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Only If

Fans of “art house” games shouldn’t miss this, and for everyone else, it’s at least worth checking out as a free game.
Only If Game Cover
65%Game Brain Score
story, graphics
stability, grinding
62% User Score Based on 4,542 reviews
Critic Score 80%Based on 1 reviews

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Only If Game Cover

About

Only If is a single player puzzle game with horror, fantasy and mystery themes. It was developed by Creability and was released on July 25, 2014. It received mostly positive reviews from both critics and players.

"Only If" is a first-person adventure-puzzle game for audiences 18+, where you play as Anthony Clyde, who wakes up with no memory of the previous night. The game features experimental and unpredictable mechanics, challenging you to distinguish reality from imagination. Expect to fail, die, and be confused as you navigate through opulent surroundings with a menacing radio-bound antagonist blocking your path. Join the discord for more information

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Only If screenshot
Only If screenshot
Only If screenshot
Only If screenshot
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Only If screenshot
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62%
Audience ScoreBased on 4,542 reviews
story380 positive mentions
stability136 negative mentions
  • Unique and surreal gameplay experience that challenges conventional design.
  • Good voice acting and humor that adds to the overall enjoyment.
  • Visually appealing with interesting puzzles and a captivating atmosphere.
  • Confusing and often frustrating puzzles with little guidance.
  • Numerous bugs and glitches that hinder gameplay and achievement progression.
  • Lack of subtitles and options for audio settings, making it difficult for some players to follow the story.
  • story
    1,093 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's story is widely criticized for being confusing, nonsensical, and poorly executed, with many players struggling to understand its plot and character motivations. While some appreciate its surreal and humorous elements, others find it frustrating and lacking depth, often leading to a loss of interest. Despite its intriguing premise and potential for engaging storytelling, the overall execution leaves much to be desired, with many reviewers suggesting that the gameplay mechanics detract from the narrative experience.

    • “The story is interesting and the execution is well made.”
    • “The story unfolds interestingly enough -- Anthony goes to a party and he partied hard, apparently, that when he wakes up the next day, he finds his female companion missing and he's in a strange house.”
    • “The story is a mindf*ck but at least it's somewhat refreshing.”
    • “The story is frankly horrible with one of the worst cop-out tropes out there followed by a one-two punch that I think was trying to be funny but really lands flat due to how out of character with the rest of the game it is.”
    • “The story feels fragmented, and the characters lack depth, making it difficult to fully connect with the narrative.”
    • “The story is a confused mess with a very unsatisfying conclusion.”
  • graphics
    546 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many players praising the beautiful visuals and artistic design, particularly in specific levels like the park. However, some users note inconsistencies, glitches, and performance issues that detract from the overall experience. While the graphics are often highlighted as a strong point, they are sometimes overshadowed by gameplay mechanics and narrative shortcomings.

    • “The graphics are stunning, the story is completely unpredictable, the voice acting is great, and the perspective is incredibly realistic.”
    • “The graphics are beautiful, the audio is fantastically done, and the visuals are very nice.”
    • “The graphics are amazing and the story is confusing but interesting.”
    • “The graphics are mediocre by any modern standard.”
    • “The graphics are dated, the story is nonsensical, the delivery is sloppy, and the biggest failure is that this is a game, yet it entirely avoids being fun.”
    • “The graphics themselves can be rough sometimes, but then again, my computer cries if I leave a game's graphics settings on high, so I may have been getting the short end of the deal there.”
  • gameplay
    535 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay of "Only If" is characterized by a mix of unique mechanics and frustrating execution, often leaving players confused and stuck due to poorly explained controls and numerous bugs. While some reviewers appreciated the experimental nature and intriguing puzzles, many found the gameplay to be tedious, clunky, and riddled with technical issues, detracting from the overall experience. Overall, the game presents an ambitious concept but struggles with execution, leading to a polarized reception among players.

    • “The gameplay is smooth, although on the shorter side, but don't let that fool you, because you'll come back to do it again.”
    • “The creative gameplay, hilarious dialogue, and mind-bending puzzles are what make this game one of a kind.”
    • “This game is free and manages to bring to me some of the most interesting gameplay and writing I've seen... period.”
    • “This game suffers from numerous bugs, affecting both gameplay and achievements.”
    • “The gameplay is a mess.”
    • “The gameplay sucks, the puzzles are terrible, this whole game is a waste of time and storage on your PC.”
  • humor
    368 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with many players finding it both bizarre and entertaining, often characterized by dark, juvenile, or absurd elements. While some appreciate the witty dialogue and comedic twists, others criticize it for being overly crude or nonsensical, leading to a divisive reception. Overall, the humor is seen as a key aspect that adds charm and engagement, despite its uneven execution.

