Life Eater

About

"Life Eater" is a horror fantasy kidnapping simulator, where you play as a modern-day druid in suburbia, conducting an annual ritual to prevent the world's end. Use a video editing-inspired interface to uncover the story of your human targets' lives, and decide when to abduct them. With a blend of authored and generated stories, and a fully voiced story mode, players must balance their time and resources to prevent the apocalypse. But be careful, the dark god you serve may not even be real.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

87%

Audience ScoreBased on 420 reviews

story128 positive mentions

grinding10 negative mentions

Excellent atmosphere enhanced by outstanding voice acting and unsettling artwork.
Unique and intriguing gameplay mechanics that combine resource management with a dark narrative.
Compelling story that evokes strong emotions and keeps players engaged throughout.

Gameplay can feel repetitive and relies heavily on trial-and-error, leading to frustration.
The story, while interesting, may feel rushed and lacks depth in character development.
Short playtime (around 2-3 hours) may not justify the price for some players.

story
334 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
59%
3%
The story of the game is generally praised for its gripping narrative, emotional depth, and strong voice acting, with many players finding it compelling and impactful despite its brevity. While some reviewers noted that the gameplay can feel repetitive and the story lacks significant evolution, the overall presentation, including art and music, enhances the storytelling experience. However, there are calls for more content and character development, as many players expressed a desire for a longer, more intricate narrative.
- “The story was gripping, the ending was a gut punch.”
- “Absolutely awesome, the puzzles were a blast to solve and the story was compelling and interesting!”
- “The story perfectly balances showing and implying, and, without spoiling anything in specific, I'll say it caught me off-guard more than once in ways I loved.”
- “The story was incredibly boring, and painfully predictable.”
- “Not to mention that the story sections themselves are incredibly short. Like, maybe 45 seconds worth after each mission.”
- “The entire story is just you talking to Johnny (the man you kidnap).”
gameplay
254 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
55%
11%
The gameplay of "Life Eater" is characterized by a unique premise that combines puzzle-solving with resource management, focusing on stalking and abducting victims through a timeline mechanic. While many players find the gameplay loop engaging and rewarding, others criticize it for being shallow and repetitive, with limited mechanics that can lead to a trial-and-error approach. Overall, the game is praised for its intriguing concept and narrative, but it leaves some players wanting more depth and variety in its gameplay.
- “Life Eater is an amazing game with an interesting premise and a rewarding gameplay loop that's deceptively simple, yet has a lot of depth in the small details the player will have to pick up on to solve puzzles as they progress.”
- “The gameplay loop is constantly engaging, it keeps you on your toes, and completing a year is incredibly satisfying, like this is peak from just how the game plays.”
- “The gameplay itself is easy to understand and a unique spin on the typical 'you are the killer/stalker' game, it immerses you in the fact you are invading a person's life as you watch the schedule begin to fill.”
- “The tutorial is entirely unhelpful in explaining how to play, and what little gameplay there is feels like it has no thought put into it.”
- “The gameplay feels like trial and error which is unsatisfying.”
- “Yea the cinematics look great and I love the story it's presenting but the gameplay is too simple; all you do is figure out schedules to abduct people and to do that you click an unknown block in it and clicking 1/3 options. The options aren't special to what is hidden and the only other feature is a heat meter and a time limit; when you abduct them you answer the same 6 questions every time.”
emotional
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is widely praised, with many players reporting intense feelings ranging from heart-wrenching sadness to deep connections with characters. The combination of powerful storytelling, exceptional voice acting, and striking visuals creates a profound emotional impact, often leaving players in tears and reflecting on their experiences long after finishing the game. Despite some critiques regarding predictability, the overall consensus is that the game successfully evokes strong emotions, making it a memorable and impactful experience.
- “The art and the voice acting is top tier with beautiful but haunting imagery and emotional scenes.”
- “An emotional experience through and through, I loved how uncomfortable this game made me feel, how intensely the story is shown to you in both the gameplay and cutscenes.”
- “This game genuinely made me feel bad about what I did, and I'd say that means it was really well written.”
graphics
38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
53%
39%
8%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beautiful art style and atmospheric visuals, which effectively enhance the storytelling and character immersion. Players appreciate the combination of unsettling still artwork and excellent voice acting, although some note that the UI visuals feel out of place. Overall, the aesthetics contribute significantly to the game's emotional impact, despite some critiques regarding the gameplay's depth.
- “Ouuuu this game....... this game... the story.. the visuals... the music......... amazing.. 10/10”
