Shadow of Pharos

About

Shadow of Pharos is a single player action game with horror and mystery themes. It was developed by Team Gaivot and was released on July 19, 2024. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Shadow of Pharos is a short first-person horror game. The game aims to be a fully immersive experience and has no UI by default. To enable accessibility options and general settings, input the following command using the keyboard arrow keys or the controller D-Pad: left, right, left, right, down, down The menu will then be accessible by pressing ESC on the keyboard or Back/Share on a controller…

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

70%

Audience ScoreBased on 47 reviews

atmosphere3 positive mentions

graphics3 negative mentions

The game has a very strong and creepy atmosphere with effective sound design that enhances the horror experience.
The pixel art aesthetic combined with minimalism and darkness creates a unique and immersive ambiance.
The game features intriguing puzzles and hidden secrets that encourage multiple playthroughs and deep exploration.

Lack of clear guidance and in-game hints makes progress confusing, often requiring external walkthroughs to reach the true ending.
The gameplay involves repetitive loops which can become tedious and frustrating due to little indication of progress.
The game sometimes crashes and its unintuitive design, including odd mechanics like inputting codes for settings, can detract from player enjoyment.

graphics
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
17%
50%
The graphics feature a charming pixel art and low-poly aesthetic that suits the game's style, though some scenes can be overly dark. The minimalist, blocky visuals contribute to the atmosphere while maintaining a distinctive, appealing look.
- “Inspiration, but with a fun little pixel art aesthetic.”
- “The sound design is great, and the low-poly graphics look really good and have a lot of charm.”
- “I'm usually a fan of this sort of aesthetic, but there were some scenes that were just too dark.”
- “Graphics are very blocky and minimalist.”
- “You wander around a house with a pixellated art style, going through each loop as you slowly unravel the story.”
atmosphere
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for being creepy, tense, and effectively enhancing the horror experience. Its constantly shifting vibe keeps players engaged and contributes significantly to the overall immersive feeling. Many users find the atmosphere a standout feature that elevates the gameplay despite some points of confusion.
- “Very creepy and unsettling, the atmosphere constantly changing to suit the game was cool.”
- “The atmosphere in this game is amazing and it really sells the horror aspect of it.”
- “The way to progress the game feels very obtuse at points and it can feel like you are totally stuck, but the atmosphere can feel very tense and makes me excited to see the full product.”
story
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
The story in this game is dark and captivating, gradually unraveling as you explore a pixellated house through repeated loops. While some notes provide pieces of the narrative, the overall story can feel fragmented and less cohesive.
- “The story is really dark and captivating too.”
- “Shadow of Pharos is one of those horror walking sims where the story mainly takes place at your home.”
- “There's a couple of notes to be found, but no cohesive story can be made from them.”
- “Shadow of Pharos is one of those horror walking simulators where the story mainly takes place at your home.”
- “You wander around a house with a pixelated art style, going through each loop as you slowly unravel the story.”
gameplay
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The gameplay is centered around a looping mechanic, which some users find repetitive and believe works best only in the original implementation. While unique, this mechanic often adds to the game's difficulty but may feel overly repetitive or uninspired in other versions.
music
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The music, especially towards the end, was unexpected yet pleasantly enjoyable.
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game demonstrates strong stability with no glitches or crashes experienced by the reviewer, despite some others reporting issues. Overall, it runs smoothly for most users.
- “Although I've seen other people complain of crashes in their reviews, I personally experienced no glitches at all.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the game lacks replayability, noting the absence of incentives like achievements, trading cards, or other features that encourage multiple playthroughs.
- “Lastly, there's one achievement (which doesn't count on your profile), no trading cards, and no replayability.”