Secret Neighbor
- October 24, 2019
- Hologryph
- 16h median play time
"Secret Neighbor" is a multiplayer horror game set in the "Hello Neighbor" universe. Players work together to sneak into the neighbor's house, but one player is secretly the neighbor in disguise. The neighbor's goal is to prevent the other players from finding keys and escaping, while the other players must figure out who the neighbor is and avoid being caught. Cooperation, deception, and strategy are key to success in this thrilling game of survival and intrigue.
Reviews
- The game is fun and exciting, especially when played with friends.
- The graphics and art style are appealing, creating a unique atmosphere.
- The gameplay mechanics encourage teamwork and deception, making each match feel fresh.
- The game suffers from numerous bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay.
- There is a lack of content, with only one map available, leading to repetitive gameplay.
- The matchmaking system is flawed, often resulting in unbalanced games and toxic players.
- gameplay147 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 59 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its strategic and suspenseful elements, particularly in multiplayer modes, while others criticize it for being repetitive and lacking variety. Many appreciate the unique mechanics and cooperative aspects, but note issues such as bugs, clunky controls, and balance problems between characters. Overall, while the game offers fun moments and engaging gameplay, it also requires improvements to enhance the overall experience.
“With its tense atmosphere, strategic gameplay, and the constant fear of being discovered, it provides plenty of suspense and fun.”
“The potential for hilarious moments and unexpected betrayals adds a layer of humor that complements the tension-filled gameplay.”
“Overall this game is great for longtime fans of the series and newcomers as it is really fun and has its own unique style of gameplay that differs from your traditional multiplayer horror game.”
“Absolute trash 'find the imposter' game, just milking the Hello Neighbor brand for money. Trash animations and boring gameplay.”
“However, it does have its flaws, including repetitive gameplay and clunky controls.”
“The gameplay is mostly kind of boring and not exciting at all.”
- graphics105 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with some players praising the colorful, cartoonish aesthetic that aligns well with its horror theme, while others criticize recent updates for making the visuals feel dated or inconsistent. Many users note that the game performs better on higher-end systems, and some have experienced performance issues even on capable hardware. Overall, while the graphics are generally considered appealing, there are calls for optimization and a return to previous art styles.
“Visually, 'Secret Neighbor' adopts a cartoonish aesthetic that effectively balances the game's mysterious theme with a lighthearted and accessible tone.”
“The graphics are nice, and the concept is cool.”
“The atmosphere of this game is awesome, the graphics of how the house looks create a great atmosphere with how it plays.”
“The game is graphically dated and the controls are clunky.”
“I do not know how they do it but they have made the game feel even worse than it ever has; the graphical overhaul includes mixed art styles which looks dreadful.”
“New update is extremely low-quality, unbalanced and makes the artstyle even more of a mess than it already had been.”
- humor55 mentions
- 98 % positive mentions
- -4 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised, particularly when played with friends, as it fosters hilarious moments and unexpected betrayals that enhance the gameplay experience. Many players highlight the fun of proximity chat and the suspense of identifying the neighbor, which leads to entertaining interactions. However, some users note that the humor may not resonate as well in solo play or with random players, and there are mixed opinions on the game's overall comedic value.
“The potential for hilarious moments and unexpected betrayals adds a layer of humor that complements the tension-filled gameplay.”
“Really funny with friends due to the proximity chat and the nature of the game.”
“This game is amazing, already in two days I've played 7.8 hours of this game, I adore the level editor because I love being creative and I'm still working on the level called 'Neighbor's Library'. I also love playing the matches because my brother always says I'm suspicious even when I'm not the neighbor, and it's so funny every time trying to hold in a laugh.”
“It's not funny.”
“The jokes fall flat and feel forced.”
“I expected more clever humor, but it just didn't deliver.”
- stability51 mentions
- 6 % positive mentions
- 2 % neutral mentions
- 92 % negative mentions
The game's stability is a significant concern among users, with many reporting frequent bugs, glitches, and crashes that detract from the overall experience. While some players find the game enjoyable despite these issues, the prevalence of technical problems, including loading freezes and gameplay interruptions, has led to frustration and calls for better updates and fixes. Overall, the game's stability is described as poor, with a notable presence of hackers and a lack of effective support from the developers.
