions
12 % negative mentions
The story of "Inner Chains" is widely criticized for being vague and poorly executed, with many players finding it incomprehensible and lacking depth. While the game features an intriguing opening cinematic and a visually rich environment, the narrative is often described as disjointed and tedious, relying heavily on minimal exposition and requiring multiple playthroughs to piece together any semblance of a plot. Overall, players feel that the storytelling fails to engage, leaving them with a sense of confusion rather than a coherent narrative experience.
- “The storyline weaves a dark narrative of humanity’s desperate fight for freedom.”
- “The rich visuals and engaging story make Inner Chains a unique and memorable adventure for fans of atmospheric shooters.”
- “The storyline and atmosphere are top notch.”
- “The story is a massive conundrum and even though you get an introductory cutscene, it didn't make a lick of sense.”
- “The exposition voice came in between chapters repeating the same thing, which made no sense to the story – actually, no sense at all.”
- “For now, it's a guessing game and I'm not 100% sure what the story was even after beating it.”
atmosphere
42 mentions
50 % positive mentions
43 % neutral mentions
7 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its dark, immersive, and surreal environments, effectively combining horror elements with rich visuals and sound design. Many players appreciate the unique artistic direction and the eerie ambiance that enhances the overall experience, although some note that the gameplay can detract from the atmospheric immersion. While the atmosphere is a standout feature, opinions vary on the game's pacing and engagement, with some finding it captivating and others feeling it lacks depth.
- “Combining the oppressive atmosphere of metro with the grotesque horror of Painkiller, the game captivates with its surreal environments.”
- “The amazing visuals and immersive atmosphere are the only real praise-worthy points of this game; the environments, though very claustrophobic and linear in nature, are richly detailed, as are the character models.”
- “First of all, yes it's disturbing, dark, and oozing with atmosphere.”
- “Just from the start it has solid atmosphere but damn the micro stutter/choppy framerate now and again just kills any momentum the game starts to bring and kicks your ass out of any immersion.”
- “It sets an aptly dark and foreboding atmosphere but lacks variation to sustain interest.”
- “Sorry, but I could not go on playing because of nearly no atmosphere, lack of storytelling, stupidly walking around with the feeling of 'you know nothing, Jon Snow,' which is not getting better at any time in the first 45 minutes.”
optimization
37 mentions
8 % positive mentions
43 % neutral mentions
49 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with many players reporting frequent stutters, frame rate drops, and overall poor performance even on high-end hardware. Despite some patches, issues persist, making the experience frustrating and often unplayable, particularly in certain chapters. While a few users noted acceptable performance, the consensus leans heavily towards it being poorly optimized and riddled with technical problems.
- “Performance will dip at times but it's nothing major.”
- “I don't think it deserves a thumbs down at all, and I'm a little irritated that so many people gave it a bad rating based almost entirely on the now fixed performance issues.”
- “I don't know where everyone's optimization issues are coming from but it runs perfectly fine on my system.”
- “The game has some glitches here and there, and some stuttering on my good hardware, which I can forgive, but it's still optimized poorly as it easily makes my PC sound like a plane compared to newer and technically more demanding games.”
- “The performance, despite several patches, is not up to the job and has regular stuttering and a lack of smoothness.”
- “Performance is atrocious - if it was just minor frame drops here and there, it might be okay, but there are so many times where the game stutters and lags hardcore, to the point where it is briefly unplayable.”
music
28 mentions
36 % positive mentions
43 % neutral mentions
21 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its repetitive nature and limited variety, consisting mainly of a few looping tracks that can become monotonous over extended play. While some appreciate the atmospheric quality of the soundtrack, others criticize it as uninspired and poorly integrated with the game's overall design. Overall, the sound design is seen as lacking depth, with many suggesting that the game would benefit from either more varied music or a focus on ambient sound effects instead.
- “The design is awesome; they crafted a great alien world, and the aesthetic, color palette, music, and attention to detail in all assets is superb.”
