Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1

About

Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1 is a single player casual role playing game with horror, mystery, thriller and comedy themes. It was developed by Black Tabby Games and was released on September 25, 2020. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players.

The free-to-play first episode of a horror-mystery game with dark humor and hand-drawn art from award-winning graphic novelist Abby Howard.

+10

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97%Audience ScoreBased on 624 reviews

story127 positive mentions

monetization6 negative mentions

Stunning art style with detailed hand-drawn backgrounds and expressive characters that greatly enhance the atmosphere.
Engaging and well-written story with a perfect blend of horror, humor, and mystery that quickly hooks players.
Meaningful choices supported by a unique trait system that affects dialogue options and story outcomes, providing high replayability.

The game is episodic and currently incomplete, with only the first chapter freely available and the rest requiring purchase, which some players find frustrating.
Some dialogue feels awkward or unrealistic at times, with occasional typos and minor bugs reported.
Limited interactivity beyond dialogue choices, leading to a gameplay experience that some players find too linear or like an enhanced visual novel.

story
278 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
53%
1%
The story in Scarlet Hollow is widely praised for its compelling, eerie, and mysterious narrative that effectively combines horror, humor, and rich character development. Players appreciate the impactful choices and customizable traits that influence branching storylines, adding to replayability and immersion. Overall, the well-crafted atmosphere, writing, and unfolding plot keep players deeply engaged and eager for future episodes.
- “Scarlet Hollow is a standout title in the genre of narrative-driven adventure games, offering a compelling story, memorable characters, and immersive atmosphere.”
- “Absolutely love the combination of art, story and music for this game.”
- “The ability to choose custom character perks not only changed certain story events radically, but also revealed additional plot details and distinct flavoring throughout.”
- “This makes the game too boring to wait through many clicks to get story line.”
- “Guess I just found the first playthrough boring story wise enough to not bother to play again.”
- “But I really hope they add a checkpoint select screen or something like that so we don't have to click into eternity just to get to the point where the story branches out.”
graphics
124 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
65%
33%
2%
The graphics in this game are widely praised for their gorgeous, detailed, and atmospheric hand-drawn art style that perfectly complements the eerie, small-town horror theme. The artwork, combined with a haunting and immersive soundtrack, creates a captivating and spooky aesthetic that greatly enhances the storytelling experience. While a few found the style not to their personal taste, the overall consensus highlights the graphics as a top-tier element that significantly contributes to the game's mood and engagement.
- “The art style is gorgeous and intricate, and the soundtrack is so nice; both really push that quaint yet eerie small town vibe that fits perfectly with the story.”
- “Abby Howard's visuals with a haunting soundtrack are just sublime.”
- “The artwork is top-notch, with characters that move and react in expressive ways - something not every visual novel is able to do - and I was really captivated by the start of the mystery.”
- “The artwork is mediocre and the writing is worse.”
- “Just weird, really crappy artwork.”
- “One screen didn't load the graphic and some of the scares were tied to button pushes, so rather than quick flashes as the creator intended, I could just sit on the image and see the scare.”
music
92 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
66%
34%
The music in the game is widely praised for its atmospheric, haunting, and well-crafted soundtrack that perfectly complements the eerie, spooky setting and enhances the overall mood. Composed by Brandon Boone with thoughtful sound design, the soundtrack blends seamlessly with the visuals and story to create a rich, immersive experience that ranges from soothing lullabies to unsettling tones. Reviewers consistently highlight the music as a standout element that skillfully amplifies the game's horror and emotional depth.
- “The art, music, and sound design are all stellar and create a real sense of place and atmosphere despite the limited budget.”
- “The music and sound design do a great job of making you feel relaxed, uneasy, and downright terrified throughout the game and is honestly one of my favorite aspects.”
- “With incredible art, great writing, and an amazing soundtrack, Scarlet Hollow calls upon all the familiar notions of horror and weaves them together into something breathtakingly original and wonderful to behold.”
atmosphere
75 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
69%
27%
4%
Scarlet Hollow is widely praised for its immersive, creepy atmosphere, masterfully built through hand-drawn art, haunting music, and detailed sound design. Reviewers highlight its balance of eerie tension with moments of humor, creating a richly atmospheric experience that draws players deeply into its mysterious small-town setting. Overall, the game's unique visual style and compelling audio elements consistently enhance the spooky, suspenseful mood throughout.
- “Gorgeous art, incredible atmosphere, and really excellent, quirky writing that buffers its sometimes oppressive atmosphere with surprising moments of levity and humor.”
- “The hand-drawn art by Abby Howard lends so much character and life to the visual novel experience, and the music, sound design, and characters combined with it create such a rich atmosphere.”
- “Some characters look better than others, but I'll reiterate, it is a serious mood killer for a game that otherwise has a bleak, dark atmosphere, to throw characters in front of you that look like they're wearing a rubber mask.”
- “No 'a full chunk of paragraph' on describing an environment/atmosphere.”
- “The atmosphere from the very get-go is chilling, and it's always just impossible to get wholly comfortable, as if spider-legs are constantly dancing across your skin and you can't quite shrug them off.”
humor
46 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is widely praised for its clever, quirky, and well-timed delivery that balances perfectly with the spooky and horror elements. Players appreciate the variety of funny dialogue options, witty character interactions, and moments of levity that enrich the mysterious and eerie atmosphere. This blend of humor and horror creates an engaging and entertaining experience that resonates well with fans of both genres.
- “It's funny, clever, heart warming, heart wrenching, comforting, discomforting, layered, simple, interesting and a bunch of other positive and contradictory adjectives!”
- “Gorgeous art, incredible atmosphere, and really excellent, quirky writing that buffers its sometimes oppressive atmosphere with surprising moments of levity and humor.”
- “What is immediately obvious is how smoothly the story flows along like a vibrant stream that is bubbling over with character building of family tensions interspersed with humorous dialogues both dry & witty in their delivery.”
gameplay
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
75%
11%
