The Bathhouse | 地獄銭湯 Restored Edition
- August 9, 2024
- Chilla's Art
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam"The Bathhouse | 地獄銭湯 Restored Edition" is a horror game where you work at a bathhouse with enhanced graphics, new storyline, additional game mechanics, new characters, and updated patron contents. The game features auto-save, multiple endings, and improved controls. To resolve any technical issues, try updating drivers, lowering graphics settings, updating Windows OS, checking antivirus software, or deleting and recreating save data.
Reviews
- The Restored Edition offers a significantly improved story and gameplay experience compared to the original, with a cohesive narrative and engaging character interactions.
- The game features stunning graphics and a well-crafted atmosphere that enhances the horror experience, making it one of Chilla's Art's best titles to date.
- Multiple endings and a variety of gameplay mechanics provide replay value, with players enjoying the mix of horror and humor throughout the game.
- The game suffers from performance issues, including crashes and stuttering, which can disrupt gameplay and lead to frustration.
- Some players found the gameplay repetitive, particularly during the bathhouse management tasks, which could detract from the overall experience.
- There are concerns about certain cultural representations and character designs that may be perceived as offensive or poorly executed.
- story76 mentions
- 46 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The story in this game has been praised for its cohesiveness and depth, with many players appreciating the character development and multiple endings that enhance the overall experience. While some found the pacing slow and certain elements predictable, the improved graphics and engaging atmosphere contributed to a more immersive narrative. Overall, the storytelling is seen as a significant upgrade from the original, making it a compelling and entertaining experience for players.
“The atmosphere, storytelling, environments/details are incredibly well done and the gameplay is engaging/fun which fits the theme of the game really well.”
“The storytelling, atmosphere, and graphics are fantastic and the way it gets you to lower your guard by engrossing you in keeping up with the bathhouse to the point you do not see the scares coming is very clever.”
“Amazing restoration of the original bathhouse, this version gave the game so much more life, characters looked flawless, story line great, each ending was well done.”
“The game obviously had a ton of bugs and the story was difficult to follow.”
“The story was hard to follow or just didn't even have any, the scares were really lame, and the gameplay wasn't super fun or anything.”
“Not only did the game crash 3 times within an hour and a bit -- the story line was terrible to follow with no likable characters.”
- graphics40 mentions
- 28 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The graphics in this game have received widespread praise for their significant improvement over previous titles in the Chilla's Art series, showcasing high-quality visuals and a haunting atmosphere that enhances the storytelling. However, some players have reported performance issues, including lag and frame drops, particularly on lower-end PCs, leading to a desire for more customizable graphical settings. Overall, while the visuals are impressive, they come with higher system requirements that may affect gameplay for some users.
“The storytelling, atmosphere, and graphics are fantastic, and the way it gets you to lower your guard by engrossing you in keeping up with the bathhouse to the point you do not see the scares coming is very clever.”
“This is quite possibly the best Chilla’s Art game to date: it’s leaps and bounds ahead of its predecessors, both graphically and in gameplay quality.”
“Great graphics, great atmosphere, and a good story.”
“I have a good PC and this game was lagging and dropping frames the entire time even on the lowest graphics setting.”
“I had to lower my resolution and graphics settings (playing on an RTX 2050 laptop), and was able to run it at around 30 to 40 fps, though it sometimes dropped to 25 fps during particularly demanding scenes.”
“However, more to devs... there is one thing that starts to frighten me and it's that the recommended PC for graphics became RTX 2080.”
- gameplay34 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 59 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with many praising its engaging mechanics, interactive environments, and the balance between horror and fun elements. While some players enjoyed the expanded gameplay features and the unique bathhouse management tasks, others found it repetitive or lacking in depth. Overall, the game is noted for its significant improvements in gameplay quality compared to previous titles, making it a standout experience for fans of the genre.
“Surprisingly enough, the gameplay was engaging just as much as the horror aspect.”
“The atmosphere, storytelling, environments, and details are incredibly well done, and the gameplay is engaging and fun, which fits the theme of the game really well.”
“A Chilla's Art game with both good scares and good gameplay, probably their best game so far.”
“While the gameplay focuses on exploration and puzzle-solving, it can feel repetitive and short for some.”
“The story was hard to follow or just didn't even have any, the scares were really lame, and the gameplay wasn't super fun or anything.”
“A lot of the gameplay consists of doing bathhouse tasks which some people might not like, but I think interacting with the various weird customers was a good part of the game and built up a strange atmosphere.”
- atmosphere33 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 24 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The atmosphere in the game is widely praised for its immersive and unsettling qualities, effectively blending psychological horror with engaging storytelling and detailed environments. Reviewers highlight the clever use of tension and unexpected scares, alongside a unique cultural backdrop that enhances the overall experience. Many agree that the game's atmosphere is its standout feature, making it a compelling choice for fans of slow-burn horror.