“Game runs awesomely. I have a 1050 RTX, an 8000 eight-core processor, and 8 GB of RAM, and it runs great on all medium settings. Anything above that can run 200 FPS like nothing.”
“No glitches or bugs, and the graphics are good. It's fun with friends.”
“Fixed the issue with a new computer; it runs great.”
“The game was very buggy, to the point I couldn't finish the tutorial because key cards would either not spawn or spawn in locations I couldn't access.”
“Updates are scarce and nearly nonexistent, the game is repetitive, there is very little content, glitches are everywhere, hackers galore, and you can do nothing against toxic players.”
“This game became more buggy than it used to be and crashes mid-game and sometimes on game startup.”
- story42 mentions
- 10 % positive mentions
- 76 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The game's story is minimal and often described as lacking depth, with some players noting it primarily serves as a backdrop for gameplay rather than a central focus. While there are elements connecting it to the "Hello Neighbor" universe, many reviews indicate that the narrative is not robust, and the game is more about the multiplayer experience and strategic gameplay than a compelling story. Overall, players seem to appreciate the gameplay mechanics but find the story aspect underwhelming.
“This game is the most fun game I've played so far, the graphics and animations are amazing and the gameplay is really fun, which leads to the very smart storyline of this game. This means this game should be recommended to other Steam users.”
“The tinyBuild 'Neighbor' lore has got huge amounts of story and secrets to offer.”
“It is my favorite game; the plot, the roles, the quests, the tickets, the money, the leaderboards, the people, everything about it is amazing and I love to play it.”
“There is also some story to help place this in the Hello Neighbor universe, but it is really just a little tiny bit of story.”
“Its not co-op story for playing with friends; it's a PvP game. If you think to buy it to play the story with friends, think again.”
“Sort of lacks backstory unlike the single-player; however, it is an excellent game to explore with friends and use your brain to strategically get all of the keys to escape the neighbor's grasp.”
- optimization26 mentions
- 12 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 46 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization has received significant criticism, with many players experiencing poor performance even on low settings, particularly on older hardware. While some users noted improvements following updates, the consensus is that the game still requires substantial optimization work to enhance playability and frame rates. Many players expressed frustration over the game's performance issues, which detracted from their overall enjoyment.
“I bought this game because of the YouTube group ItsFunneh and the Krew because it looked really fun. At first, my computer couldn't handle the game even on the lowest graphics settings, but since they've done a performance update, my computer can handle it now and it's a lot of fun.”
“However, as a random or a loner, the game is still a lot of fun and runs smoothly, so no problems. The voice chat is funny from other people, and you can communicate with everyone you run into with mics, so it is a lot of fun. The suspense of who's the neighbor is really enjoyable, making it a great game to play when you're bored or taking a break from more annoying or loud games.”
“The game also has some optimization and connection issues, which are being addressed (as per the dev's Twitter).”
“Also the performance is pretty bad, but this is to be expected with Unity. For some reason, my laptop can run UE4 games just fine, but with Unity, my FPS drops significantly. I've heard this is because UE4 is coded to have auto optimization, but Unity doesn't, so you really have to work hard to look into ways to optimize your game. This is the most important part of a game; if players can't run it, no one's going to play it. I would optimize Unity games for hardware that's at least 5 years old, because every 5 years some new tech is relevant and wants me to buy a new laptop/PC. Here's my specs: i5-8300H CPU, Intel Graphics 630 GPU, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050.”
“Great game and concept which only gets exponentially better with friends; however, it's currently poorly optimized, and on my lower-end computer, I have troubles running it on the lowest settings.”
“Optimization is questionable, and it definitely needs a lot of work in that aspect.”
- monetization16 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has drawn significant criticism, with many players labeling it a cash grab due to its high initial price and numerous microtransactions. Users express frustration over the difficulty of earning in-game currency through regular play, suggesting that the game would benefit from a free-to-play model to attract a larger player base. Overall, the monetization approach is seen as exploitative, detracting from the game's enjoyment and leading to a negative perception among players.
“I like the idea of the item shop but not the microtransactions.”
“This game would've kept its player base if it stayed as a free game, plus, there's microtransactions too.”
