Kholat

A poignant and masterfully haunting affair, Kholat’s flawed narrative and sparse environments aren’t enough to considerably detract from its overwhelming atmospherics and sense of adventure.

58%Game Brain Score

story, atmosphere

optimization, grinding

63% User Score Based on 775 reviews

Critic Score 53%Based on 21 reviews

Platforms

Buy Nowfrom $1.79

Buy NowGet on Steam€17.99

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About

"Kholat is a single-player horror exploration game with an intriguing story based on the real Dyatlov Pass incident, where nine hikers died in the Ural Mountains. The game features marvelous graphics and sound, immersing you in its dense atmosphere, but be prepared for lots of grinding and bugs. Navigate the harsh environment, uncover the truth, and survive the unknown forces."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

+11

63%

Audience ScoreBased on 796 reviews

story120 positive mentions

optimization6 negative mentions

Stunning graphics and atmosphere that effectively convey a sense of isolation and dread.
Engaging story based on the real-life Dyatlov Pass incident, with intriguing lore revealed through notes and journal entries.
Excellent sound design and voice acting, particularly by Sean Bean, which enhances the immersive experience.

Frustrating navigation due to a lack of clear indicators on the map, making it easy to get lost.
Limited gameplay mechanics, with no jumping or combat, leading to repetitive and tedious exploration.
The save system is poorly designed, requiring players to backtrack significantly after dying, which can be annoying.