    • “The dialogue is funny, quirky, and well delivered, especially by the antagonist Vincent.”
    • “The constant exchanges between the two are both humorous and engaging, adding a unique dynamic to the game.”
    • “This game is hilarious and confusing at the same time.”
    • “After playing this game and seeing Jim Sterling's review, I am thoroughly convinced this game should never have been released on Steam in its current state. It's not funny like 'The Stanley Parable,' too random compared to the Portal 2 mod 'A Minute to Millions,' and certainly is a joke. The single fact that it's free or experimental should ring warning bells for this shovelware, with the only redeeming factor being the graphics.”
    • “Cringe-worthy dialogue that's pretentious and unfunny.”
    • “These back and forth conversations are played off for laughs, but are mostly nonsensical, juvenile, unfunny, and seem to have been recorded without any real script or intended purpose.”
  • music
    166 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players praising its quality and immersive atmosphere, describing it as excellent and well-composed. However, a significant number of users have expressed frustration over the audio balance, noting that the music often drowns out dialogue, making it difficult to follow the story. Overall, while the soundtrack is appreciated, the lack of volume control options and inconsistent audio levels detract from the experience.

    • “The music always hits the right beats and creates an immersive experience in what is a completely detached from reality situation.”
    • “Great atmosphere, narrative, and music, really immersive.”
    • “The music is excellent, and the main antagonist is a colorful and oddly charming personality.”
    • “Turning my volume up just caused me to be deafened by the comparably loud music and sounds.”
    • “The music, in an attempt to be suspenseful and dramatic, completely drowns out any of the potentially interesting dialogue you may want to hear, thereby ruining any suspense or drama which might have developed.”
    • “The audio is a mess: voice is too quiet and music/sound effects are too loud.”
  • stability
    138 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's stability is widely criticized, with numerous users reporting frequent bugs, glitches, and issues with achievement unlocks that significantly disrupt gameplay. Many players describe the experience as frustrating and clunky, often requiring restarts or workarounds to progress. While some appreciate the game's visuals and concepts, the overwhelming consensus is that its technical problems detract from overall enjoyment, making it difficult to recommend without significant fixes.

    • “I encountered no glitches, and very much enjoyed the gameplay.”
    • “Little to no glitches.”
    • “The game is buggy, the achievements are buggy, and the controls are buggy.”
    • “It's a buggy mess with broken achievements that requires file verification two or three times per level.”
    • “The game itself is incredibly buggy.”
  • atmosphere
    96 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere in the game is widely praised for its surreal, immersive qualities, effectively blending elements of tension, nostalgia, and intrigue. Many players appreciate the unique aesthetic and sound design, which contribute to a haunting yet engaging experience, although some note that the atmosphere can be undermined by pacing issues or confusing gameplay elements. Overall, the game's ability to evoke strong emotional responses through its atmosphere is a standout feature, making it particularly appealing to fans of exploration and narrative-driven titles.

    • “The game's ability to blur the line between reality and hallucination is commendable, creating an intriguing and surreal atmosphere that keeps you on your toes.”
    • “Great atmosphere, narrative and music, really immersive.”
    • “The surreal feeling and atmosphere you get when you start off in this mystical world is unmatched and stupefying.”
    • “All I know is that the game really captures the atmosphere of being in a strange house after a weird party, blacked out and with no idea where you are or where everyone else is.”
    • “I totally understand the need for atmosphere in a cellar or basement or dungeon, but seriously, there was no brightness option or gamma correction, so what's the point of absolutely seeing nothing?”
    • “The overall atmosphere is intense and surreal, but ultimately feels confused as to what it's trying to accomplish at all.”
  • grinding
    41 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The reviews overwhelmingly describe the grinding aspect of the game as tedious and frustrating, with many players expressing that the gameplay is repetitive and lacks clarity. Puzzles are often seen as confusing and require excessive trial and error, leading to a draining experience that detracts from the overall enjoyment of the narrative. Additionally, long cutscenes and unskippable dialogue contribute to the sense of tedium, making it difficult for players to stay engaged.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “This game can be incredibly tedious and I do not blame you in the slightest if you have to look up solutions to some of the puzzles.”
    • “It's tedious, repetitious, and incredibly annoying.”
    • “The voice actors were terrible, the levels were boring and tedious, especially the last level.”
  • optimization
    32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's optimization has received largely negative feedback, with many players experiencing significant performance issues such as stuttering and frame drops, even on high-end systems. Critics point to unoptimized textures and algorithms, as well as a lack of basic accessibility features, which further detracts from the overall experience. While a few users reported smooth performance on lower-end PCs, the consensus is that the game suffers from serious optimization flaws that hinder gameplay enjoyment.