- “The acting had me captivated the entire time, the graphics are always on point, and the theme song slaps so hard.”
- “The UI visuals felt out of place.”
- “The only small gripe I have is that the game takes place over 10 or so years; this isn't super well shown in terms of visuals.”
- “The graphics really sell the story too.”
atmosphere
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
53%
37%
10%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its excellence, enhanced by outstanding voice acting, unsettling artwork, and a haunting soundtrack. Reviewers note that while the gameplay may become repetitive, the immersive and eerie ambiance effectively carries the experience, making it a compelling meditation on themes of madness and sacrifice. Overall, the atmosphere is described as top-notch, with a strong emotional impact that lingers throughout the game.
- “There's this unnerving atmosphere and air of tragedy that lingers throughout all the very amazingly voice acted cutscenes, with cool art and a great soundtrack to boot.”
- “Great little game, a bit short and with fairly simple puzzles but very atmospheric and creepy.”
- “Personally, I enjoyed figuring out the little tricks to 'stalking' people myself; it really added to the hopeless and lonely atmosphere of the game.”
- “My notes went from obsessively detailing their schedules to scribbled marks to denote where to cut...this game's atmosphere definitely gets into you.”
- “There also seems to be an endless mode which I would assume fixes at least one or two of the issues I've raised, but I can't really bring myself to finish the main game to see if this is the case, which sucks. However, I will certainly be checking out some of the dev's other works as I feel like this is just a slight miss when the story presentation and atmosphere hit so well.”
music
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
69%
19%
12%
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its ability to enhance the overall experience, with many reviewers highlighting its ominous and immersive qualities that perfectly complement the art and storytelling. The soundtrack is described as stellar, mood-appropriate, and captivating, contributing significantly to the game's atmosphere and emotional impact. Overall, players feel that the music elevates the gameplay, making it a standout feature of the experience.
- “The music in this game makes it all the more better, it's so ominous and fits so well, had me jamming out while playing.”
- “Great soundtrack, and every track is great and mood and scene appropriate.”
- “Wonderful music and atmosphere, and some very fun logic puzzles to solve based on limited provided information.”
- “The music in this game makes it all the more better; it's so ominous and fits so well, had me jamming out while playing.”
- “Voice acting and the music is a plus.”
- “It was tragic, and the art style and music and voice acting really pulled everything together story-wise.”
optimization
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
80%
20%
The optimization of the game is praised for its strong narrative, impressive performances, and beautiful art design, which collectively enhance the overall experience. However, some inconsistencies in character authenticity, particularly with the character Johnny, detract slightly from the immersion. Overall, the game successfully combines engaging gameplay with high-quality storytelling and visuals.
- “In terms of narrative, performance, score, and art design...it's all great.”
- “Even the tutorial has a really stellar performance from the lead actor and the gameplay loop has me hooked.”
- “Stellar idea wrapped up in a great scenario with great performances.”
grinding
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience; while some appreciate the payoff, others feel that the investigation mechanics can be tedious and lack depth, often reducing the gameplay to a repetitive "pick random time periods" exercise. The game's short length helps mitigate excessive grind, but it still leaves some players feeling frustrated. Overall, it may appeal more to those who enjoy a brief, albeit grindy, horror puzzle experience, especially if purchased on sale.
- “So, yeah, the investigation aspect is incredibly tedious and not really a puzzle but is more just a 'pick random time periods and hope you find the right one' simulator.”
- “Less scary and more tedious.”
- “Short horror puzzle game I'd recommend to folks buying on sale especially since you'll either love it or find it tedious/annoying.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is described as a blend of dark comedy and absurdity, with players finding amusement in the unique and often bizarre tasks they undertake, such as stalking targets. The contrast between the serious nature of the gameplay and the humorous reactions it elicits adds to its appeal, making it entertaining for streamers and players alike.
- “This game is equally dark in the things we must do to please Zimforth and hilarious in the things we choose to do to stalk people.”
- “Funny story: I put this game on a wheel for a thing I call 'short showcase' for my streams, a little event I do where I play 3-4 short games during a stream.”
- “The gameplay itself is really unique and cool; it's kind of funny because on one hand, when you finally figure out who the person is that you need to kill, you have that reaction of 'yeah!'”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game currently offers limited replayability, primarily appealing to those who wish to re-experience the story. However, an upcoming endless mode is expected to significantly enhance replay value.
- “It's very short with little replayability outside of wanting to re-experience the story.”
- “There's an endless mode due next week, so that should add a lot more replayability.”