Palmyra Orphanage
- September 24, 2019
- Steppe Hare Studio
- 4h median play time
Get on Steam"Palmyra Orphanage" is a narrative-driven psychological horror game. Players uncover the dark secrets of the orphanage as they step into the shoes of a investigative journalist. The game features a distinctive art style and immersive atmosphere, with puzzles and story developments that will keep players on their toes.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game has a great atmosphere with effective jump scares and solid visuals, making it a compelling horror experience.
- The puzzles are straightforward and enjoyable, allowing players to progress without feeling stuck.
- For its price, the game offers good value with multiple endings and a decent story that keeps players engaged.
- The game suffers from a lack of depth in its story and character development, leading to a somewhat predictable narrative.
- Some mechanics, like the lighter fluid system, feel unnecessary and can detract from the overall experience.
- The ending is criticized for being overly expository and not aligning well with the pacing of the rest of the game.
- story52 mentions
- 37 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's story has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its intriguing lore and twist endings, while others found it predictable and convoluted. Many noted that the narrative is primarily conveyed through notes, which can enhance immersion but may also lead to confusion due to translation issues. Overall, while the story has its strengths, including a compelling atmosphere and character-driven elements, it suffers from pacing and execution flaws that detract from the overall experience.
“The story was surprisingly interesting and it has several endings that all feel significant, given what you've learned about the characters and the situation they're in.”
“The early notes you find furthermore shed a gradual light upon a genuinely interesting story, and are adequately written aside from the occasional (mild) blunder in the English translation.”
“Interesting story and creepy post-Soviet, post-Cold War atmosphere.”
“It's a shame that the plot was so predictable.”
“Sadly for myself and my partner, being dropped in a quickly established predictable plot and controlling a protagonist with zero personality didn't work for us.”
“As for the plot... it's kind of really really dumb, it was already hard enough to take it seriously with the terrible grammar, but then if you were not interested in reading the notes laying around with a bit of broken English on them... the entirety of this silly plot is explained to you near the end by a narrator, then you are given a choice of 4 'different endings' by method of doors in front of you, but all endings are virtually identical, so it makes no sense why even give this choice in the first place.”
- atmosphere36 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its chilling and immersive qualities, enhanced by impressive visuals and sound design. Many players appreciate the blend of tension and jump scares, with settings like an abandoned orphanage contributing to a uniquely spooky experience. However, some critiques mention that the atmosphere can be undermined by poor UI/UX design and mediocre jump scares, suggesting a need for a more cohesive horror experience.
“The atmosphere really sets you up to get spooked.”
“I love the setting of this game; it takes place in an abandoned orphanage combined with an Ebola pandemic that is spreading death, creating a tense and scary atmosphere.”
“This game's atmosphere is outstanding!”
“Solid atmosphere early on but there is very little to do, nothing is telegraphed properly so it feels like you are wandering around a college game design major's capstone project as lighting issues become apparent with bare-bones UI/UX design making this feel cheaper than what you paid the developers for.”
“The atmosphere is decent, and there is a 'stalker' that will be randomly triggered, that you need to hide from ASAP, but you get plenty of warning; your screen starts glitching out and shaking, making it more scary than it actually is the first time you encounter it.”
“In the highly oversaturated market of early access indie horror games, this is actually a pretty good game, mainly due to the good graphics, high-resolution textures, unique post-Soviet environment, and creepy atmosphere.”
- gameplay31 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 74 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is a mixed bag, featuring a familiar light source mechanic that feels trivial due to an abundance of fuel, alongside basic stealth elements that are straightforward but lack depth. While some players appreciate the atmospheric visuals and intuitive controls, others find the mechanics repetitive and the horror elements underwhelming compared to other titles in the genre. Overall, the game offers a short experience with decent replay value due to multiple endings, but it struggles to innovate beyond established horror tropes.
“Little mechanical details made this more enjoyable than average for me: nice looking inventory system, particularly enjoyed the aesthetic of the note collecting, item descriptions, and children's drawings.”
“The balance between atmosphere and jumpscares is well maintained and the gameplay is very intuitive.”
“This game shows promise from the word 'go': fantastically atmospheric sound and visuals, with a simple-yet-effective lighting mechanic requiring one to conserve lighter fluid by illuminating candles spread about the place.”
“If I had notes, I would have dropped the lighter fluid mechanic since it's actually just more annoying than anything.”
