Red Lake

About

"Red Lake" is a horror shooter/quest game where you play as an agent investigating a Siberian village after reports of a red lake and strange animal behavior. Your mission is to find the missing forester and uncover the truth behind the lake's transformation. As night falls, survival becomes crucial as dangerous creatures emerge, requiring you to find a safe place to sleep before sunset. Exploration and completing tasks in the large open area of the lake are key elements of the game.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

44%

Audience ScoreBased on 392 reviews

atmosphere19 positive mentions

gameplay12 negative mentions

The game creates a compelling atmosphere with its eerie setting and ambient sound design, enhancing the overall experience.
Engaging gameplay mechanics, including exploration, puzzle-solving, and survival elements, provide depth and excitement.
Some players found the unique horror elements and enemies to be interesting, adding to the game's charm.

The game suffers from limited replay value due to its linear nature and lack of significant branching paths or alternate endings.
Technical issues and optimization challenges impact performance and immersion, making the game frustrating to play.
Many players criticized the narrative execution as lacking depth, failing to fully capitalize on its intriguing premise.

gameplay
42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
52%
29%
The gameplay of "Red Lake" is described as a mix of engaging mechanics like exploration and puzzle-solving, set within an atmospheric horror context. However, many players criticize it for poor execution, including technical issues, lackluster graphics, and frustrating mechanics, leading to a divided reception where some find it thrilling while others deem it unplayable. Overall, the game offers a compelling atmosphere but suffers from significant gameplay flaws that detract from the experience.
- “The game offers engaging gameplay mechanics, including exploration, puzzle-solving, and survival elements.”
- “Red Lake presents an atmospheric and engaging experience with its eerie setting and challenging gameplay mechanics.”
- “While it may suffer from limited replay value and potential technical issues, its compelling atmosphere and suspenseful gameplay make it worth exploring for fans of atmospheric horror games.”
- “It's amazing how you can somehow irritate me within the first 5 minutes of gameplay.”
- “Terrible gameplay, graphics non-existent, better off muting your audio if you play.”
- “Red Lake suffers from the typical bugs these Unity-based games have: bad graphics, lots of bugs/glitches, incoherent story, awful game mechanics, and the list goes on.”
graphics
42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
29%
48%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many users criticizing them as outdated, poorly animated, and filled with bugs. While some players appreciate certain aspects of the visuals, describing them as good or realistic, the overall consensus leans towards disappointment, with comments highlighting a lack of polish and coherence in the graphical presentation.
- “Red Lake is an incredible FPS horror game, the opening cutscene is intense and dramatic, with fantastic voice acting and graphics that make CryEngine look disgusting. The FPS on this game is outmatched; even a potato PC can get up to 200+ FPS.”
- “The graphics are incredible.”
- “Good graphics.”
- “Terrible gameplay, graphics non-existent; better off muting your audio if you play.”
- “Red Lake suffers from the typical bugs these Unity-based games have: bad graphics, lots of bugs/glitches, incoherent story, awful game mechanics, and the list goes on.”
- “Ugly graphics and animations, awful mouse sensitivity, worse gunplay, and bugs and crashes galore.”
story
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
55%
26%
The story of "Red Lake" has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its imaginative premise centered around a mysterious red lake, while others criticize it for being incoherent and lacking depth. Many reviewers suggest that enhancing character development and storytelling could significantly improve player engagement, as the current narrative is often deemed uninteresting and overshadowed by technical issues. Overall, the game's story is seen as a potential highlight that is not fully realized due to poor execution and game mechanics.
- “I like the story a lot and the imagination used to create this.”
- “This gave the developers more time to work on this beautiful piece of storytelling.”
- “This story related to the lake, which has a strange red color and affects the surrounding area, is actually quite interesting.”
- “Red Lake suffers from the typical bugs these Unity-based games have: bad graphics, lots of bugs/glitches, incoherent story, awful game mechanics, and the list goes on.”
- “Definitely not recommended, the mechanics are poor, the storyline is almost non-existent, and the only jump-scares it contains are very loud noises ... check out my playthrough to see for yourself!”
- “They should try and make the story mode better.”
atmosphere
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
83%
13%
4%
The atmosphere of "Red Lake" is frequently praised for its eerie setting and effective ambient sound design, creating a compelling and immersive experience for players. While some reviewers noted a lack of traditional horror elements and potential technical issues, the game's music and nuanced storytelling contribute to a suspenseful ambiance that resonates with fans of atmospheric horror. Overall, it offers a unique atmospheric experience, though opinions vary on its execution and replay value.
- “Red Lake creates a compelling atmosphere with its eerie setting and ambient sound design.”
