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PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse Game Cover

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PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse is a single player role playing game with horror, mystery, anime and violence themes. It was developed by Square Enix and was released on February 19, 2026. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players.

Will you survive the curse together this summer? A new supernatural mystery adventure begins, telling a bittersweet story of the passions of youth featuring new locations, new legends and a new cast of characters.

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95%Audience ScoreBased on 436 reviews
story119 positive mentions
grinding6 negative mentions

  • Engaging and well-crafted mystery story with rich Japanese folklore and cultural background.
  • Strong character development with likable casts and meaningful interactions that enhance the narrative.
  • Unique and polished visual novel presentation featuring beautiful art, a fitting atmospheric soundtrack, and innovative gameplay elements like a diving mini-game.
  • The game suffers from pacing issues due to excessive exposition and repeated lore dumps, especially in early sections, which can hamper flow and player engagement.
  • True ending puzzle and some meta-game mechanics are overly obscure and difficult to solve without external guidance, leading to player frustration.
  • Less horror and suspense compared to the first game, with a more relaxed tone that some players found less impactful and the romance subplot feeling abrupt or underdeveloped.
  • story

    421 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story in Paranormasight: The Mermaid's Curse offers a richly layered, lore-heavy narrative with compelling characters and numerous plot twists that keep players engaged, albeit with a slower and less horror-focused pace than its predecessor. While its non-linear storytelling and meta-textual elements are praised for innovation, early info-dumping, repetitive exposition, and some underdeveloped character arcs lead to occasional pacing issues and moments of tedium. Overall, the sequel is seen as an emotionally satisfying and well-crafted mystery with deeper thematic focus on folklore and love, though it may not fully surpass the tight suspense and horror impact of the first game.

    • “A truly outstanding story-rich adventure game/visual novel!”
    • “An absolutely fantastic story with strong thematic focus, a great cast of characters, and plenty of mysteries and twists that kept me hooked from start to finish.”
    • “The foreshadowing, the plot reveals, and the overall storytelling are just as good as if not better than the original.”
    • “Some of the early story sections do a bit too much info dumping and are heavy on text (less tell more show please), especially true of the early circle/avi scenes.”
    • “The writer really seems to love the story device of the player perspective being an actual character in the story and personally I think it just worsens the quality of the story; it's used a lot in this one.”
    • “The story's pacing at the end faltered and most of the story's exposition was dumped in the files.”
  • music

    63 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game is widely praised for its atmospheric, eerie, and culturally rich soundtrack that blends new compositions with memorable themes from the first installment, enhancing the overall storytelling and mood. While some users note a reliance on reused tracks that occasionally mismatch scene tones, the soundtrack is generally considered a standout feature that complements the art style and narrative, contributing significantly to the game's immersive experience.

    • “The music is absolutely amazing as always, the sprites are animated in a way that make for lively and funny/realistic interactions, the story was interesting with lots of Japanese culture/myths to discover, and there were tense moments that made me feel like a genius when I finally connected the dots.”
    • “The presentation and music are wonderful as before, with great new additions and reprises of old themes that strike when the moment is just right.”
    • “The soundtrack uses a lot of very eerie and atmospheric tracks from the previous title, but they work perfectly in this game, and they introduce a lot of really great new tracks as well.”
    • “Music is the only part where Mermaid feels like a step back.”
    • “If I were to complain about anything, it would be the amount of reused music in the soundtrack.”
    • “The tone for some scenes is just wrong because of the few music choices.”
  • gameplay

    62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay in this visual novel builds upon its predecessor by incorporating more interactive elements, including puzzles, a diving minigame, and meta-textual mechanics that creatively tie into the narrative. While the core remains largely text-driven with relatively simple puzzles, the additional mechanics add variety and engagement, though some players find the puzzle difficulty uneven and certain mechanics underutilized. Overall, the integration of gameplay and story is praised for enhancing immersion, despite occasional pacing issues and minor gimmicks.

    • “There's more interactivity than your average visual novel, the scenes are pretty dynamic, and though there are quite a few bits that ask you to think out of the box, the game makes a clear effort not to leave you stumped and deeply respects your time with its mechanics.”
    • “Elements, mechanics and gimmicks like saves, story charts, and even the main menu are treated as canonical pieces of the narrative and plot devices rather than just gameplay tools.”
    • “The core gameplay is still one of the most novel systems you'll find, the already perfect art direction takes on a whole new life in the new summer island setting, the enriching world-building is taken further than ever, and the all new cast and writing are on point.”
    • “The central gameplay mechanic of diving is underutilized — in practice, it only really appears in one section that you replay multiple times, and it could have been used far more extensively.”
    • “Despite the different approach to pacing and setting, the gameplay still largely comes down to spinning the camera around and clicking on everything until a scene ends.”
    • “Most of the puzzles aren't especially difficult but the ones that are are frustrating since it's mostly due to things like misleading phrasing and finicky mechanics.”
  • graphics

    29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics in the game are highly praised for their unique and compelling art style, which blends realism with anime influences and effectively captures the natural beauty of the setting. The visuals are enhanced by cinematic shots, occasional animations, and atmospheric design that strongly support the storytelling. Overall, the art and presentation, combined with an excellent soundtrack, create a vibrant, immersive experience that many consider one of the best in visual novels.

