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KOBOLD: Chapter I

KOBOLD: Chapter I Game Cover
82%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:story, atmosphere
Most mentioned negative aspects:optimization, stability
82% User Score Based on 212 reviews

Platforms

PCVirtual RealityOculus VRWindows
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KOBOLD: Chapter I Game Cover

About

KOBOLD: Chapter I is a single player survival survival game with horror and mystery themes. It was developed by anotherworld GmbH and was released on November 14, 2018. It received positive reviews from players.

Kobold is a new kind of horror experience that blurs the line between cinema and VR gaming. Step into the shoes of an urban explorer investigating the mysterious case of a missing boy. Pick up your flashlight and discover the secrets of an abandoned villa in the middle of a dark forest in Germany. Immerse yourself in true, cinematic realism, explore an interactive universe, pick up clues and dare …

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KOBOLD: Chapter I screenshot
KOBOLD: Chapter I screenshot
KOBOLD: Chapter I screenshot
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82%Audience ScoreBased on 212 reviews
story26 positive mentions
optimization5 negative mentions
  • Highly atmospheric and immersive horror experience with excellent graphics and sound design, creating a realistic and creepy environment.
  • Effective storytelling through exploration, audio tapes, letters, and videos that enrich the lore and mystery.
  • Provides a good balance of psychological horror and jump scares, making it a memorable VR horror experience despite its short length.
  • Game is very short, typically lasting around 30-60 minutes, with no save feature and limited replayability.
  • Performance issues and poor optimization on many systems cause lag, stuttering, and crashes, impacting the smoothness of the experience.
  • Clunky and sometimes buggy controls, awkward item handling, and occasional glitches reduce overall gameplay quality.

  • story

    63 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story is praised for its immersive, atmospheric horror experience with effective storytelling through environmental clues, tapes, and letters, creating strong suspense and tension. However, as a short first chapter, many feel it ends prematurely with limited character development and narrative depth, leaving players eager for a fuller continuation in future installments. Overall, it's considered a high-quality, cinematic intro that works well for fans of dark, exploratory horror despite its brevity.

    • “Kobold: chapter i is the start of a fantastic interactive VR horror story; for once I had the feeling that I was inside a good horror movie.”
    • “I find the complaints about the length exaggerated given the high overall quality, the intriguing story, the attention to detail and the feeling of total immersion (and dread/isolation) that I felt throughout my body.”
    • “Aaa quality: the story is compelling, I like to discover things so the letters and videos totally drew me in.”
    • “Since it's only "chapter one" it should be noted that the game feels like the first act of a larger story, and that might make it feel a little anti-climactic.”
    • “Being the experience quite short the story doesn't build up properly, the events are mainly narrated through letters that you find in the house but I found the progression of the story too fast, leaving me at the end quite careless about the characters and the plot.”
    • “Overall, if you can get it on sale and are looking for a decent, short horror experience I would recommend it but I most definitely would not purchase it at full price knowing there is most likely never going to be any further story development.”

  • atmosphere

    57 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is widely praised for its rich, creepy, and immersive atmosphere, combining realistic graphics, detailed environments, and effective sound design to keep players on edge throughout. Reviewers highlight its subtle, elegant horror that builds suspense without relying heavily on jump scares, making it a standout VR horror experience despite its short length and occasional technical issues.

    • “The photogrammetry scanning, lighting, voice acting, and sound design combine to create a convincingly realistic and very specific, brooding atmosphere that you won't find again so soon in VR.”
    • “Everything you expect from a VR horror is done very well here and the atmosphere build-up is so good, I got goosebumps long before the horror and scares start.”
    • “To put it in a nutshell: Kobold combines awesome and surprisingly crisp visuals with a very convincing sound environment to create such a powerful immersion that makes you really feel the atmosphere and one can only wish for in the VR-horror genre!”
    • “Not much for scares though as I said the atmosphere is set up well and it's pretty creepy.”
    • “Apart from that, they did a pretty good job, the story was interesting, the jumpscares were efficient and the atmosphere was really creepy.”
    • “At first, I was pooping myself as usual on every small sound, but nothing really came out to jumpscare me, so the only thing that stayed with me through the game was the sheer terror of 'something can happen any time' and the very well done atmosphere.”

  • graphics

    50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's graphics are generally praised for their photorealistic quality, cinematic lighting, and atmospheric effects that greatly enhance immersion in the VR horror experience. However, some users report significant performance issues on high settings and note inconsistencies such as flat, low-detail objects and limited graphics options. Overall, while visuals are a standout feature for many, a few find the graphics underwhelming or poorly optimized.

