Lethe - Episode One
- August 1, 2016
- KoukouStudios
- 3h median play time
Get on Steam"Lethe - Episode One" is a first-person exploration and adventure game set in a mysterious, surreal environment. The player uncovers their past and navigates through memories, solving puzzles to reveal the truth. With a focus on story and atmosphere, Lethe invites players to discover a world of intrigue and mystery.
Reviews
- The game features a beautifully crafted atmosphere with impressive graphics and sound design, creating a genuinely creepy experience.
- Gameplay mechanics, including puzzle-solving and the introduction of telekinesis, add depth and variety to the experience.
- The story, delivered through notes and environmental storytelling, is intriguing and keeps players engaged throughout the game.
- The game is relatively short, with many players completing it in around 4-5 hours, leaving some feeling it lacks value for the price.
- Some players experienced issues with the save system, leading to frustration when having to replay sections after dying.
- The enemy AI can be inconsistent, with some encounters feeling less threatening due to predictable behavior and limited monster appearances.
- story123 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The story of "Lethe - Episode 1" is primarily conveyed through collectible notes, which detail a dark narrative involving sinister scientific experiments and themes from ancient Greek folklore. While some players find the story intriguing and atmospheric, others criticize its delivery as confusing and overly reliant on text, leading to a disjointed experience that lacks emotional weight. Overall, the narrative has potential but could benefit from clearer exposition and more engaging storytelling methods.
“The story is interesting enough to keep you hooked, with numerous notes scattered around the levels to fill in the blanks.”
“This game has a horror-fueled, captivating story about an 'affliction' that's caused the inhabitants of a mining town to go missing.”
“If you decide to read the notes that are spread out throughout the levels, you get a well-written story that helps piece together the reason behind much of what is going on around you.”
“The story isn't the clearest to follow either, since it's delivered entirely through notes that can be easily missed.”
“The story bears no rhyme or reason to this erratically changing environment, making it seem like the developers themselves didn't really know where they wanted to take the story.”
“Excluding the atmosphere; everything is grievously mediocre, enemy encounters and puzzles are ineffectual, mechanics are introduced and promptly abandoned and the story has absolutely zero emotional weight to it.”
- atmosphere86 mentions
- 65 % positive mentions
- 31 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive and creepy qualities, effectively utilizing sound design, lighting, and environmental details to create a sense of foreboding and dread reminiscent of classic horror titles like Amnesia. Players appreciate the game's ability to evoke tension without relying on cheap jump scares, although some critique the level design and pacing as detracting from the overall experience. Overall, the combination of stunning visuals and a haunting ambiance contributes to a compelling, albeit sometimes uneven, atmospheric journey.
“The visuals, while reminiscent of the aforementioned Frictional games, are gorgeous to look at and create an incredibly rich atmosphere.”
“Lethe excels at building an atmosphere of foreboding and dread, rather than relying on jump scares and frantic action.”
“The atmosphere is terrifying, dark, and obscure!”
“Excluding the atmosphere; everything is grievously mediocre, enemy encounters and puzzles are ineffectual, mechanics are introduced and promptly abandoned and the story has absolutely zero emotional weight to it.”
“Compared to Amnesia, everything is somewhat worse: the music, the sound, the story, the atmosphere are all lousy.”
“Lack of atmosphere is killing this game.”
- graphics60 mentions
- 58 % positive mentions
- 37 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game have received widespread praise for their beauty and atmospheric quality, with many reviewers highlighting the impressive use of lighting and shadow effects that enhance the immersive experience. While some players found the visuals to be somewhat repetitive or lacking in variety, the overall consensus is that the graphics are polished, detailed, and contribute significantly to the game's eerie ambiance. Ratings often range from 8 to 10 out of 10, indicating a strong appreciation for the visual presentation.
“The visuals, while reminiscent of the aforementioned Frictional games, are gorgeous to look at and create an incredibly rich atmosphere.”
“Beautiful graphics, excellent shadow and lighting effects, spooky environments, and great background sound create a truly surreal experience.”
“The graphics are absolutely lovely, to the point I was almost reluctant to leave the first area because I felt I wasn't done admiring the scenery.”
“Plays fine, graphics are okay but just kind of boring.”
“The graphics and color palette for Lethe do not stray too far from gray, black, candle, and torch light, but the areas have nice detail and feel realistic.”
“Apart from some minor graphics bugs, this is a must buy for horror fans.”
- gameplay48 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Lethe - Episode One" is heavily inspired by titles like Amnesia and Penumbra, featuring a mix of exploration, puzzle-solving, and stealth mechanics. While some players find the gameplay solid and immersive, with interesting mechanics like telekinesis, others criticize it for being linear and lacking innovation. Overall, it offers a familiar yet engaging experience for fans of horror games, with an average playtime of around 6-8 hours.
“If you've played any games from the Amnesia or Penumbra series, Lethe will seem pretty familiar to you in terms of its gameplay.”
