Lorelai
- April 25, 2019
- Harvester Games
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam"Lorelai," by Harvester Games, is the final installment in R. Michalski's Devil Came Through Here trilogy. This horror action game features an intriguing coming-of-age story about a young girl, Lorelai, fighting to escape the horrors in her family home. With beautiful game mechanics, outstanding visuals, and a haunting soundtrack, "Lorelai" promises a dense and emotional experience, available in full HD with English voice acting and Xbox controller support.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features a deeply emotional story with great character development and design.
- The graphics and art style have significantly improved, creating a visually stunning experience.
- The soundtrack is atmospheric and complements the narrative beautifully.
- The gameplay is overly simplistic, with easy puzzles that lack challenge and depth.
- The story feels less impactful compared to the previous games, lacking the same level of horror and complexity.
- There are technical issues, including crashes and long loading times, which detract from the overall experience.
- story544 mentions
- 34 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The story of "Lorelai" is a dark and emotionally charged narrative that explores themes of family trauma, domestic abuse, and personal growth, set against a backdrop of psychological horror. While many players appreciate the depth of character development and the impactful choices that shape the story, some feel it lacks the emotional resonance and complexity of its predecessors, "The Cat Lady" and "Downfall." Overall, it is praised for its engaging storytelling, stunning visuals, and atmospheric design, though opinions vary on its execution and pacing compared to earlier entries in the trilogy.
“A deeply emotional story with great characters and design.”
“With an approach that combines mystery, psychological horror, and an intriguing story, Lorelai offers a deep and atmospheric experience that is both challenging and thrilling.”
“The character development is deep, and the plot is skillfully constructed to create an emotionally impactful and immersive experience.”
“The story feels rushed and character portrayal and development is poorly executed for almost every appearing character, including the main character.”
“The plot is shallow, uninspired, pedestrian nonsense.”
“The story of Lorelai couldn't inherit even part of Downfall and Cat Lady's deep thought nor psychological design, which is the most disappointing outcome.”
- graphics200 mentions
- 46 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The graphics in "Lorelai" have received widespread acclaim for their striking and atmospheric aesthetic, blending 2D hand-drawn art with 3D elements to create a unique visual experience. Many reviewers noted the significant improvement over previous titles in the series, highlighting the colorful and detailed environments that enhance the game's dark themes. However, some players expressed mixed feelings about the integration of 3D graphics, suggesting that it occasionally detracted from the original art style's charm. Overall, the visuals are described as hauntingly beautiful, effectively complementing the game's narrative and emotional depth.
“Lorelai's aesthetic is striking and effective in creating the desired atmosphere.”
“The art direction and atmosphere is fantastic; it’s a lot of the same 2D hand-drawn graphics, but it feels polished and colorful while mixed in with 3D animations.”
“The graphics are haunting and beautiful.”
“It's just a shame to have chosen to add color rather than sticking with the black and white aesthetic.”
“The 3D graphics are strangely less convincing than the full 2D graphics of other games.”
“I realize that it was done to further evolve the gaming experience, but it ruined the original 2D art style that I loved so much in The Cat Lady because it wasn't as unique anymore and it looked a bit forced to me.”
- music184 mentions
- 64 % positive mentions
- 35 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The music in "Lorelai" has been widely praised for its atmospheric and evocative qualities, effectively enhancing the game's dark narrative and psychological tension. Reviewers highlighted the soundtrack's haunting beauty, with standout tracks like "Blood Filled Tears" receiving particular acclaim for their emotional impact. Overall, the music is considered a significant strength of the game, contributing to its immersive experience and complementing the visuals and storytelling.
“Lorelai’s soundtrack is atmospheric and perfectly complements the game’s narrative and atmosphere.”
“The music is dark and evocative, helping to create a sense of tension and unease that is essential to the psychological thriller experience.”
“The music and ambiance also help with the immersion, with each area's music helping set the tone, but the highlight is definitely the main theme that plays on the main menu.”
“The soundtrack used in Lorelai was, however, just okay.”