The gameplay primarily follows a visual novel format centered around clicking through dialogue, but it is enhanced by a well-designed traits system that meaningfully affects roleplaying and interaction options. Choices feel impactful and encourage replayability, with mechanics that integrate smoothly into the narrative without feeling like isolated tutorials. While some find it lacking in traditional gameplay depth, many appreciate the thoughtful decision pathways and strategic elements that enrich the experience.
- “Mechanics-wise, the traits system opens up a whole new level of roleplay and each trait can be extremely useful in certain situations and alters how you interact with the world of Scarlet Hollow in fun ways.”
- “From a gameplay perspective, the art is great, the choices are meaningful, and picking different traits makes things feel different.”
- “I felt like my dialogue options did actually make a difference in game and I enjoyed the large variety in options you get and it felt like I was able to strategize my gameplay which I rarely feel in other visual novels.”
- “As an advertisement for a visual/interactive novel, this doesn't feature any notable gameplay; it's just a lot of clicking through badly written dialogue that would never have been accepted or published in print, which poses the question, 'how did something this badly written end up on Steam?'”
- “I got this thinking there would be more gameplay and at first I was kinda disappointed that it's mostly just clicking through dialogue.”
- “Okay, so it's nothing like Slay the Prince - it couldn't satisfy my itch neither narratively nor gameplay-wise.”
replayability
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
41%
18%
Replayability is a standout feature of the game, driven by its branching storylines, diverse character traits, and customizable skills that influence gameplay and dialogue. This variety encourages multiple playthroughs to explore different narrative paths and unique trait combinations, making replay value both engaging and substantial for fans of visual novels and horror alike.
- “Together, these features make Scarlet Hollow really unique within the story-rich games scene, as well as adding way more replayability than you might expect from a visual novel.”
- “The trait system adds tons of replayability, not to mention there are some unique options only available to certain trait combinations.”
- “The branching choices and the available character traits (mystical, keen eye, book smart, strength, etc.) add replay value.”
- “This can affect aspects of gameplay (conversations, perception of some events, etc.), which could technically add some replayability for those curious about other options.”
- “Nice little touch of customization with selecting a couple of skill traits for your character to help connect with the story and offer some replayability.”
- “Character customization and the explore system add replayability missing from a lot of visual novels.”
emotional
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
93%
7%
The game delivers a rich emotional experience, blending humor, heartfelt vulnerability, and spooky elements with clever, layered storytelling and well-crafted dialogue. Players praise its emotional intelligence, nuanced relationships, and the balance between warmth and tension, though some find the emotional subtleties and story pacing less engaging on a first playthrough. Overall, it offers a compelling, emotionally varied journey enhanced by beautiful artwork and thoughtful writing.
- “It's funny, clever, heartwarming, heart-wrenching, comforting, discomforting, layered, simple, interesting, and a bunch of other positive and contradictory adjectives!”
- “The game has lots of dialogue options with a wide emotional range, and many of Stella's options looked like they could take her in more stereotypical directions.”
- “Tonally it's very much in line with her past style - very tongue-in-cheek for the most part, but then swerving suddenly into the territory of heartfelt vulnerability and (of course) horror.”
- “I guess I just found the first playthrough boring story-wise, enough to not bother to play again.”
monetization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users criticize Scarlet Hollow — Episode 1 for its monetization approach, viewing it as little more than an advertisement for an e-book rather than a true game. The content is seen as lacking meaningful gameplay and quality writing, making it feel like a forced promotion rather than a standalone experience.
- “Scarlet Hollow — episode 1 is not a game, it's not even an e-book, it's an advertisement for an e-book that's been dumped on Steam masquerading as a game.”
- “But this isn't even the e-book, it's just an advertisement/the first chapter.”
- “I can't recommend books or advertisements for books to PC gamers.”
character development
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
Character development is praised for its diversity, depth, and thoughtful portrayal, with characters designed to be visually striking and full of personality. While the background design shines, some suggest that dedicating separate resources to character design could further enhance immersion. Overall, significant effort and care are evident in building compelling and relatable characters.
- “I can tell that the character development is building for a number of these individuals, and I like that a lot of time was spent there.”
- “The characters are diverse and very interesting, and portrayed with so much love and care, and the character designs are gorgeous.”
- “Environments are rich with detail and every character design pops with personality.”
- “I feel that a simple fix for this would have been to hire out the character design role, both to free up Abby's hand for the exquisite background design, and to dramatically increase the immersion.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
Users find grinding in the game extremely tedious, comparing it to slowly clicking through a novel sentence by sentence rather than reading smoothly, making the experience feel repetitive and time-consuming.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Visual novels/e-books are tedious at best. Imagine the best novel you ever read—be that Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, 2001: A Space Odyssey, or Twilight (if you have terrible taste in literature)—but then translate that to a format where the words dribble out and you have to click your mouse every time you want to read the next sentence, instead of just turning the pages.”

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Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1 is a casual role playing game with horror, mystery, thriller and comedy themes.

Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1 is available on PC, Mac OS, Windows and Linux.

Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1 was released on September 25, 2020.

Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1 was developed by Black Tabby Games.

Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1 has received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players. Most players liked Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1 for its story but disliked it for its monetization.

Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1 is a single player game.

Similar games include Scarlet Hollow, Oxenfree II: Lost Signals, Angel Wings: Endless Night, A Work of Art, Paper Cages and others.

Scarlet Hollow: Episode 1

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story

graphics

music

atmosphere

humor

gameplay

replayability

emotional

monetization

character development

grinding

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