The Dire
- December 8, 2023
- Piesuprawny
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io Store"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.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Great atmosphere and sound design that effectively builds tension and horror.
- The game offers a unique experience with multiple endings and a captivating story.
- Well worth the price, especially for fans of horror games, with genuine scares and a solid layout.
- Numerous bugs and issues, including a confusing interact function and lack of basic settings.
- The flashlight is overly bright, making it difficult to see and causing discomfort.
- Some players experienced motion sickness due to head bob and camera mechanics, along with spelling errors in the text.
- atmosphere16 mentions
- 56 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its depth and ability to create genuine scares without relying heavily on jump scares. Reviewers highlight the effective sound design and attention to detail, which contribute to a mysterious and immersive environment that enhances the horror experience. While some noted minor issues, such as camera discomfort and a confusing plot, the overall consensus is that the atmospheric elements significantly elevate the gameplay.
“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.”
“I was impressed with the use of atmosphere in creating the horror.”
- story14 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the game receives mixed reviews, with some players criticizing the lengthy and unengaging opening narrative that lacks visual appeal, while others appreciate the immersive atmosphere and lore that unfolds through exploration. Many find the character backstories and plot intriguing, despite some confusion, and highlight the effective integration of storytelling with gameplay elements. Overall, the narrative is seen as a strong point for those who enjoy horror and exploration, though it may not resonate with all players.
“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 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.”
“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 the story and 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 to 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.”
- gameplay4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
Gameplay reviews are mixed, with some players finding it too short and plagued by awkward mechanics, such as a disorienting head bob. However, others praised the game's ability to create tension through effective sound design and atmospheric elements, alongside a well-crafted narrative that enhances the overall experience.
“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.”
- graphics3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game received mixed feedback; while some players appreciated the visual design and found it enjoyable, others criticized the lack of engaging visuals during lengthy narrative segments, which detracted from the overall experience. The reliance on sound for scares was noted, suggesting that the graphics were not the primary source of tension.
“I really enjoyed this game; I loved the graphics and the design.”
“The visuals are nice, and the scares rely more on sounds than jumpscares (for the most part).”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Overall, users report minor bugs related to layering, but these issues are not significant enough to disrupt gameplay.
“There were a few buggy moments with layering, but nothing game-breaking that I encountered.”
“The game crashes frequently, making it hard to enjoy the experience.”
“I experienced several glitches that disrupted gameplay, which was quite frustrating.”
