The Hole Town

About The Hole Town

The Hole Town is a single player platformer game with a anime theme. It was developed by imayui and was released on June 27, 2024. It received very positive reviews from players.

A super short visual novel based on the original poem by imayui. In Japan, it was released in 2014 as a way of telling stories and poems online. Just like a visual novel, you read through the story. Fancy opening BGM and simple animated illustration. It is a short story that ends within 2 or 3 minutes, and you can enjoy a strange sense of the extraordinary. ---story--- A very short …

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

Reviews

91%Audience ScoreBased on 23 reviews

graphics3 positive mentions

story3 negative mentions

Charming and cozy art style with nice voice acting and animation.
Creates a pleasant atmosphere and poetic feel, resembling a visual poem or picture book.
Free and very short experience, making it a quick and easy thing to check out.

Extremely short length (2-3 minutes) with no meaningful gameplay or interactivity beyond clicking through dialogue.
Feels more like an e-book, animated video, or poem than a game, leading to mixed expectations from gamers.
Writing quality and content perceived as weak or lacking depth, with limited replay value or engagement.

story
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 60% negative mentions
The story is very brief and simplistic, lasting about a minute with minimal interaction beyond clicking through dialogue. It lacks depth or surprises, resembling more an animated short than a game narrative. