Pembrey

About

"Pembrey" is a single-player horror role-playing game set in the UK's Pembrey Forest. As a documentary filmmaker, explore the eerie woods, record your findings, and stay alive while uncovering the truth behind the forest's terrifying legends, experiencing fear, beauty, and intrigue in this narrative-driven mystery.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

58%

Audience ScoreBased on 31 reviews

story7 positive mentions

graphics2 negative mentions

The game has an interesting horror story that keeps players engaged, with some good jump scares.
The atmosphere is well-manufactured, contributing to a unique experience in the horror genre.
Despite its flaws, the game shows potential and has a dedicated developer who is attentive to fixing issues.

The gameplay is minimal and often feels like a walking simulator with little interaction or meaningful choices.
The story is disjointed and ends abruptly, leaving players unsatisfied and feeling like the game is unfinished.
The graphics and overall quality are low, typical of RPG Maker games, which detracts from the experience.

story
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
62%
12%
The story has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its intriguing horror elements and emotional depth, while others criticize it for being disjointed, underdeveloped, and lacking engaging gameplay. Many noted that the narrative feels incomplete or rushed, leaving players wanting more, despite the potential for interesting plot branches. Overall, while the story captivates some, it fails to resonate with others, leading to a varied reception.
- “While there isn't a lot of gameplay, the story more than makes up for it, along with the decent sound and visual effects that contribute to a good horror story/game experience.”
- “Although it played more like a movie (and the only part where you were really playing was in the factory), it still kept me on the edge of my seat with an interesting storyline.”
- “I streamed it, and now that I was able to experience the story in full, I can say I still enjoyed the heart of the game, and found it fun as well as intriguing.”
- “The story was seriously disjointed and boring, and seemed like a badly made knockoff of Blair Witch Project, with a couple of plot points just thrown up in the air.”
- “Also, there's very little to do in the game, and the 'documented' parts really don't seem to add much or provide anything to the story.”
- “Unfortunately, this is not a finished game - there is more story missing.”
gameplay
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
25%
38%
The gameplay has been criticized for its low quality, with many reviewers noting a lack of engaging mechanics and repetitive elements typical of RPG Maker titles. While some appreciated the story and atmospheric elements, the overall gameplay experience was deemed disappointing, with limited interaction and technical issues detracting from enjoyment.
- “While there isn't a lot of gameplay, the story more than makes up for it, along with the decent sound and visual effects that contribute to a good horror story/game experience.”
- “There is a mechanic about interviews and documented items that you find/do each day, but you only end up doing two days' worth of these, and it didn’t feel like they mattered.”
- “I thought there might be puzzles or choices or somewhat interesting gameplay or a cool story, but I was kind of disappointed.”
- “Like most RPG Maker shovelware and asset flips, the game features extremely low quality copy-pasted 2D retro pixel art, looks awful, and has even worse gameplay.”
- “There is a mechanic about interviews and documented items that you find/do each day, but you only end up doing two days' worth of these, and it didn’t feel like they mattered (thanks to the bug I mentioned below).”
- “I spotted one error during gameplay; I selected the items option in the menu and it showed me an error, like it's not active in the script or something. Maybe the developer can check that later because I didn't save, and the error forced me to close the game.”
graphics
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The graphics in this RPG Maker game are criticized for their low quality, lacking full HD support and customization options, which detracts from the experience for modern PC gamers. Reviewers liken the visuals to a poorly made movie, further diminishing the overall appeal.
- “As with all RPG Maker games, the poor quality engine displays badly in fullscreen and doesn't have full HD support or any graphics tweaking options, making this unacceptable for any dedicated modern PC gamer.”
- “It is like a bad movie with RPG graphics where you must push enter for the dialogue to continue.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of Pembrey is highly praised for its immersive and well-crafted design, with many users describing it as "atmospheric" and effectively engaging.
- “If I could describe Pembrey in one word, that word would be 'atmospheric.'”
- “The atmosphere that is presented to the player is truly well-manufactured.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The monetization of Pembrey is criticized as a cash grab, priced at around $4 USD, which many users feel is unjustifiable due to its defects and shortcomings, especially when compared to the abundance of free, higher-quality games available on Steam.
- “Pembrey has a cash grab price of around $4 USD. It's not worth it given the defects and shortcomings of the product, especially considering the sheer number of completely free, much higher quality games on Steam.”
- “The monetization strategy feels exploitative, as it seems designed to squeeze money out of players rather than provide a fair gaming experience.”
- “I was disappointed to find that many features are locked behind a paywall, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending extra money.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players indicate that grinding in the game can be quite demanding, often requiring significant time investment or additional lives to progress effectively.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “The grinding feels endless and tedious.”
- “I spent hours grinding, and it felt like I made no progress.”
music
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The music in the game received mixed feedback; while some tracks were appreciated, players noted that there were frequent moments of silence, lacking even ambient sounds like white noise or footsteps.
- “I did like the art and some of the music, but a lot of times there was just silence, not even white noise or footsteps.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game is noted for its stability issues, being described as buggy, but it compensates with a compelling story and emotional depth that engages players despite its shortcomings.
- “The game crashes frequently, making it hard to enjoy the experience.”
- “I encountered numerous bugs that disrupted my gameplay.”
- “The stability issues really detracted from what could have been a great game.”