    • “This game optimization is also good.”
    • “Very optimized, well made and thought out story, gameplay and graphics.”
    • “Graphics are great, the game runs smoothly on a low-performance PC and there were no bugs in my experience of it.”
    • “Unoptimized because the game will stutter like crazy on a high-end gaming computer that was set up years after the game was released and can run Cyberpunk 2077 on ultra with full ray tracing.”
    • “This is very likely due to very high resolution unoptimized textures being loaded, with none of the techniques to avoid overcharging the CPU/GPU/RAM used here.”
    • “It has a couple of bugs and isn't optimized that well, so you may have some frame drops even on a decent PC.”
  • replayability
    29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Overall, the game's replayability is generally viewed as limited, with many players noting that while there are multiple endings and paths, the differences between them do not significantly enhance the experience. Some players appreciate the potential for replay value due to player choices and achievements, but many agree that the short length and lack of substantial variation in gameplay diminish the incentive to replay. As a free title, it offers some entertainment, but most reviewers feel it lacks the depth needed for high replayability.

    • “++ replayability based on a crucial choice you make halfway through the game.”
    • “A few times frustrating but the flow was good, the music excellent and the replay value (with the multiple endings) was cool.”
    • “That's right, this game has multiple endings, adding to the replay value of this game, on top of 10 achievements (currently) for any achievement hunters out there.”
    • “No, it doesn't really have any replay value.”
    • “Practically no replay value.”
    • “Unfortunately, this game doesn't really have much replay value, and is very short.”
  • emotional
    27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The emotional aspect of the game elicits a wide range of reactions, from genuine fear and discomfort to deep attachment and laughter. Players report feeling emotionally scarred and confused, with some experiencing physical discomfort due to the game's intensity. Despite its flaws, many appreciate the clever storytelling and character dynamics, leading to a complex emotional journey that can be both rewarding and distressing.

    • “Sure, it may be free, it may even make for a good story, but no right-minded human being can walk away from that without at least some amount of emotional scarring.”
    • “Not only that, but I also got kind of attached and really into the game, which made me super emotional, mainly because of the narrator's constant mocking and demeaning behavior; I took it kind of hard, but I absolutely loved it.”
    • “The experience was also an emotional rollercoaster: confusion, agitation, satisfaction, thoughtfulness, suspicion, hopelessness, and finally relief with some humor.”
  • character development
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Character development in the game is notably inconsistent; while some players appreciate the engaging scripts and voice work that convey growth, others criticize the lack of self-reflection and vulnerability among characters, likening their interactions to a loud discord call. Overall, the effectiveness of character development seems to vary significantly among players.

    • “Engaging character script - I enjoyed the plot, and I was floored with the character development done entirely through voices alone.”
    • “There's some really interesting character development, and the ending is pretty funny!”
    • “Characters: none of the characters reflect on themselves or show any character development or vulnerability; it's like a Discord call of people thinking they're right because they're louder.”
    • “Engaging character script - I enjoyed the plot, and I was floored by the character development done entirely through voices alone.”
    • “Character development.”
  • monetization
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is praised for being a good free title with no microtransactions, which sets expectations for its quality. However, some users express frustration with its performance on Linux systems and criticize the presence of blatant advertisements. Overall, the monetization model is seen as favorable, but the game's execution leaves much to be desired.

    • “People are entitled about games; forget about it and take my opinion: it's a good free game with no microtransactions.”
    • “First of all, it's a free game with no microtransactions whatsoever, so don't expect the same quality that a small nation of developers would put into a game.”
    • “When you think it can't possibly get any worse, it does, and by a certain point which will remain undefined (blatant advertisement), you can't help but laugh at it.”
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80%Critics’ scoreBased on 1 critic reviews
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4h Median play time
21h Average play time
2-5h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 14 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Only If is a puzzle game with horror, fantasy and mystery themes.

Only If is available on PC, Mac OS, Windows and Linux.

On average players spend around 21 hours playing Only If.

Only If was released on July 25, 2014.

Only If was developed by Creability.

Only If has received mostly positive reviews from both players and critics. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its stability.

Only If is a single player game.

Similar games include Subway Midnight, Uncanny Valley, Bad Dream: Coma, Death Mark, Knock-Knock and others.