The Dire

About

The Dire is a single player action game with a horror theme. It was developed by Piesuprawny and was released on December 8, 2023. It received positive reviews from players.

"The Dire" is a psychological horror game where you play as a popular Urbex vlogger, Dean Holt, exploring a decaying mansion with a dark and tragic past. The game features found footage-style graphics and a thrilling atmosphere, with elements of exploration and interacting with the environment. Experience multiple endings and voice activation for a more immersive experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

83%

Audience ScoreBased on 82 reviews

atmosphere18 positive mentions

stability2 negative mentions

The game features great atmosphere and sound design, effectively building tension and delivering genuine scares.
Many players appreciated the unique storytelling approach and the immersive experience, with a well-crafted environment that enhances the horror elements.
The game is considered a good value for its price, with enjoyable gameplay and multiple endings that encourage exploration.

The game suffers from unintuitive level design and clunky mechanics, which can lead to frustration during gameplay.
Several players reported issues with motion sickness due to head bobbing and a lack of basic settings, such as brightness and mouse speed adjustments.
The opening narrative is criticized for being overly long and unskippable, detracting from the initial engagement with the game.

atmosphere
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
30%
10%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its depth and immersive quality, effectively creating a mysterious and tense environment that enhances the horror experience. Many reviewers highlight the strong sound design and attention to detail, which contribute to genuine scares without relying heavily on cheap jump scares. However, some players noted issues with camera angles that detracted from their enjoyment, particularly in the latter part of the game.
- “Great atmosphere and genuine scares.”
- “The atmospheric design and attention to detail create a world that feels both mysterious and dangerous, setting the perfect stage for an unforgettable journey.”
- “The elements blended in of in-depth deep atmosphere, story lore built up as you explore is a refreshing motivation to indulge and seek out the story.”
- “The dire is another abandoned building horror exploration game that's main selling point is that it is fully content to rest on its atmosphere instead of throwing a bunch of jumpscares at you.”
- “Pretty decent game and the atmosphere is solid, however the camera was giving me a headache.”
- “The atmosphere is very well done as are a few of the scares.”
story
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
65%
12%
The game's storytelling has received mixed reviews, with some players finding the initial narrative delivery dull and unengaging, leading to early refunds. However, others appreciated the immersive atmosphere and lore that unfolds through exploration, praising the character backstories and the overall plot, despite some confusion. The blend of captivating storytelling with gameplay elements has been highlighted as a strong point, particularly in creating a creepy and engaging experience.
- “The dire is a masterfully crafted game that seamlessly blends captivating storytelling with intense gameplay, delivering an immersive experience that kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish.”
- “Great background story on all the characters through the letters placed around the mansion.”
- “The elements blended in of in-depth deep atmosphere, story lore built up as you explore is a refreshing motivation to indulge and seek out the story.”
- “If you're going to do a long-winded opening narrative info dump on the player, you need to have visuals with interesting editing and good voice acting to help sell you on the story to draw you in. Instead, it's just rambling off fake radio stories in the most bland, sleep-inducing voiceovers on a black screen with just subtitles that go on way too long and are unskippable.”
- “So boring I decided that if this is how the creators try to tell a story, the gameplay can't be any better, and I requested a refund within 5 minutes of starting.”
- “If you walk straight from the front door to the code pieces of paper/trigger for the clock ticking event and then walk straight back upstairs and trigger the phone, you basically overlap a lot of monologue and triggers. A quick-moving player might just miss out on some of the story.”
gameplay
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
37%
13%
Gameplay reviews are mixed, with some players finding the mechanics wonky and the experience too short, leading to discomfort from head bobbing. However, others praised the game's sound design and atmosphere, highlighting its ability to deliver intense moments and effective jumpscares, ultimately creating an immersive experience that combines storytelling with engaging gameplay.
- “The sound design and atmosphere were very well put together, and I loved the mix-up of gameplay in certain sections that caused me quite a good jumpscare.”
- “The game is a masterfully crafted experience that seamlessly blends captivating storytelling with intense gameplay, delivering an immersive experience that kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish.”
- “Way too short with wonky mechanics, head bob that makes you nauseous, and enough spelling and grammatical mistakes to make your English teacher quit.”
graphics
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The graphics of the game received positive feedback for their design and visual appeal, enhancing the overall experience. However, some players criticized the lack of engaging visuals during lengthy narrative segments, which detracted from the storytelling and immersion. Overall, while the visuals are appreciated, the presentation of the narrative could be improved to better captivate players.
- “I really enjoyed this game, loved the graphics, the design.”
- “For those not familiar with my reference, the visuals are nice, and the scares rely more on sounds than jumpscares (for the most part).”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Overall, users report minor bugs related to layering, but none of these issues are considered game-breaking, indicating a generally stable experience.
- “There were a few buggy moments with layering, but nothing game-breaking that I encountered.”
- “I experienced some bugs related to layering, but they didn't significantly impact my gameplay.”