    • “The art style and presentation is one of my favourite visual novel formats with lots of variety and cinematic shots, and the story and characters are a lot of fun to unravel.”
    • “The occasional animated graphics add just the perfect touch to the art, truly enhancing the story's atmosphere.”
    • “Beautiful artstyle, great set-pieces, it’s all amazing and I'm blown away every time I look at a game like this.”
  • emotional

    27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game delivers a deeply emotional experience, balancing moments of terror, humor, and heartfelt storytelling that resonate strongly with players. While some found certain endings less satisfying or noted a shift from horror to a more suspenseful, character-driven narrative, the overall emotional weight, well-crafted plot twists, and strong character connections consistently evoke strong feelings—including tears and laughter. This emotional depth, combined with engaging cultural themes and expressive animations, makes for a compelling and immersive journey.

    • “I'd never been so terrified during so many unexpected sequences, so emotional during some scenes, so confident throughout some decisions yet be immediately shut down, gutted and flipped upside down to have something even wilder given to me instead.”
    • “It hits all the right thematic and emotional notes, with twists upon twists that are well-explored.”
    • “This is one thing I'm incredibly happy to say is not an issue this game has, I'd say just about every plot thread has a satisfactory to amazing resolution that had me very emotional at times.”
  • atmosphere

    23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game presents a distinct, lighter atmosphere compared to its predecessor, shifting from intense, spooky horror to a brighter, folklore-rich summer island mystery. While some miss the original's unsettling, tense vibe, the new setting's unique aesthetic, compelling characters, and atmospheric soundtrack create an engaging, though different, mood. Overall, it offers a memorable and well-crafted ambiance that balances mystery and story over pure horror.

    • “The game uses its distinct aesthetic, atmospheric soundtrack, connection to Japanese folklore, and the world of Paranormasight to tell a story that feels very different from the first entry.”
    • “It had terrific twists, was dripping with atmosphere, boasted distinctive character designs, and had a memorable soundtrack with one of my favorite opening themes in any medium ever.”
    • “The soundtrack uses a lot of the same very eerie and atmospheric tracks from the previous title, but they work perfectly in this game, and they introduce a lot of really great new tracks as well.”
    • “Although the first game had a better "horror" and unsettling atmosphere.”
    • “Mermaid's Curse lacks the spooky paranoid horror atmosphere of the first game, opting for a different tone instead.”
    • “The setting, though interesting and well presented, was not as suited to building a spooky atmosphere as the ultra-grungy Tokyo of the first game.”
  • humor

    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is praised for being well-integrated with the story, providing many funny moments and lively character interactions that add charm and emotional depth. Players appreciate the mix of lightheartedness and darker tones, with characters often delivering humor through expressive animations and witty dialogue. Overall, the humor enhances the storytelling and makes for an engaging and enjoyable experience.

    • “The story itself is great, funny, and emotional.”
    • “I really enjoyed the first and highly recommend it but this one has everything going for it: really great characters, fantastic storytelling with a lot of twists and turns, funny moments, and an extremely satisfying true ending.”
    • “The characters are all adorable and funny in their own way, really wish we could read more about them outside the main story.”
  • grinding

    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Grinding in the game is notably tedious in certain storylines, particularly Avi's route, where repetitive information and mandatory segments slow progress. The diving minigame, despite being well-developed, is underutilized and feels inconsequential, limiting its appeal for extended grinding. Overall, essential narrative parts occasionally demand frustrating grinding that diminishes the experience.

    • “Some storylines suffer from grinding more than others; Circe and Avi's is especially tedious despite the characters themselves having good chemistry and banter.”
    • “It became especially tedious in Avi’s route where the game regurgitated the information constantly in the first half of his story, making it a slog to get through.”
    • “Aside from the opening section of the game, you're only ever required to play it once in the story, making it feel like a lot of energy went into a largely inconsequential portion, especially with the notes about 'barren' and 'lush' areas having no real impact while grinding out max diving stats.”
  • character development

    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game significantly improves character development with distinctive, memorable designs and engaging interactions. Its unique art style and atmospheric storytelling enhance the overall experience, making the characters and their stories deeply intriguing and immersive.

    • “It did some things better than the first, primarily with world and character development.”
    • “I adore the character designs and artstyle as well, this game has so much going for it and the story so far is so intriguing.”
    • “It just scratches the brain in the most perfect way, whether it be the character designs or the horrific curses they pride themselves in showing.”
  • optimization

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game runs smoothly and is fully playable on the Steam Deck with controllers, despite not yet being officially Steam Deck verified.

    • “Played it on Steam Deck, runs smoothly and is fully playable with the controllers, even though it currently isn't Steam Deck verified.”
  • stability

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is stable and free of bugs, providing a reliable experience, but it is limited by a maximum resolution of 1920x1080, with noticeably low-resolution art assets, particularly in the backgrounds.

  • monetization

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users appreciate that the game was released without prior advertisements and are pleased that a second game was created, indicating a positive view of its monetization approach.

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15h Median play time
14h Average play time
10-17h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 3 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse is a role playing game with horror, mystery, anime and violence themes.

PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse is available on Nintendo Switch, PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 14 hours playing PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse.

PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse was released on February 19, 2026.

PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse was developed by Square Enix.

PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse has received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players. Most players liked PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse for its story but disliked it for its grinding.

PARANORMASIGHT: The Mermaid's Curse is a single player game.

Similar games include PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo, Urban Myth Dissolution Center, The Rise of the Golden Idol, Kathy Rain 2: Soothsayer, Zero Escape: The Nonary Games and others.