The Backrooms

About

"The Backrooms" is a survival horror game that takes place in an endless maze of office complex hallways and rooms. As a lone player, you must navigate through unique rooms while avoiding terrifying creatures. Your camcorder is your only tool to document the horrors you encounter, with the hope that someone else may find your recordings and learn from your experience. The game draws on common childhood fears to create a truly unsettling atmosphere.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

71%

Audience ScoreBased on 104 reviews

graphics4 positive mentions

stability12 negative mentions

The game has a fantastic atmosphere with excellent audio and lighting that enhances the tension and immersion.
It features interesting level design and clever puzzles, showcasing potential for a unique take on the Backrooms lore.
Despite being short, the game is visually appealing and offers a fun experience for those who enjoy horror and liminal spaces.

The game suffers from numerous bugs and glitches, including game-breaking issues that hinder progress and immersion.
There are too many aggressive monsters that detract from the frightening atmosphere, making exploration feel tedious.
The game is very short, with many players reporting they completed it in under 30 minutes, leading to a lack of content.

graphics
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
61%
17%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the aesthetic style, environment design, and attention to detail, while others criticize the presence of glitchy visuals, repetitive assets, and overall poor performance. Despite some positive aspects, many find the graphics to be a significant letdown, particularly in terms of level design and optimization.
- “I love the graphics, the style, the hidden rooms, and the walking animation!”
- “The developers really nailed the aesthetics in this game.”
- “The environment and graphics look really good.”
- “The graphics are a major letdown.”
- “With its repetitive assets, glitchy graphics, lazy level design, and poor performance, it's difficult to find any redeeming qualities.”
- “Glitchy graphics”
stability
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
86%
The game's stability is severely lacking, with frequent frame rate drops, flickering textures, and numerous game-breaking glitches that hinder progress. Despite being in early access, the overwhelming presence of these issues makes it difficult to recommend the game to potential buyers.
- “Runs great.”
- “Runs great.”
- “Frame rates drop constantly, textures flicker in and out, and glitches are rampant.”
- “I constantly ran into game-breaking glitches, making it impossible to move further in the game.”
- “It's early access, but at this point, there are too many game-breaking glitches to suggest that you spend your money.”
story
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
50%
21%
The game presents a fresh take on the backrooms lore, incorporating a storyline that enhances the experience with objectives and elements that evoke childhood fears. While the visuals and voice acting are praised, some players feel that glitches detract from their immersion in the narrative. Overall, the story is seen as a promising aspect that could elevate the game's unique vision.
- “Because I like walking around the backrooms, but if I have some objectives and a storyline, imagine a backroom that has the ability to scare you with elements of your childhood or stuff like that; it can really turn this game into a unique vision of the backrooms.”
- “On the positive side: it is visually attractive, has an interesting presentation of the story, the voice acting is solid, and it adheres well enough to the creepypasta source material.”
- “Fresh take on the backrooms lore with the research lab, the man-made portal, and not just another story of someone noclipping through a wall into the backrooms.”
- “I tried so hard to avoid the glitches because I was really invested in the story, but the game did everything to prevent that.”
- “There is no story.”
- “The game offers a fresh take on the backrooms lore with the research lab and the man-made portal, but it feels like just another story of someone noclipping through a wall into the backrooms.”
atmosphere
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
The game's atmosphere is praised for its detailed audio and lighting, which effectively build tension and create a creepy environment. However, some players feel that the aggressive monster encounters detract from the overall frightening experience, as they often find themselves fleeing rather than engaging with the atmosphere. While the level design is noted as interesting, many reviewers also mention that the game's brief runtime limits the lasting impact of its atmospheric elements.
- “The atmosphere felt great due to the details and sound, followed by a rush to escape.”
- “Fantastic atmosphere, excellent audio and lighting work really sucks you into the game and helps build tension.”
- “Creepy atmosphere and lighting.”
- “Too many monsters that are way too aggressive; you're just running away all the time, and that takes away the frightening atmosphere.”
- “It had a good runtime and wasn't padded out; I was able to beat the game before the gameplay and atmosphere really wore off.”
- “- Creepy atmosphere and lighting.”
gameplay
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
67%
17%
The gameplay is generally well-received, noted for its concise runtime that avoids unnecessary padding, allowing players to complete the game before the experience becomes stale. Many users find it enjoyable for a short session, particularly appreciating its value for the price, while expressing hope for future expansions to enhance gameplay longevity.
- “If you want a fun half hour of gameplay, this current vertical slice is a great pick - especially for the asking price.”
- “It had a good runtime and wasn't padded out; I was able to beat the game before the gameplay and atmosphere really wore off.”
- “Hopefully this new expansion will bring a lot more gameplay life.”
optimization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
38%
38%
The game suffers from significant optimization issues, struggling to run smoothly even on low settings despite hardware that exceeds recommended specifications. Reviewers highlight persistent performance problems, including glitchy graphics and repetitive assets, which detract from the overall experience.
- “The performance issues are a significant problem.”
- “With its repetitive assets, glitchy graphics, lazy level design, and poor performance, it's difficult to find any redeeming qualities.”
- “Performance issues”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game excessively time-consuming, often requiring a significant investment of time that can lead to tedium and a decrease in overall tension and excitement after a short period of gameplay.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “That in itself really brings the tension down after about 5 minutes of gameplay, and avoiding the monsters becomes tedious.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is perceived as lacking quality, with users finding it to be both ineffective and unamusing. Overall, the comedic elements fail to resonate, leading to a negative reception.
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy of the game is widely criticized as a blatant cash grab, with multiple users strongly advising others to avoid it entirely.
- “This is a cash grab, avoid at all costs.”