Panic Room. House of Secrets

About

You wake up inside a locked mansion with many rooms and corridors, not knowing how you ended up here or why. As you begin to investigate, you learn that your mysterious abductor is a man who calls himself the Puppeteer, a madman that had imprisoned you and several other innocent people. But are things really what they seem? You’ll have to explore every corner of the ancient house to get back your…

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

56%

Audience ScoreBased on 223 reviews

story34 positive mentions

monetization7 negative mentions

The game features beautiful graphics and an atmospheric mood, making it visually appealing.
It offers a variety of puzzles and hidden object challenges that can be engaging and fun.
The storyline is intriguing, with elements of mystery that keep players interested.

The game is plagued with bugs and technical issues, making it frustrating to play.
Progression is heavily gated by a pay-to-play model, requiring real money to advance after a certain point.
The gameplay can become repetitive, with players often searching for the same items in the same rooms.

story
105 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
59%
9%
The game's story is a mixed bag, with some players finding it intriguing and atmospheric, while others criticize it for being disjointed and poorly translated. Many appreciate the haunted mansion theme and character interactions, but note that the narrative can be confusing and lacks depth, often feeling secondary to the gameplay. Overall, while the story has potential and engages some players, it suffers from inconsistencies and a reliance on hidden object mechanics that can detract from the experience.
- “The story is excellent, keeps you hooked even though it can take time to get ahead in the game.”
- “I enjoy the story and I like the idea of it.”
- “The developer did a great job focusing on the story and not just making it purely a hidden objects game.”
- “The storyline is confusing and makes little sense.”
- “Through the extremely fragmented, poorly written, and linguistically broken narrative and game direction, I sort of gathered that the so-called story was about you being locked up in a house with some other people, with 'tasks' assigned to you by someone called the 'puppeteer' from time to time.”
- “If you want something with a little bit more of a challenge and storyline, then sadly you'll have to buy a game.”
monetization
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
53%
33%
The monetization strategy of "The Panic Room: House of Secrets" has been widely criticized as a blatant cash grab, with numerous reviews highlighting the prevalence of intrusive microtransactions that detract from the overall experience. Players report that the game pressures them into making in-game purchases, often rendering progress difficult without spending money. Overall, the consensus is that the game prioritizes profit over quality, making it a poor choice for gamers seeking value.
- “Scrolling around on the game page, I did see that it has in-app purchases, but still, microtransactions gonna microtransact.”
- “Give it a shot; it's free to play, and you don't have to do any microtransactions.”
- “The issue is the aforementioned 'free to start' after a place you cannot get further, and even then there is a lot of pressure to gain items from microtransactions.”
- “The Panic Room: House of Secrets is a mobile app that's been dumped on Steam as a cheap, nasty cash grab by greedy mobile developers. Superficially, this is just a really badly made hidden object puzzle game, but it's much more sinister.”
- “The developer has riddled this game with cancerous mobile app microtransactions.”
- “This is one of the morally bankrupt, contentless, badly coded cash grab mobile port shovelware games that everyone with just a hint of logical thinking capabilities should avoid like the con job that it is.”
gameplay
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
68%
16%
The gameplay of "Panic Room: House of Secrets" is criticized for its lack of variety and complexity, with many users noting that it feels like a port of an outdated Facebook game. While some original mechanics and atmospheric storytelling are appreciated, the overall experience is marred by poor development, frustrating health and currency systems, and a reliance on microtransactions. Despite its potential, the gameplay often feels tedious and uninspired, leading to a mixed reception among players.
- “It can be challenging at times, and although generally easy, it brings some interesting, original mechanics into play.”
- “The art is great, the mechanics are fun.”
- “First off, the gameplay is much faster on Steam (the loading times on Facebook drive me nuts!).”
- “Drawing parallels with games like The Room, The Panic Room: House of Secrets excels in atmospheric storytelling but lacks in gameplay variety and puzzle complexity.”
- “Before we get into the bad stuff, it's worth noting the game is already immediately disqualified as having any value for PC gamers, with locked resolution, mediocre 2D art, and stale, uninspired hog gameplay that makes Artifex Mundi cash grabs look like masterpieces.”
- “The game's mechanics are poorly developed; the graphics may even be okay, but the gameplay is not.”
graphics
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
20%
