The Final Take

About

Relive dark footage recorded from the perspective of multiple characters in this unique first person horror.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

52%

Audience ScoreBased on 232 reviews

story6 positive mentions

music3 negative mentions

The game effectively captures the '80s/90s horror flick style with its VHS visual effects and sound design.
It's a short game that doesn't overstay its welcome, making it suitable for players looking for a quick horror experience.
The atmosphere is creepy and engaging, providing moments of tension and surprise.

The gameplay is repetitive and feels like a Slender Man clone, primarily involving collecting items while being chased.
The VHS filter and dark environments make it difficult to see, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
Voice acting is often criticized as poor, detracting from the overall immersion and quality of the game.

story
88 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
7%
89%
5%
The game's story is generally criticized for being weak, confusing, and lacking depth, with many reviewers noting that it feels incomplete and borrows heavily from classic horror tropes without adding anything new. While the initial setup shows some promise, the narrative quickly devolves into a series of vague events and underdeveloped characters, leaving players unsatisfied. Overall, the story fails to deliver a compelling experience, often feeling like a missed opportunity for greater engagement.
- “With interesting characters, a style similar to Slender, and a bizarre story, it's a good budget horror game.”
- “Despite it starting off rather good in the first chapter by setting the mood, giving you a beginning to the story and throwing a couple of puzzles your way mixed in with 'something' haunting this place and seemingly trying to hunt you down...”
- “Through these people's chapters/stories, you learn of their story and what happens to them by being imposed on by creatures/monsters that scare the life out of you.”
- “The story doesn't make much sense - it feels incomplete.”
- “The story is relatively weak and makes little sense; the main character goes to interview at a hospital and strange events start unfolding around her.”
- “Overall, the story is not one to give you the scares and you should not be expecting as so.”
gameplay
60 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
7%
88%
5%
The gameplay is described as initially creepy but becomes easy once players grasp the mechanics, resembling a cat-and-mouse dynamic. However, many reviewers find the gameplay frustrating due to poorly implemented visual effects, a lack of depth, and a short playtime of around 30 minutes. Overall, the game is criticized for its generic mechanics and misleading presentation, with calls for updates or additional content to enhance the experience.
- “It is creepy at first, but once you get the game mechanics down, it really is a cat and mouse game and rather easy.”
- “I liked the idea of the gameplay taking place through a VHS recording, and I wouldn't mind seeing the concept fleshed out a bit more in a future game.”
- “The story is relatively weak and makes little sense, but the mood is well achieved and the pace of the game is very similar to Slender; the mechanics are very simple, and the VHS graphics help the immersion.”
- “I would not recommend buying this game; it's a waste of time and money. Sorry, but the gameplay is not worth it, nor are the visuals.”
- “The entire gameplay, even the main menu, employs a VHS effect along with a sepia color scheme that actually makes the game look pretty ugly instead of giving it the 'realistic '80s feel' as the creators claim.”
- “Many of the features mentioned in the game's description are barely used for that reason - there's just not enough gameplay time to make proper use of the mentioned features.”
graphics
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
68%
9%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the creepy atmosphere and VHS-style aesthetic, while others criticize the performance and visibility issues caused by excessive film grain and low resolution. Although the visuals are deemed acceptable for a budget title, many feel they fall short of expectations, leading to frustration rather than immersion. Overall, the graphics contribute to a unique but polarizing experience that may not satisfy all players.
- “The content on offer from 'the final take' is respectable enough with regard to visuals and atmosphere.”
- “It's well done, graphics look good and the game has a creepy atmosphere.”
- “Although the graphics aren't the best, it still manages to be terrifying.”
- “I would not recommend buying this game; it's a waste of time and money. Sorry, but the gameplay is not worth it, nor are the visuals.”
- “The voice acting was terrible, the visuals were frustrating, and there is less than an hour of gameplay.”
- “That, combined with the game’s blurry VHS-style visuals, makes it fairly difficult to see, especially in the second chapter.”
atmosphere
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
53%
38%
