The Darkest Tales

About

"The Darkest Tales" is a single-player Horror Hack and Slash game that features stunning storyline, delightful game mechanics, and ingenious graphics. Explore fairytale landscapes while confronting life's difficult questions alongside familiar characters. This complex and compelling adventure promises to challenge and thrill, delivering an unforgettable gaming experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

69%

Audience ScoreBased on 89 reviews

story29 positive mentions

stability4 negative mentions

The game features beautiful visuals and a unique dark twist on classic fairy tales, creating an engaging atmosphere.
The voice acting is well done, particularly the character of Teddy, who adds charm and humor to the experience.
The gameplay includes fun mechanics and a variety of weapons, allowing for different playstyles and skill progression.

The game suffers from numerous bugs, including game-breaking issues that can corrupt save files and hinder progress.
Combat mechanics are frustrating, with unresponsive controls, poor hit detection, and a lack of fluidity that detracts from the overall experience.
Level design is often linear and confusing, lacking a map, which can lead to unnecessary backtracking and frustration during exploration.

story
49 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
59%
35%
6%
The story of the game is praised for its imaginative and dark twist on classic fairy tales, featuring a charming main character—a grumpy teddy bear—who embarks on a unique adventure. While some players found the narrative engaging and complemented by excellent voice acting, others noted issues with pacing and an oversimplified ending. Overall, the story is considered a strong aspect of the game, appealing to those who enjoy atmospheric storytelling with a blend of horror and whimsy.
- “This game is visually beautiful and the story is interesting; I love that this game took a darker take on the fairy tales we know and love.”
- “The story is imaginative with a dark, gory twist to all the fairy tales, and some fairy tale characters overlap with other characters' worlds.”
- “I love how Teddy and the luminous bug are bantering all the time, showing that there is more that happened before and makes me interested in the game to see what happened that Teddy is so grumpy and how the story is going to unfold.”
- “And the final ending... it just felt like the story got cut off.”
- “The darkest tale is a linear game, so is its story; nothing complicated and it's all been told by cut scenes.”
- “Overall it's pretty decent and really unique by the theme itself, but it may not be that interesting in terms of storytelling.”
gameplay
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
57%
11%
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it enjoyable and easy to learn, while others criticize the mechanics as lacking polish and riddled with bugs. Many noted that the game prioritizes concept and visuals over refined gameplay, leading to frustrating controls and uninteresting enemy encounters. Despite these issues, the charming characters and engaging story have kept some players invested in the experience.
- “Other than fun and smooth gameplay, the game is also just downright gorgeous.”
- “Gameplay and controls are easy (recommend using controller) and checkpoints are plentiful so that you are not always backtracking if you fail.”
- “Very nice platformer with interesting game story, simple battle mechanics, and the ability to improve your character using a skill tree and items.”
- “The gameplay... well honestly it could have needed more testing, sometimes it's good, sometimes the controls were annoying, sometimes I shut it down abruptly, especially with some non-boss enemies.”
- “Sad that such a great idea of a game is ruined by bad gameplay and design decisions.”
- “The enemies are uninteresting, the mechanical aspects lackluster, and the absence of a horizontal dodge button makes evading enemies possible only by running away from them or, where space is available, jumping over them.”
graphics
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
43%
11%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beautiful art style, attention to detail, and effective integration with the game's theme, creating a fairy tale-like atmosphere. Many reviewers noted the impressive lighting and background designs, although some experienced minor graphical issues that affected gameplay. Overall, the visuals are considered a standout feature, enhancing the overall experience despite some technical limitations.
- “Graphics are awesome and there is a lot of attention to detail, especially with lighting and backgrounds; they look like giant works of fairy tale art, and sometimes notable things in the backgrounds just pop out when you pay attention.”
- “The gloomy world with the characters of fairy tales is really mesmerizing, with beautiful visuals.”
- “It feels like a game that was designed with concept and visuals first, mechanics second.”
- “Graphics are sketchy on high, but that could be because of my rig.”
