Obscuritas
- March 17, 2016
- VIS-Games
- 9h median play time
Get on Steam"Obscuritas" is a single-player Horror Adventure game that takes about 9 hours to beat. Players help Sarah, the protagonist, uncover the dark secret of her great-uncle's old country home and escape its malicious clutches. The game features a "fear recognition mechanic" that personalizes the nightmare experience, with creeping shadows, huge spiders, and terrifying monsters to face, while solving riddles to defeat the evil. The game has 3 chapters, 29 sequences, and a chilling atmosphere to immerse players.
Mac OS
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features a variety of locations and settings, keeping exploration fresh and engaging.
- Sound design is excellent, creating a chilling atmosphere that enhances the horror experience.
- Puzzles range from clever and satisfying to challenging, providing a good mix for players who enjoy problem-solving.
- The game suffers from poor visibility, making it difficult to navigate even with max brightness and a flashlight.
- Gameplay can feel repetitive and tedious, with many sections involving backtracking and key-hunting.
- The story is weak and often feels disjointed, leading to a lack of engagement with the narrative.
- story12 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 75 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The game's story is widely criticized for being weak and poorly developed, with many players noting that it starts with potential but quickly devolves into a series of random events lacking coherent narrative. While the protagonist, Sarah, inherits her great-uncle's estate, the storyline is described as almost non-existent, with minimal engagement from collected notes and dialogue. Overall, players find the story to be thin and uninteresting, detracting from the overall experience.
“Short story: this game is playable, and does have some decent moments.”
“Long story: in Obscuritas, you play as Sarah, who one day inherits her estranged great-uncle's country estate.”
“Not terribly scary if you are used to these types of games, but a decent storyline and a really good atmosphere keep you engaged.”
“I think it tried forming a story at the beginning, then it just took you random places with no explanation and no story.”
“As for the story, there isn't really much to say: save for a smattering of letters from Sarah's douchebag great-uncle, the story is practically non-existent.”
“The story doesn't really seem to be apparent; I'll collect notes and Sarah will give me some dialogue, but I can't read the notes. I'm interested in the story, but so far it is very thin.”
- music8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in the game is highly praised for its intensity and ability to enhance the horror and puzzle-solving experience, creating a chilling atmosphere that keeps players on edge. While some players noted that the dramatic soundtrack effectively sets the mood for jump scares, others felt it could be distracting when focusing on puzzles. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a standout feature that complements the game's eerie ambiance and Lovecraftian elements.
“The music is fantastic, the locations are cool and interesting, and there's a bit of Lovecraft mixed into it all.”
“The music did get me a few times, making me think that something's coming after me, or something bad's happening.”
“Something strange will happen (the phone will suddenly ring, something will suddenly fall, etc.), the screen will flash, and dramatic music will play.”
“It also didn't help that I didn't often see what the jump scare was, although I was painfully aware that they attempted it by the flashing screen and dramatic music.”
“Sounds are so chilling; the sound effects, screams, and the flashes are disturbing. In other ways, you can play this game with your YouTube music playing twice and focus on the puzzle 100%.”
“The music did get me a few times, making me think that something's coming after me, or something bad's happening.”
- gameplay7 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The gameplay has been criticized for its repetitiveness and reliance on generic horror elements, with some sections feeling like a walking simulator. However, players appreciated the lengthy experience, noting that it took around 12.5 hours to complete, which some felt justified the price. Overall, opinions are mixed, with a recommendation to try it for oneself.
“Nice lengthy gameplay (took me 12.5 hours to beat it).”
“I would say that $16.99 is worth it for the length of the gameplay.”
“But I usually don't like recommending and would rather people try for themselves, or see for themselves from someone else's gameplay experience.”
“The gameplay was very repetitive.”
“It's a storehouse of visually dissimilar assets, random deaths, and little gameplay in every generic horror environment known to man.”
“Half the gameplay in chapter 2 is basically just a walking simulator, which disappointed me.”
- optimization6 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is considered poor for its release year, with notable performance issues and lighting problems. While some improvements have been made through updates, such as adding checkpoints and enhancing performance, players still feel that further optimization is needed despite the game's appealing graphics and atmosphere. Users with high-end hardware report better performance, but the game still struggles in certain areas.
“I'm glad that the developer took some early critics seriously and updated the game by adding checkpoints, making some levels easier, and optimizing performance.”
“I play with a GTX 1080 card and a 165 Hz G-Sync monitor, so I have no performance problems and can enjoy this game at a 1440p resolution.”
“The in-game graphics are very well done and good looking (but poorly optimized; at least you can adjust several graphics settings), overall creepy atmosphere, sounds, and some solid jump-scare moments.”
“For the year it was made, the optimization is poor as well.”
“All in all, if the developers fixed the lighting, contextual clues, and performance issues, I would give this a weak thumbs up.”
“I found that it ran better than Pineview, but could still use some more optimization.”
- atmosphere5 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is generally well-received, featuring a creepy ambiance and effective sound design that enhances the experience. While some players appreciate the eerie moments and solid graphics, others note that many scares rely on cheap jump-scares, making it less frightening for seasoned players. Overall, the atmosphere is engaging and contributes positively to the storyline.
“I love the creepy atmosphere!”
“Nice creepy atmosphere and sound effects.”
“Overall creepy atmosphere, sounds, and some solid jump-scare moments.”
“Although the atmosphere of the game is decent, and there were some genuinely eerie moments, most of the scares in the game (especially the first chapter) are cheap jump-scares.”
“The in-game graphics are very well done and good looking (but poorly optimized; at least you can adjust several graphics settings), overall creepy atmosphere, sounds, and some solid jump-scare moments.”
- grinding3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly due to long and complex mazes and puzzles that can feel unfair rather than challenging. This leads to a sense of frustration rather than a rewarding experience.
“The game features a random, tediously long maze that feels more like a chore than an adventure.”
“On the other hand, the game can be a bit unfair or tedious, especially with the big labyrinth, the attraction maze, and the statues-plates puzzle.”
“However, there are some issues with this game that make it tedious; tedium does not equal difficulty.”
- graphics2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics are well-executed and visually appealing, contributing to a creepy atmosphere with effective jump-scare moments. However, players note that the game suffers from poor optimization, though it does offer adjustable graphics settings.
“The in-game graphics are very well done and good looking, creating an overall creepy atmosphere with solid jump-scare moments.”
“The graphics look outdated and lack the detail expected from modern games.”
“Character models are poorly designed and animations feel stiff and unnatural.”
“The environments are bland and repetitive, making the game visually unappealing.”