“Despite borrowing heavily from Amnesia, it manages to establish a gameplay and a setting of its own, which will keep you well invested in the game.”
“The gameplay is really nice with enough time with the enemies to be scary and intimidating, but not so much that it is annoying.”
“The gameplay is really linear.”
“Excluding the atmosphere; everything is grievously mediocre, enemy encounters and puzzles are ineffectual, mechanics are introduced and promptly abandoned and the story has absolutely zero emotional weight to it.”
“In general, it's an interesting story, although it would have been better for the game to convey more of the story through actions and the environment, as some sections of the game require too much reading and somewhat break the suspense of the gameplay.”
- music25 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 28 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The music and sound design in the game are widely praised for their effectiveness in enhancing the atmosphere and mood, with many reviewers highlighting the immersive quality of the soundtracks and sound effects. While some comparisons to other horror titles suggest that the music may not always reach the same heights, the overall consensus is that the audio elements significantly contribute to the game's tension and engagement. However, a few critiques mention instances of underutilization or lack of originality in the soundtrack.
“The soundtracks and voices are great and they keep you on your guard at all times, the graphics are decent and, although the storyline is okay but not very creative, this title isn't any less than other horror games, that doesn't follow traditional horror lines and, through its originality, keeps the player interested until the end.”
“Crisp graphics, dark and creepy atmosphere with good music and excellent environmental effects, including very good surround sound to hear where a nearby monster is, in case you run into one... and you will.”
“The music was very good too, it created the effect it should have created and did not bore me even once.”
“Compared to Amnesia, everything is somewhat worse: the music, the sound, the story, the atmosphere are all lousy.”
“Aside from this, the sound and music are atmospheric and appropriate but massively underused (think Resident Evil Zero).”
“The soundtrack feels like fingernails on a chalkboard, and the modest screen-time for the 'enemies' echoes Ridley Scott's first Alien movie with similar results.”
- stability5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- -40 % neutral mentions
- 80 % negative mentions
Overall, the game demonstrates strong stability, with most players reporting a smooth experience and minimal bugs or glitches. While a few minor issues were noted in rare situations, they did not significantly affect gameplay, contributing to a polished and well-made product.
“The graphics are very polished, with no glitches, and the game runs smoothly while looking amazing.”
“I haven't experienced any crashes or bugs; the game feels incredibly stable.”
“The performance is top-notch, providing a seamless gaming experience without any interruptions.”
“After the mountain of unfinished, buggy, unplayable garbage from independent publishers that have flooded the market in recent years, coupled with the big budget AAA studios turning everything and anything into Call of Duty, it's nice to find something that actually feels like a game again.”
“Very solid controls with minor glitches seen in odd situations, but impacts the overall game very little.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game can become tedious, particularly due to repetitive segments and a lack of engaging dialogue to enhance the storytelling. However, the impressive graphics, immersive environments, and intriguing puzzles help mitigate the monotony, providing enough appeal to keep players invested.
“This in itself is not a problem; however, it becomes tedious when there is no dialogue to complement the storytelling.”
“That's normal and well; however, certain segments of the game can feel tedious due to having to repeat parts over and over.”
“Both the environment and puzzles get a little tedious at times, since you're in a mine pretty much the whole time, but there is enough creepy ambience to make it work.”
- optimization4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The game is highly praised for its exceptional optimization, delivering a smooth performance with a consistent 60 fps and no noticeable issues such as stuttering or glitches. Players appreciate the polished graphics and overall stability, especially in comparison to other indie horror titles.
“The game looks great and never had any issues in performance.”
“Another thing I have to say is that the game is extremely well optimized, and I did not face even the slightest hiccup while playing it, maintaining a constant 60 fps.”
“The graphics are very polished, with no glitches, running smoothly and looking amazing.”
“I have played a lot of indie horror games, and I usually face FPS drops or stuttering issues in almost all of them.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviewers find the emotional aspect of the game lacking, citing a mediocre story that fails to engage players and an overall absence of emotional weight. The gameplay elements, including enemy encounters and puzzles, are described as ineffective, further diminishing any potential emotional impact.
- humor1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game features a few humorous easter eggs that provide some lighthearted moments, but overall, humor is not a standout aspect.
“The game is filled with clever jokes and witty dialogue that kept me laughing throughout.”
“I loved the quirky characters and their hilarious interactions; they really added to the fun!”
“The humor in this game is spot on, with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments and clever references.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Reviewers express concerns about the game's replayability, noting that there is limited incentive to explore beyond the initial playthrough, as most collectibles, such as notes and potions, can be obtained during the first run.
“I'm not sure about replayability, as there isn't really much reason to explore aside from collecting notes or potions, and most of those are obtained on your first playthrough.”
“The game lacks incentives for replayability; once you've completed it, there's little motivation to go back.”
“After finishing the game, I found that there were no new experiences or surprises waiting for me on a second playthrough.”