“In my opinion, it is always a fantastic idea to collaborate with different artists to create something incredible together, but this time around the soundtrack didn't evoke any emotional response, nor did it make me want to revisit it like it did in the previous game.”
“It's a compilation of all the worst aspects of the previous games made by the devs. Just like in the previous games, the art style and the soundtrack are the only highlights while the rest is subpar.”
- gameplay96 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 78 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Lorelai" primarily follows a point-and-click adventure format, reminiscent of its predecessors, with improved graphics and smoother mechanics. While some players appreciate the atmospheric storytelling and puzzle-solving elements, others criticize the simplicity of the puzzles and the pacing, noting that the gameplay can feel slow or lacking in depth compared to earlier titles. Overall, it offers a visually engaging experience, though opinions vary on its ability to deliver a compelling gameplay challenge.
“Lorelai’s gameplay is centered around a point-and-click approach, typical of classic adventure games, but with an added depth that enriches the experience.”
“The interface is intuitive and the controls are responsive, allowing players to focus on solving mysteries and exploring the environments without getting lost in complicated mechanics.”
“The gameplay and puzzles were polished; I was often surprised by the little bits of reactivity thrown in based on how you interact with things.”
“I feel the gameplay is just... dull.”
“The whole gameplay is shallow.”
“All in all, Lorelai completely lost Harvester's most outstanding features that they built up in Downfall and Cat Lady; the terrible gameplay makes it even a failure as a puzzle game.”
- emotional74 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is widely praised for its deeply impactful storytelling, character development, and immersive experiences that evoke a range of feelings, from joy to heartbreak. Many players found themselves emotionally invested in the characters and narrative, with some moments described as tear-jerking or thought-provoking. However, there are mixed opinions regarding the emotional depth compared to previous titles in the series, with some players feeling less connected to the characters and story in this installment.
“The character development is deep, and the plot is skillfully constructed to create an emotionally impactful and immersive experience.”
“This game had me in almost tears, made me feel angry, made me laugh, made me really think on the choices you have to make, regret choices you had to make and made me want to play again to make different choices.”
“What a treat it was to play this story, it brought me on great highs and lows emotionally, it captured me from start to finish, although maybe it was a bit shorter than I thought, but I'll take a good short story over a bad long one.”
- atmosphere72 mentions
- 49 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The atmosphere in "Lorelai" is widely praised for its haunting beauty, combining striking visuals, a compelling soundtrack, and a rich narrative that immerses players in a psychological horror experience. While some reviewers appreciate the blend of 2D and 3D elements, others feel it detracts from the game's darker tones established in previous titles. Overall, the game successfully evokes a deep sense of tension and emotional depth, though opinions vary on how well it maintains the series' signature atmosphere.
“With an approach that combines mystery, psychological horror, and an intriguing story, Lorelai offers a deep and atmospheric experience that is both challenging and thrilling.”
“Lorelai's soundtrack is atmospheric and perfectly complements the game’s narrative and atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere is much more intense than in the previous games.”
“Incredibly shallow compared to The Cat Lady and Downfall, it no longer uses colors sparingly to make specific scenes more impactful and instead just colors everything. The inclusion of 3D elements looks terrible and distracting, missing the dreadful and depressing atmosphere of the previous two games.”
“The stylistics of the game became more colorful and dynamic, which ruined the atmosphere of a psychedelic noir horror for me.”
“However, it is too different in how far it deviates from the dark atmospheres of The Cat Lady and Downfall.”
- optimization28 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with many players reporting significant performance issues, particularly in 4K resolution and during scenes with heavy effects like smoke and rain. Despite the strong voice acting and production value, the use of the Unity engine has led to clunky performance, including stuttering, long loading times, and crashes, detracting from the overall experience. Players recommend waiting for patches or improved optimization before fully engaging with the game.
“However, it doesn’t run smoothly in HD resolution on my PC (which isn’t a very good PC, btw), but I do think the game sometimes has too many effects on screen, and this is the reason for the low frame rate.”
“The only cons of the game don't come with the story, the ending, or the game's atmosphere nor the characters, but of its optimizations.”
“Michalski had decided to use the Unity engine for his purpose, but it had led to severe optimization problems in the scenes where smoke or rain appears.”