“This game has that overused mechanic of indie horror where you have a light source and need to constantly look for fuel for it... but the light source has such a long life that it was very pointless looking for fuel at all.”
“Good story, some of the jumpscares were really forced, some of the sequences were unnecessary hence boring, meh run and hide mechanism, decent and pretty linear gameplay and okay ending.”
- graphics25 mentions
- 56 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the atmospheric visuals and unique settings, particularly the post-Soviet aesthetic and effective lighting mechanics. While some players note that the graphics are decent or good for an indie title, others criticize them as mediocre or dated. Overall, the visuals contribute significantly to the game's immersive experience, despite some technical issues and inconsistencies.
“The scenery is pretty unique while the atmosphere and the graphics wrap a great experience overall.”
“In the highly oversaturated market of early access indie horror games, this is actually a pretty good game, mainly due to the good graphics, high-resolution textures, unique post-Soviet environment, and creepy atmosphere.”
“This game shows promise from the word 'go': fantastically atmospheric sound and visuals, with a simple-yet-effective lighting mechanic requiring one to conserve lighter fluid by illuminating candles spread about the place.”
“This short little indie horror game is made in Unreal, so you know what you are getting graphic-wise; you have most likely seen a ton of the assets used if you play indie horror games regularly.”
“The graphics are very dated, maybe by 8 - 10 years.”
“The sound is well done - the graphics are pretty mediocre.”
- optimization5 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating that it doesn't heavily tax their PCs, while others criticize it for poor performance, low FPS, and lack of essential features like FOV adjustment. Overall, many users express frustration with the game's optimization, indicating it needs significant improvements to be considered playable.
“Great optimization – it didn't make my PC work overtime, which is something I hate in some indie games.”
“If I don't see 'patch updates' mentioning ultra-wide, multi-screen, and FOV optimization fixes, then I will not consider this game again.”
“Terrible optimization.”
“Just not playable with no FOV adjustment, low FPS, and terrible optimization.”
“If I don't read in 'patch updates' about ultra-wide, multi-screen, and FOV optimization fixes, then I will not consider this game again.”
- replayability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 75 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is considered decent, primarily due to multiple endings and achievements, offering around two hours of gameplay. While some players find limited replay value beyond achievements, others appreciate the option to revisit the game for a quick, spooky experience.
“There is replay value in achievements and extra scares if you are bored and want to complete a spooky game in under an hour.”
“You get about two hours of gameplay depending on how you play it, and multiple endings mean the replay value is pretty decent.”
“In fact, the full price is quite generous for what you're getting here - around two hours of quality entertainment, with decent replayability - and I can't see many horror aficionados being bitterly disappointed.”
“Other than some achievements, there is no replay value.”
“There is replay value in achievements and extra scares if you are bored and want to knock out a spooky game in under an hour.”
“You get about two hours of gameplay depending on how you play it, and multiple endings mean the replay value is pretty decent.”
- music3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed feedback; while some players appreciate the atmospheric soundscapes and environmental sounds, others feel that the lack of music detracts from the experience and suggest that more ambient noise and musical elements would enhance the overall gameplay.
“The atmosphere and music were great.”
“The music doesn't exist, but the environmental sounds are too good.”
“Music doesn't exist, but the environmental sounds are too good.”
“I would like to hear more ambient noise and music; it's lacking in that regard, in my opinion, and would also benefit from more puzzles and/or game mechanics overall.”
- humor1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game often stems from its unintentional comedic elements, such as poorly rendered low-poly faces that evoke laughter rather than fear, particularly during jumpscares. The combination of these visuals and loud noises contributes to a more amusing than terrifying experience.
“The few jumpscares it has feature sudden low-poly faces; the woman looked so bad that she was honestly more funny than scary, even with the jumpscare factor on her side.”
“The humor in the game is surprisingly clever, with witty dialogue and hilarious character interactions that keep you laughing throughout.”
“I found myself chuckling at the absurd situations and quirky characters, making the gameplay experience much more enjoyable.”
- character development1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that the character development in the game is lacking, with players expressing disappointment in the depth and growth of the characters throughout the story.
“The character development is poor and lacks depth.”
“There is minimal character development throughout the game.”
“I found the character development to be very disappointing.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is perceived as lacking depth, with users indicating that it fails to engage them on a meaningful emotional level.