9%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its creepiness and effective use of sound and visuals, creating a sense of being hunted reminiscent of titles like Outlast. However, some players feel that certain design choices, such as the video scan line effect and the photo-collecting mechanic, detract from the initial tension and immersion. Overall, while the atmosphere starts strong, it is marred by gameplay elements that disrupt the intended mood.
- “The atmosphere of the game is just perfect, the feeling of being hunted.”
- “The game starts off well, with a creepy atmosphere, interesting VHS video tape glitching effects, narration of your character as you play, puzzles, audio logs, ...”
- “It's well done, graphics look good and the game has a creepy atmosphere.”
- “Atmosphere was good at first, but the stupid idea of collecting photos all around broke it and degraded to a level of none.”
- “There are a good few things that could be implemented in this game. First off, the lighting could use a bit of a tweak just enough to see exactly where you're going but still keeping the creepy atmosphere. Secondly, the layout looks a little cramped, and as for the minigame, it's good don't get me wrong, but it kind of takes away from the mood of the game.”
- “Most of the horror comes from the atmosphere, the lack of lighting, and the fact that you can't fight back against any of the enemies you come across.”
music
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
50%
30%
The music in the game is described as creepy and effective in setting the mood, though it lacks depth and variety. While some players found it relaxing, others felt it did not significantly enhance the overall experience, especially in light of other audio elements like voice acting. Overall, the music serves its purpose but is not a standout feature.
- “I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
- “Music, while not much to talk about, was okay to set the mood.”
- “When talking about audio, I'll start with the music as I don't have much to say.”
- “Music is creepy, but that's pretty much it.”
- “It looked scary judging by the creepy music and camcorder, but when I started playing it, it was really hard to move and the voice acting was terrible. You might think differently about this game, but in my opinion, it wasn't that good.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by its absurd and quirky enemy designs, such as headless foes with floating eyes that often get stuck on obstacles, evoking a comedic, B-movie vibe. While this can be amusing, it may detract from the overall gaming experience for those seeking a more serious or polished gameplay.
- “The 'enemies' are broken, missing heads with floating eyes; they get stuck on nearly any obstacle and are more annoying and funny than scary.”
- “It made me laugh like a B-movie would, but if you're looking for an actual game to play and enjoy, it's probably best to spend your money elsewhere.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game generally exhibits stability, but users report frequent glitches, particularly when using an Xbox controller, which can lead to buggy behavior. Additionally, there are concerns about the game's longevity, suggesting a potentially short lifespan.
- “Yes, though expect glitches and a short lifespan.”
- “Game glitches out frequently.”
- “Xbox controller support - having a controller turned on or plugged in causes the game to become buggy.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, suggesting that it requires an excessive time investment despite the game's relatively short overall length of about half an hour.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Sure, the game is around a half-hour in length, but even during my short playthrough it became tedious.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
The game's optimization is notably inconsistent, with some players experiencing poor performance even on capable hardware, while others report a stable 60 fps throughout their gameplay. Overall, opinions on optimization vary significantly among users.
- “The game is very well optimized, and it ran at a stable 60 fps for the entirety of my 45 minutes of play time.”
- “The game's performance is absolutely terrible; even my outdated laptop should be able to run it without issues.”
- “The optimization is so poor that it detracts from the overall experience, making it frustrating to play.”
- “Despite the impressive visuals and creative objectives, the game's optimization leaves much to be desired.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game lacks replayability, as players can easily achieve all necessary objectives in the first chapter, resulting in no incentive to replay once all achievements are unlocked.
- “No... just no... if you get the four recordings in chapter one on the first try, there's absolutely no replay value, because then you'll have all the achievements pinned down.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy is criticized for extending playtime through additional purchases, as the base game offers less than one hour of content. This approach may feel exploitative to some players, as it relies on upselling to enhance the experience.