- “There were several graphic anomalies, making it so enemies could not be seen during the Red Riding Hood fight; I had to turn settings down.”
music
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its atmospheric quality and integration with the overall design, while others find it lacking or even distracting, opting to turn it off in favor of other music. Overall, many appreciate the soundtrack's ability to enhance the gaming experience, particularly during key moments like boss battles.
- “They're also very moody thanks to the superb sound design and accompanying soundtrack.”
- “Reinforced by that epic final boss music, it was just super epic.”
- “The music is super, very atmospheric; the voice acting is also on top.”
- “The sound effects are too harsh, and the music is pretty bad for me.”
- “This is the first game that I decided to turn the game music off and listen to Spotify instead.”
- “The music, graphics, animation, and the whole art design and aesthetic are great.”
atmosphere
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
9%
27%
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its dark and twisted take on fairy tales, combining eerie visuals with excellent music and voice acting. Reviewers appreciate the oppressive and immersive environment, which enhances the storytelling and adds depth to the gameplay experience. Overall, the atmosphere is described as both captivating and addictive, making it a standout feature for fans of the genre.
- “The music is superb, very atmospheric, and the voice acting is also top-notch.”
- “I'd say that the atmosphere feels closer to the original fairy tales, dark and gloomy.”
- “Creepy atmosphere is amazing; it's something I was hoping to see, and it makes me very happy to see that the game is actually dark and twisted.”
- “At first, it seems that this is just a game about fairy tales, and then you see a terrible, bloody atmosphere, and you feel it.”
- “I'd say that the atmosphere feels closer to the original fairy tales: dark and gloomy.”
- “I really love games in this genre; the gloomy surroundings and oppressive atmosphere are what you need!”
optimization
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
20%
40%
Overall, the game's optimization is generally well-received, with most players experiencing stable performance and high framerates, though some report occasional stuttering, particularly in specific areas. While one user noted a significant drop in framerate during a boss fight, others experienced no crashes, indicating a solid optimization overall, albeit with some inconsistencies for those playing below recommended specs.
- “Lastly, performance is good, with a steady 75 fps framerate and very few drops (although I did dip into the 30s during the final boss).”
- “I also experienced 0 crashes, so it's safe to say it's a well-optimized game.”
- “Performance issues: this game has really bad stuttering in certain parts.”
- “I'm not sure if it's my PC or not since I will admit that I am playing below the recommended specs (from what I understand at least; I'm not a PC expert), but the rest of the game ran perfectly fine, so I don't see how the stuttering parts couldn't run like the rest.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game currently suffers from significant stability issues, with users reporting frequent bugs that detract from the overall experience. While some believe that the developers may resolve these issues with time, many agree that the game requires further polishing to enhance its playability.
- “The game seems buggy a lot.”
- “It's also really buggy at the moment, but give the devs some time and the bugs should be resolved.”
- “Still need some polishing; quite buggy at times, but overall enjoyable.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by the great voice acting, particularly the comedic portrayal of the bear, which many players found amusing.
- “The voice acting is great, and the bear is hilarious.”
- “I thought the bear's voice was funny.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development is highlighted through a diverse array of creatively designed enemies and bosses, ranging from whimsical to terrifying, which enhances the overall experience. The memorable character designs have sparked interest in further exploration, such as an art book dedicated to them.
- “There's a large variety of enemies and bosses to fight, which range from silly to outright terrifying, all of which have creative and memorable character designs.”
- “Character designs are quite interesting and make me want to see an art book on them.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players find that while grinding by fighting monsters can become repetitive and tedious, it is ultimately optional, allowing for a more flexible gameplay experience.
- “Fighting monsters can become repetitive and tedious, but it's worth noting that battling them is optional.”
- “The grinding aspect feels like a chore rather than an engaging part of the game.”
- “Leveling up requires an excessive amount of grinding, which can quickly lead to burnout.”