“The atmosphere, storytelling, environments/details are incredibly well done and the gameplay is engaging/fun which fits the theme of the game really well.”
“The storytelling, atmosphere, and graphics are fantastic and the way it gets you to lower your guard by engrossing you in keeping up with the bathhouse to the point you do not see the scares coming is very clever.”
“The atmosphere was amazing and I really found the story interesting; it's so exciting to see such a talented developer honing their craft even more with this game!”
“I missed a lot of the spookiness and the atmosphere from the other games.”
“There are a few decent-enough jumpscares, but it’s the tense atmosphere that really does this game justice: the moments of uncertainty, of creeping dread when you stare into the lifeless eyes of a customer who…just doesn’t seem to be all there anymore.”
“The story and gameplay are cohesive, the atmosphere unsettling, and the patrons leave you feeling as though you had an actual human interaction with a few paranormal exceptions.”
- optimization18 mentions
- 22 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 28 % negative mentions
The optimization of the game has received mixed feedback, with several users reporting significant performance issues such as stuttering, crashes, and softlocking, particularly during critical gameplay moments. While some players noted that lowering graphics settings helped mitigate these problems, others expressed frustration with the game's instability and the need for frequent restarts. Overall, there is a consensus that the game requires further optimization to enhance the player experience.
“I haven't run into any major performance issues or crashes so far.”
“The game is very unsettling as well as funny at times and relaxing (some pretty decent scares in there too and keeps the Chilla's feel.) Really well optimized also and a coherent story.”
“Small optimization issues on launch aside, this is one of my favourite games from Chilla's Art and I highly recommend it.”
“Performance gets stuttering at some points, but my main issue was the amount of crashing and softlocking that was happening during the final day, such as characters standing in place instead of moving, random crashes even on the main menu itself at times, and crashing at the target practice, which means you need to restart that entire day all over again. This made it a really tedious experience, which I had to do about five times now as I really wanted to give the game a chance, but since it kept doing it, I'm unable to finish that day now.”
“As much as I want to recommend this game, there is a huge lack of optimization.”
“PC optimization still needs improvement.”
- humor8 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as a well-executed blend of funny moments and unsettling atmosphere, with highlights including a hilarious dubstep fighting scene and clever references, such as to Resident Evil. Players appreciate the balance of humor with tension, noting that comedic elements are effectively timed to provide relief amidst the game's scares and chaotic moments. Overall, the humor contributes positively to the engaging gameplay and coherent story.
“The endings were brutal, amazing, sweet, and funny.”
“Also, the Resident Evil reference was hilarious and executed flawlessly!”
“The pacing is also perfect: everything starts out with an eerie calmness and slowly descends into chaotic tense insanity with the occasional humorous episode.”
- music5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received high praise for its amazing soundtrack, which enhances the atmosphere and complements the multiple endings. Players particularly highlight the beauty of the ending song, noting that the integration of various tracks adds to the overall experience.
“Without any spoilers, I love how the multiple endings are now tied in with one another, and being treated to multiple songs is fantastic!”
“The ending music was also very beautiful.”
“The best part of this game is probably the atmosphere and soundtrack; very well done.”
“That ending song though.”
“The best part of this game is probably the atmosphere/soundtrack, very well done.”
- grinding5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 80 % negative mentions
Players have noted that grinding in the game can be tedious, with repetitive tasks leading to boredom, especially when attempting to achieve 100% completion. Additionally, technical issues such as crashes and softlocks during critical gameplay moments exacerbate the grind, making it feel even more frustrating and time-consuming. However, some players appreciate the reduced difficulty of puzzles, which may alleviate some of the grind's tedium.
“The repetitive tasks start to feel a bit tedious and make me feel bored.”
“This is one of the better Chilla's Art games - if you want to 100% complete it, it's kind of tedious.”
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- stability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability has been criticized for being buggy, with issues such as stuttering, frame rate drops, and freezing during key moments, which detracts from immersion. While these problems are not deemed game-breaking, they significantly impact the overall experience, suggesting that the developers may be struggling to improve upon previous iterations.
“It's been fairly buggy in my experience, but not game-breaking so.”
“The game glitches horribly.”
“I kind of get the sense that Chilla is over-compensating for how buggy the previous version of this game was.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players highlight the game as one of Chilla Art's best offerings, noting its completeness and significant replay value, which encourages multiple playthroughs.
“One of Chilla's Art's best and most complete games, with high replay value.”
“The variety of choices and outcomes makes each playthrough feel fresh and exciting.”
“I love how the game encourages multiple runs to uncover all the secrets and storylines.”