story
457 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
68%
6%
The story of the game, based on the real-life Dyatlov Pass incident, is intriguing yet often convoluted, requiring players to piece together narrative elements from scattered notes and journal entries. While the atmospheric setting and Sean Bean's narration enhance the experience, many players find the storytelling disjointed and frustrating, with a lack of clear direction and a satisfying conclusion. Overall, the narrative has potential but suffers from execution issues, leaving some players feeling lost and unsatisfied despite the compelling source material.
- “The story is intriguing enough! It has fantastic source material that it could easily have been used instead of the crap they came up with, which would have made it at least an engaging story.”
- “The atmosphere, the story, everything about this game is beautifully fascinating.”
- “Following the true story of the Dyatlov Pass incident, the game places you tracing the footsteps of the students who died and adds a supernatural twist on the already spooky and mysterious circumstances of their deaths.”
- “The plot is extremely convoluted; after reading all the gathered notes I was able to grasp an idea of the narrative the devs were trying to unfold, but it was just done so very clumsily that it didn't feel engaging at all.”
- “The story-- if one can even follow it-- is mostly nonsense and told through notes, which has become an all-too-common trope in playable horror over the years.”
- “The game essentially consists of long treks across the map with a poor checkpoint system that just makes the whole experience drag on to the point where the story is just lost in the tedium.”
atmosphere
264 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
36%
2%
The atmosphere in Kholat is widely praised for its chilling and immersive qualities, enhanced by stunning graphics, haunting sound design, and a compelling musical score. Many players appreciate the game's ability to create a sense of isolation and dread without relying on jump scares, making it a standout experience for fans of atmospheric horror. However, some critiques mention that navigation challenges can detract from the overall enjoyment of the atmospheric elements.
- “The atmosphere and exploration mechanics are top notch, and several sequences were really scary with subtle elements of horror instead of cheap jump scares.”
- “Kholat is an intriguing, highly atmospheric, gorgeous game with a compelling story and mystery which never get resolved or explained in any meaningful way.”
- “The sound of the wind howling, the sound of an old mountain creaking, and the wolf howls in the distance all work together to create a very atmospheric and eerie/dark environment for you to explore.”
- “The atmosphere and creepy parts of the game ended up just feeling ineffective and frustrating by the end of my playthrough.”
- “The actual threats you deal with in the game really detract from the atmosphere/subtlety of the game, and feels like a complete afterthought; when you do die, it's always completely unexpected and instant, and then you're spawned in some random place that you don't recognize, lost.”
- “The spooky atmosphere only lasts so long before it loses its charm.”
graphics
192 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
68%
31%
2%
The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim, with many reviewers praising their beauty and atmospheric quality, often describing them as stunning and immersive. While the visuals are generally considered top-notch, some players noted issues with performance, such as frame rate drops and minor graphical glitches. Overall, the game's aesthetic and environmental design significantly enhance the horror experience, making it a highlight for many players.
- “A beautifully haunting game with some of the most stunning visuals to explore endlessly, still giving me many questions even after completing it.”
- “The graphics are beautiful, the game runs smoothly, the soundtrack is excellent.”
- “The atmosphere and graphics of this game are phenomenal, and the music (especially that at the title screen) are perfect.”
- “The graphics/atmosphere are beyond top-notch, but this serves only to trick you, and hide a clunky, complicated mess of a game that works against you as you're trying to enjoy it.”
- “In order to keep a decent framerate I had to turn graphics settings down to medium from the maximum they auto-detected.”
- “Put the graphics at minimum, the game became really ugly.”
gameplay
162 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
70%
14%
The gameplay of Kholat has received largely negative feedback, with many players finding it tedious and frustrating due to slow movement, confusing navigation, and a lack of engaging mechanics. While the atmospheric elements and story are praised, the core gameplay is often described as simplistic and repetitive, leading to a sense of disorientation and boredom. Overall, players feel that the game prioritizes atmosphere over meaningful gameplay, resulting in a disappointing experience for those seeking more interactive elements.
- “The atmosphere and exploration mechanics are top notch, and several sequences were really scary, using subtle elements of horror instead of cheap jump scares.”
- “The game's short, but it has cool mechanics, like navigating with only a map and a compass.”
- “The mechanics are a little watered down and trying to navigate can be difficult, but the story and tension that is created compensates.”
- “Boring gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is basic without any variation.”
- “This game is terrible; it started off good, but then when you get into the open world part of it, it gets really bad. It doesn't tell you what you need to do and where you need to go. You can spend hours in this game walking around and make no progress at all.”
music
136 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
62%
36%
2%
The music in the game is widely praised for its haunting beauty and ability to enhance the atmospheric tension, contributing significantly to the overall immersive experience. Many players noted that the soundtrack effectively complements the eerie visuals and sound design, although some expressed frustration with its inconsistent presence during gameplay. Overall, the combination of chilling scores and ambient sounds creates a captivating and unsettling environment that resonates with players.
- “The soundtrack blends beautifully with the game's soundscape, which makes for a very engrossing and immersive experience.”
- “The music, sound effects, and graphics are foreboding and claustrophobic, despite the game being wide open.”
- “The atmosphere and graphics of this game are phenomenal, and the music, especially that at the title screen, is perfect.”
- “Though the musical score can sometimes get cut out of nowhere, it has a solid ambience of dread and, as Geralt would say: 'wind's howling.'”