    • “The visuals are stunning and the sound design is great, which adds to the immersion and makes you want to explore the mansion even more.”
    • “The photorealistic graphics heighten the immersion, it feels like you stepped right into a horror movie.”
    • “The lighting is really cinematic and atmospheric, the graphics are awesome and I almost had a heart attack in one or two places I don't want to spoil.”
    • “The game is pretty short, the atmosphere is nice but the graphics go from decent to awful; several objects are just flat textures. I understand this is probably done for performance, but flat stuff in VR is a big no. Luckily the lighting is quite low so it's not super visible unless you walk near things.”
    • “The graphics are really bad and at the same time very demanding in terms of performance.”
    • “Changing the graphics quality helped a little, but the 'lower' graphics settings literally have the exact same terrible quality textures as the 'high' settings.”

  • optimization

    16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Optimization is inconsistent, with many users experiencing performance issues such as stuttering, low FPS, and poor VR performance even on good hardware. While some praise the developers' ongoing efforts to improve optimization, others find the game demanding despite its modest graphics, leading to a mixed experience depending on the setup.

    • “A well optimized experience for Rift S, good performance, good movement system and some really unique moments.”
    • “This game has time and time again performance issues on many graphics cards, even on good ones. This may be caused by Windows updates or Steam VR updates, but at least the developers try to fix it time and time again, which I appreciate!”
    • “I was happy to notice that the developers contacted me soon after to let me know about a performance update.”
    • “Buggy and poorly optimized.”
    • “Very poorly optimized.”
    • “I currently have an Oculus Quest 2. I first tried this game with Air Link and the performance was incredibly bad. The average FPS was 30 even though my headset was set to 120 FPS.”

  • gameplay

    15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay is praised for its immersive storytelling, visuals, and unique VR mechanics, particularly the chalk mechanic, creating a high-quality experience despite being relatively short. However, some users find the gameplay limited, describing it more as a walking simulator focused on atmosphere rather than traditional gameplay depth. Overall, it delivers a strong, spooky experience with solid production values but minimal gameplay complexity.

    • “Loved the chalk mechanic :-) a+ nice work.”
    • “Honestly it's really cheap and you get a quality 1+ hour experience for your money with some of the best storytelling, visuals, VR mechanics and audio design that you can find in VR.”
    • “It looks fantastic, the graphics are top notch, the story and gameplay are great, it runs well and it's scary as hell.”
    • “Can't say anything about the gameplay because I didn't manage to get to that point before I quit trying.”
    • “- Barely any gameplay.”
    • “Overall, this game has excellent production values and a good atmosphere, although the gameplay was lacking.”

  • stability

    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game suffers from significant stability issues, including frequent bugs, glitches, and crashes that hinder progress due to the lack of a save feature. Problems with controls and audio further contribute to a frustrating experience, detracting from the intended atmosphere and immersion.

    • “Suitably creepy and atmospheric, but buggy and frustrating, and with no save feature—each time it crashes you have to start over from the beginning.”
    • “It was buggy on the stairs, had to restart it multiple times since I got stuck on the staircase edge.”
    • “Controls are super buggy as well.”

  • replayability

    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is relatively short with limited replayability, mainly appealing to players interested in the unique VR experience rather than extended playtime. Replay value varies based on individual engagement, particularly for those motivated by overcoming fears.

    • “The price may be difficult to digest for those looking for long hours of play with high replayability. However, the game is not only about the story or its length, but also about the unique transition from movie to VR game experience.”
    • “The price may be difficult to digest to whoever is looking for long hours of play with replayability; however, the game is not only the story or its length, but the actual transition process from movie to VR game that you may or may not appreciate.”
    • “It's kind of short and not very replayable, but for the price it's better than renting a horror movie.”
    • “Replay value depends on how you feel about overcoming your fears.”

  • humor

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is cleverly integrated into the gameplay, adding a witty and entertaining twist that enhances the overall experience.

  • character development

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The character development is praised for its appealing designs and creative concepts, contributing to an engaging visual and narrative experience.

  • emotional

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users find the experience to be exceptionally visually impressive and emotionally impactful, highlighting it as a standout VR experience.

    • “This is by far the most visually and emotionally stunning VR experience!”
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7h Median play time
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Skip FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

KOBOLD: Chapter I is a survival survival game with horror and mystery themes.

KOBOLD: Chapter I is available on PC, Virtual Reality, Windows and Oculus VR.

On average players spend around 7 hours playing KOBOLD: Chapter I.

KOBOLD: Chapter I was released on November 14, 2018.

KOBOLD: Chapter I was developed by anotherworld GmbH.

KOBOLD: Chapter I has received positive reviews from players. Most players liked KOBOLD: Chapter I for its story but disliked it for its optimization.

KOBOLD: Chapter I is a single player game.

Similar games include Paranormal Activity: The Lost Soul, Blameless, We Went Back, Amenti, A Chair in a Room: Greenwater and others.