- “Simply put, the ten minutes I put into this game before I had to restart because looking in my notebook killed me were some of the most atmospheric and nuanced takes on the horror genre I have ever witnessed.”
- “The narration and the notebooks were often not even understandable, which builds the atmosphere and suspense of this game in ways I once thought not possible.”
music
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
56%
25%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its ability to enhance the atmosphere and fit the game's themes, while others find certain tracks, particularly the Russian rock and metal pieces, to be annoying or jarring. Overall, the soundtrack is noted for its emotional impact, with some players expressing a strong desire to identify specific songs.
- “Enjoy this masterpiece of music from the best game!”
- “Also, the Russian metal music playing while running away from black particles is a plus.”
- “+ music/atmosphere: the music really sets the mood for the game and fits nicely with what the devs were trying to do.”
- “The soundtrack is annoying.”
- “My personal favorite part was the awful Russian rock music part as you have to 'run!!!' away from a swarm of what I can only assume was flying black rice.”
- “Guys, I need help, the song in chapter 4 (yes, I wasted like two hours of my life getting this far), I need the name... I need it!”
optimization
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
71%
29%
The optimization of "Red Lake" is widely criticized, with users reporting significant technical issues and poor performance across various platforms. Many players note the presence of numerous bugs and a lack of in-game options, which detracts from the overall experience and immersion. Despite these challenges, some find humor in the game's cheap jump scares, though this does not compensate for its optimization shortcomings.
- “Many bugs, bad optimization, but still a good laugh or two if you are up for it (because of the jumpscares, they're so cheap they're funny sometimes).”
- “Now, I could tell you about how terrible the optimization is, or how uninspired it is, or how it's really easy to render the game unwinnable, but that doesn't matter.”
- “It's not scary, it's optimized like crap, there are no options while in a game, and worst of all it isn't fun.”
replayability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
10%
60%
30%
The game is generally perceived to have limited replayability due to its linear structure and absence of branching paths or alternate endings. While its compelling atmosphere and suspenseful gameplay may entice players to experience it once, the lack of additional content or replayable elements diminishes its long-term appeal.
- “While it may suffer from limited replay value and potential technical issues, its compelling atmosphere and suspenseful gameplay make it worth exploring for fans of atmospheric horror games.”
- “Some players may find the game lacking in replay value due to its linear nature and lack of significant branching paths or alternate endings.”
- “Limited replay value due to linear nature.”
- “Additional content or replayable elements could enhance the game's longevity and appeal.”
humor
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is largely unintentional, with players finding amusement in its poor design and cheap jump scares rather than any deliberate comedic elements. While some reviews express frustration with gameplay mechanics and bugs, they also highlight moments that provoke laughter, making the experience somewhat entertaining despite its flaws. Overall, the game is described as "funny" in a way that stems from its ineptitude rather than any crafted humor.
- “Many bugs, bad optimization, but still a good laugh or two if you are up for it (because of the jumpscares, they're so cheap they're funny sometimes).”
- “It's quite cheap, funny (not intentionally), and you also get to say 'I've played Red Lake... the worst game in the world'.”
- “The funny thing is those zombies look a lot like the ones from House of the Dead.”
emotional
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players highlight the emotional depth of the game, noting that enhanced storytelling and character development significantly boost engagement. Many express strong emotional reactions, such as tears during pivotal moments, and immersive experiences that evoke feelings of isolation and connection to the environment. The blend of emotional narratives, particularly in the first chapter, adds a compelling layer to the gameplay.
- “Tears welled up in his eyes when he realized what exactly was at stake.”
- “The open world section made me feel like I was actually in the Russian wilderness, lost for what felt like real-life weeks.”
- “The first chapter is a mix of an emotional love story and GTA.”
stability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is plagued by numerous bugs and glitches, typical of many Unity-based titles, leading to a frustrating experience for players. While some found the issues somewhat entertaining, the overall consensus is that the game's stability is poor, with significant impacts on graphics, mechanics, and storytelling.
- “Red Lake suffers from the typical bugs these Unity-based games have: bad graphics, lots of bugs/glitches, incoherent story, awful game mechanics, and the list goes on.”
- “Not scary, buggy, and just overall an irritating time.”
- “It is very buggy, but I spent 1-2 hours looking at what happened, so it passed the time for me.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that improving storytelling and character development is crucial for enhancing player experience and emotional engagement, suggesting that deeper narratives and character arcs could significantly elevate the overall impact of the game.
- “Enhancing the storytelling and character development could enrich the player experience and emotional engagement.”