- “It has a very good, atmospheric soundtrack, and its art design is quite unique, so the screenshot aficionados will definitely rejoice.”
- “It plays like a shooter, with preserved ammo, in an eerie setting with a lot of atmosphere provided by what you see, accompanied by the creepy sounds and a suited musical score.”
- “There is 'the calm song' and 'the combat song' and while there isn't necessarily anything wrong with the music, it's all you're going to hear for five hours straight.”
- “The only plus of this game is the visuals, but after a short period of time you will notice the poor sound design of the world, the uninspired looped soundtrack for the entire game, the clunky repetitive combat mechanics, and the most amazing game design solution - collecting letters to discover the plot only in the second playthrough.”
- “Music is the same track played on repeat.”
stability
6 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is marred by frequent stutters, freezes, and performance issues, even on high-end hardware. While some users noted minor bugs and glitches that are not game-breaking, the overall optimization is criticized, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
- “The game is plagued with technical problems (e.g., poor performance and sound glitches).”
- “The game has some glitches here and there, and some stuttering on my good hardware, which I can forgive, but it's still optimized poorly as it easily makes my PC sound like a plane compared to newer and technically more demanding games.”
- “The only thing that I want to complain about is the lack of optimization; the game stutters and freezes from time to time when stuff is loaded and it has quite a lot of framerate drops.”
grinding
5 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and unsatisfying, often describing it as slow and boring, which detracts from the overall experience and the already minimal storyline.
- “In theory, it sounds cool; in practice, it's tedious and only hampers the already almost non-existent storyline.”
- “Ultimately, the game is just slow, tedious, and boring to play.”
- “The combat is extremely tedious and boring, and that's a huge problem because there's nothing else to do.”
emotional
3 mentions
67 % positive mentions
-67 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Players report that the game's stunning visuals evoke strong emotions, creating a sense of immersion in a hellish environment. However, the overall experience is marred by uninspiring sound design, gameplay, and narrative, leading to a disconnect between the game's potential and its execution. Despite this, some players find themselves emotionally affected, with moments that resonate deeply, even if the gameplay itself falls short.
- “Maybe that is just inside my head; bobbing really made me cry.”
- “There's some real stunning colossal structures in the distance that made me feel like I was in some kind of hellscape.”
- “The game had a good concept, but it ultimately fell flat emotionally due to its boring story and lack of engaging gameplay.”
- “While the graphics were excellent, the emotional impact was severely diminished by the repetitive gameplay and uninspired sound design.”
- “I expected to feel more connected to the characters, but the lack of emotional depth in the story left me feeling indifferent.”
replayability
2 mentions
50 % positive mentions
-100 % neutral mentions
150 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that the game's replayability is viewed negatively by some, who see it as a mere tactic to extend playtime without meaningful content. However, others appreciate the improvements made, noting that the game is now more playable and customizable, enhancing the overall experience.
- “All the issues were dealt with accordingly, and now this game is much more playable than before, understandable, and customizable for personal preferences.”
- “It's a poor excuse to boost the length and replayability; this alone deserves a thumbs down.”
- “The game lacks meaningful content that encourages replayability.”
- “Once you finish the game, there's little incentive to play it again.”
humor
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by the amusing animations of the enemies, particularly their awkward movements, which add a comedic touch to the gameplay. However, while the enemies are entertainingly easy to defeat, the challenge primarily comes from environmental hazards rather than combat, which some players find less engaging.
- “And don't get me started on the animations; the less 'zombified' enemies moving like constipated crabs is just hilarious.”
- “The enemies don't feel very challenging, at least not in an entertaining way. You're going to die far more often from just taking fall damage or being eaten by plants than by getting killed by the brain-dead enemies that are hilariously easy to cheese.”
monetization
1 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The monetization model is free from advertisements and does not include any pay-to-win mechanics, as players rely solely on hip fire without weapon zoom options.