“I'm a big fan of the series, but using the Unity engine unoptimized was a grave mistake.”
“However, beautiful light effects and a depth of field that weren't present in the previous games in no case justify the game's astonishing lack of optimization for a (mostly) 2D point-and-click.”
“But the game optimization is horrible...”
- humor13 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in these games is a complex blend of dark and light elements, often juxtaposing bleak themes with moments of genuine wit and self-awareness. While some players appreciate the intentional comedic writing and relatable characters, others find the tonal shifts jarring or the humor immature. Overall, the humor is seen as a valuable aspect that adds depth to the otherwise heavy narratives, though it may not resonate with everyone.
“This was a fantastic game that had cool horror sections and quite a few funny jokes, so while the story is not as hard-hitting as The Cat Lady or as deeply complex as Downfall, this game is certainly worth the price.”
“The protagonists in each of these games are understandable and relatable, and even though their stories are extremely gloomy, there are also moments of bittersweetness. In fact, there were a few instances where I actually laughed due to the intentionally funny writing, and I think these moments really shine as a good portion of the story is intensely dark.”
“Having an in-game character that is a game developer criticizing the garbage heap of Steam releases like Ice Cube Simulator and lamenting how he had to make a zombie game to find commercial success might be a tad self-indulgent, but it’s incredibly funny.”
- replayability10 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
Lorelai offers considerable replayability due to its branching narrative and multiple endings, encouraging players to explore different choices. However, its short length and lack of save/load options limit the overall replay value, especially when compared to other titles in the genre. While the morality mechanic adds some depth, the game may not provide enough incentive for extensive replaying.
“Lorelai’s replayability is considerable due to its branching narrative and multiple possible endings.”
“There is also significant replay value—after finishing the game, I wanted to see how events unfold if you make different choices.”
“Multiple choices and endings to experience give good replay value.”
“As with all story games, the replay value isn't that high.”
“It's just a short game, and there's nothing wrong with that, but I felt I got better value for my money when I bought The Cat Lady and Downfall, which both have far more replayability.”
“Not being able to save/load is a big issue when it comes to replayability and seeing all the possible options.”
- stability10 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability has been widely criticized, with players reporting numerous bugs, glitches, and game freezes that disrupt the experience. Issues include disappearing characters, unresponsive controls, and problematic cutscenes, leading to a perception of poor programming. Despite these technical shortcomings, some players feel that the engaging story and characters make the experience worthwhile, albeit frustrating at times.
“My only issue with Lorelai is that the final few chapters are buggy.”
“This game, for all its faults, is also a buggy nightmare.”
“The only annoying downsides I have personally experienced - and still am experiencing - are regularly occurring game freezes (usually while loading) that force me to restart the game, and sometimes pretty long loading times when the scenery changes.”
- character development9 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is a mixed bag; while some players praise its depth and emotional impact, others feel it falls short compared to previous titles in the series, lacking the distinctiveness and richness seen in games like "The Cat Lady." Despite these criticisms, many agree that the story remains engaging and serves as a vehicle for character exploration, though some players express disappointment over the overall execution.
“The character development is deep, and the plot is skillfully constructed to create an emotionally impactful and immersive experience.”
“Brilliant story and rich character development with the most surreal atmosphere that can only be experienced in a game created by Harvester Games.”
“The most positive side of the game is the story and the character development.”
“The character development that went into the other games in the series isn't here with this game.”
“The worst aspect of this whole game is the disturbing lack of character development.”
“I felt like this game lacks the special something, like the character development of 'The Cat Lady', or the descent into madness in 'Downfall'.”
- grinding7 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 71 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and slow, often requiring significant time investment, which can lead to fatigue. However, the strong narrative and improved button mechanics help mitigate some of the frustration associated with repetitive tasks, although certain collection objectives, like gathering cat skulls, are still seen as overly burdensome.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“Where shall I start - the gameplay itself is slow and can be tedious at times; I'm currently still playing, but I need a break.”
“Downfall is even worse since you need to collect all cat skulls, which is tedious.”