- “But paired with the game, the soundtrack almost makes the game worse.”
- “However, the 'tension' music gets a bit repetitive after a while, losing its feeling of danger and becomes annoying (at least to me).”
optimization
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
60%
24%
The game's optimization is widely criticized, with players reporting severe performance issues, including frequent frame rate drops and stuttering, regardless of hardware specifications. While the graphics and overall experience are praised, the poor optimization significantly detracts from immersion and enjoyment, leading many to recommend avoiding the game unless system requirements are comfortably met. Overall, the game's captivating elements are overshadowed by its technical shortcomings.
- “Despite the poor performance, I loved the game and will probably play it again in 6 or so months.”
- “Fantastic game, awesome atmosphere and graphics... it needs optimization though some areas have abnormal frame drops.”
- “Uses the Unreal Engine 4, with great visual quality, though many optimization issues, but good stability without any crashes.”
- “First and foremost, it is severely under-optimized, which means that some areas of the game will absolutely kill your performance/fps regardless of what setup you have.”
- “The only problem I ever had with the game was its performance issues; I run a mid-range PC and it would drop below 30fps regularly when on medium settings.”
- “The environment, apart from a few key locations, is visually bland, poorly optimized, and riddled with so many bugs that I could never get truly immersed in the experience.”
grinding
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The reviews highlight that the grinding aspect of the game is characterized by tedious exploration and navigation, with players often feeling lost due to a lack of guidance and an expansive map. While the game features beautiful graphics and an intriguing atmosphere, the repetitive and slow-paced gameplay, combined with frustrating mechanics, detracts from the overall experience, making it feel more like a chore than an engaging adventure.
- “This game was interesting for the first half an hour or so, but when I realized the vastness of the map and how little I had to go on (both with the plot and about where I was, how fast I was moving, which areas were accessible...), it quickly became tedious to play.”
- “Let's sum this up - this game lacks in gameplay, lacks in storytelling, the map system is tedious, the world looks nice but is completely empty.”
- “Grievously weighed down by its unforgiving orienteering mechanic, tedious gameplay and frame-rate issues, Kholat is more likely to leave you with your head aching rather than your head spinning.”
replayability
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
33%
42%
Overall, the game has been criticized for its low replayability, with many players noting that once the map is fully explored and encounters experienced, there is little incentive to return. The gameplay is described as frustrating due to navigation issues, and while some players might enjoy revisiting the environment briefly, the lack of varied content and a compelling reason to replay diminishes its long-term appeal. Achievements may offer a slight draw for hardcore players, but the consensus is that the game offers minimal replay value.
- “I don't know how much replay value it will hold, but I know that I wouldn't mind getting lost in those beautiful mountains for half an hour.”
- “Perhaps at a discount this may be worth a playthrough, but for 15 pounds that's a tad much for not much in return to be frank, seeing as there isn't even much replay value unfortunately.”
- “I'm not sure Kholat would have much replay value, however, as once the map has been explored and all of the encounters experienced, the game would lose its strongest asset - fear of the unknown.”
- “This game has no replay value whatsoever.”
- “Beyond that, it offers very little replay value for me.”
- “- it's short - 3 hours max, no replayability, unless you want to hunt for achievements.”
stability
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
92%
The game's stability is notably compromised by frequent glitches, including players falling through the ground and experiencing sudden freezes during gameplay. These issues detract from the overall experience, making it feel more like a buggy walking simulator than an engaging horror game. While the Unreal Engine 4 provides a solid foundation, the design flaws and persistent bugs significantly hinder immersion and enjoyment.
- “Running on Unreal Engine 4, the world runs great, but the key here is the design.”
- “The game maintains a smooth performance even during intense action sequences.”
- “I appreciate how stable the game feels; I rarely encounter any crashes or glitches.”
- “There were a fair few glitches where I'd suddenly fall off the ground I was walking on into the nothingness of the game engine, which was more than a little infuriating considering how hard it is to save the game.”
- “Some areas are buggy, causing you to fall through solid ground, resulting in death and forcing you to start from your previous save point.”
- “I had some issues with sudden freezes between zones and pop-in of ambient lighting.”
emotional
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
86%
14%
Players report a mixed emotional experience with the game, highlighting a sense of freedom and exploration, yet feeling emotionally detached due to a lack of tension and engagement with the story. While the atmospheric audio enhances feelings of isolation and unease, some find the overall experience to be dull and lacking in emotional depth.
- “This is one of those games where you journey out from the center, and it made me feel like I had the freedom to explore at my own leisure and pace.”
- “Absolutely stellar audio made me feel the wind chill.”
- “It constantly made me feel like I was being stalked.”
- “Boring, empty, no ambiance, boring story reading... a beautiful walk in the snow...”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that "Kholat" falls short in character development, lacking the depth and storytelling typically expected from walking simulators, which diminishes the overall experience.
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users find humor in the game's design choices, particularly noting the irony of certain paths being inaccessible due to high ledges, suggesting that jumping may have been a feature at some point.
- “The funny thing about this is that I really do think jumping was in the game at one point since there are some paths that are cut off by a high ledge.”
- “The humor in the dialogue is absolutely spot on, making even the most mundane tasks feel entertaining.”
- “I can't stop laughing at the quirky character interactions; they really add a unique charm to the game.”