“Fun stuff, the in-game purchases are frustrating though; it's next to impossible to get enough coins to buy things just by playing the game.”
“Trash game with extremely high prices for everything and is filled with cancerous microtransactions.”
“Created by a cash grabbing company... why couldn't this be on the main 'Hello Neighbor' game?”
“The worst part is that this game is $20 on Steam, and it has more in-app purchases to come.”
- replayability14 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is a mixed bag; while some players find it infinitely replayable and enjoyable with friends due to its core concept and variety, others criticize it for lacking significant changes between rounds and experiencing technical issues that hinder the overall experience. Despite the presence of skins and addictive gameplay, many feel that the limited map variety and gameplay balance detract from long-term replay value.
“✅ infinitely replayable”
“The game has some replay value, especially if you're playing with friends.”
“This variety is a testament to the game's replayability, providing an incentive for players to return for more rounds of deception and strategy.”
“However, there's not a lot of replayability since every round only changes the placement of the keys, and that's pretty much it...”
“However, in terms of replayability, it is lacking.”
“Game crashes 70% of the time loading a game, bugs galore, OP neighbor, no balanced gameplay, muting doesn't work 80% of the time, horrible lag, & no replay value.”
- music12 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the eerie sound design that enhances the creepy atmosphere, others criticize the repetitive soundtrack and the absence of previously effective creepy music in the latest version. Many users express a desire for the developers to restore the old, chilling tracks to improve the overall gameplay experience. Overall, the music is seen as a strong point when it contributes to the horror elements, but its inconsistency detracts from the game's potential.
“The sound design is pretty good, with eerie music and sounds that add to the creepy atmosphere.”
“If you like multiplayer and horror games (not so horror but the music gives you chills) this game is perfect!”
“This game is great from the music, gameplay, animations, mechanics, and more!”
“This game still needs a lot of work; the soundtrack keeps repeating itself and it quickly gets annoying.”
“Now when I play the newest version, there is no creepy music.”
“I want developers to get back this music because I think gameplay would be scarier and more interesting.”
- grinding10 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is generally viewed as excessive, with many players suggesting that it requires an inordinate amount of time, likening it to needing a "second life" to complete. While some find it manageable if not aiming for 100% completion, the overall sentiment leans towards it being a tedious experience.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“On a side note, as much as I love this game, there are some changes like the key card doors that are a downside and feel more tedious to get around.”
- atmosphere7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is characterized by a tense and suspenseful environment, enhanced by effective sound design and eerie music that contribute to a sense of fear and mistrust. Players appreciate the combination of strategic gameplay and engaging graphics, which create a captivating and immersive experience, especially when enjoyed with friends. Overall, the atmosphere balances light-hearted horror humor with moments of genuine tension.
“With its tense atmosphere, strategic gameplay, and the constant fear of being discovered, it provides plenty of suspense and fun.”
“The sound design is pretty good, with eerie music and sounds that add to the creepy atmosphere.”
“The game's genius lies in its simplicity, creating an atmosphere of constant tension and mistrust as players navigate through the neighbor's house, solving puzzles, and attempting to reveal the secret identity.”
“The atmosphere of gameplay is filled with screaming Russian 6-year-olds in voice chat; I wish they could put in an actual chat system.”
- emotional5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is described as well-made and wholesome, providing a fun and emotionally engaging experience, despite some technical issues. Players appreciate its heartwarming qualities and the intensity it brings, likening it to a PG-13 version of "Dead by Daylight." Overall, it evokes positive emotions, making it enjoyable for those seeking a lighter gaming experience.
“Well made and wholesome.”
“It's pretty good and a PG-13 version of Dead by Daylight. It was fun and actually kind of intense, but please fix the bugs because I almost won, but because of the server and bugs I lost. It's still a heartwarming game for you that are raging in CS:GO. Have fun!”
“Because I’m probably the only individual on earth who can be vilified to this level without taking personal insult and without being emotionally affected.”
- character development1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Character development is highlighted by charming designs that enhance the overall experience, while the environments, despite their ominous undertones, maintain a playful and engaging atmosphere that complements the characters.
“The character designs are charming, and the environments, though filled with ominous undertones, retain a playful and engaging quality.”