20%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beauty and atmospheric quality, contributing to a dark yet inviting aesthetic. While many users appreciate the art style and overall visual presentation, some express concerns about the lack of resolution settings and the game's mechanics, which detract from the experience. Overall, the visuals are considered a strong point, enhancing the game's appeal despite some gameplay criticisms.
- “The game's aesthetic is dark and mysterious without being scary or off-putting, but rather inviting.”
- “It has great atmosphere, good looking and fitting graphics, well chosen moody music, an intriguing storyline, good pacing, and an assortment of activities (mini games) to pursue and complete.”
- “Artwork is beautiful.”
- “No fullscreen (or at least some graphics/resolution settings) option either?”
- “The game's mechanics are poorly developed; graphics may even be okay, but the gameplay is not.”
- “I love the graphics, storyline, and a lot of the content, but in my opinion, the game seems intentionally set up to make you buy items in-game with real money.”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The music in the game is generally praised for its haunting and nostalgic quality, effectively enhancing the atmosphere without being overpowering. While some users note the limited variety, many appreciate the well-chosen tracks that complement the intriguing storyline and gameplay. Overall, the music contributes positively to the experience, earning it a solid reception among players.
- “The background music is nice, kind of haunting and somehow familiar.”
- “It has great atmosphere, good looking and fitting graphics, well chosen moody music, an intriguing storyline, good pacing, and an assortment of activities (mini games) to pursue and complete.”
- “Amazing music, and for me it gave a nostalgic feeling of old school hidden object games.”
- “The music is quite limited.”
- “I love the music and the plot.”
atmosphere
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
57%
43%
The atmosphere of "Panic Room: House of Secrets" is highly praised for its atmospheric storytelling, detailed Victorian settings, and moody graphics complemented by fitting music. While the game excels in creating an immersive environment, some players feel that the gameplay variety and puzzle complexity do not match the rich atmosphere, particularly in the context of short play sessions typical of free-to-play models. Overall, the game successfully evokes a dark and intriguing mood that enhances the experience.
- “Beautiful images and atmospheric mood.”
- “It has great atmosphere, good looking and fitting graphics, well chosen moody music, an intriguing storyline, good pacing, and an assortment of activities (mini games) to pursue and complete.”
- “Add to that an odd horror setting, which might work in paid hidden object games where you can focus on whatever is being investigated and immerse yourself into the atmosphere of the game, but it doesn't work in the short play sessions of a free-to-play dynamic.”
- “The mystery and atmosphere?”
- “I love the dark atmosphere and the characters.”
grinding
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
71%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessive and tedious, often detracting from the overall enjoyment. Many express frustration with the lack of meaningful rewards for their efforts, leading to a sense of boredom and disinterest in continuing. Overall, the grinding mechanics are viewed as a significant drawback, making the game less appealing compared to other titles.
- “This game is just like a 'point and click' simulator, and grinding and solving puzzles are very boring and nonsensical.”
- “All in all, there is no harm in checking out a free-to-play title if you really like the look of the game, but there are much better entries on Steam, and this one is just too tedious to play.”
- “Simply put, the game is not fun; it's tedious.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
The humor in the game is characterized as tense and entertaining, likened to a cat in a rocking chair store, suggesting a blend of anxiety and comedy. However, some users find the game's picky mechanics frustrating, detracting from the overall humor experience.
- “Like a cat in a rocking chair store: tense, nervous, and hilariously entertaining!”
- “The humor in this game is so clever and unexpected, it keeps you laughing throughout!”
- “The witty dialogue and absurd situations had me in stitches from start to finish!”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users note that while the developers of Panic Room are active on Facebook, providing updates and addressing glitches, the game experiences more stability issues on that platform due to frequent maintenance. Overall, there seems to be a disparity in stability between the two versions, with the Facebook version encountering more glitches.
- “Panic Room is also on Facebook, where the developers are very active, constantly posting news, apologies, and explanations for glitches. Here, we get nothing.”
- “However, there are many more glitches on Facebook because they do a lot of maintenance.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
150%
The game's optimization has been criticized for being poor, resulting in lag even on high-end rigs and strong internet connections. Users have noted performance issues, particularly following updates, and have pointed out translation problems that can hinder readability.
- “There are performance issues with updates, similar to other MMORPGs.”
- “Microtransactions are available, which can detract from the overall experience.”
- “Some translations from Russian are poorly done, making it hard to read at times.”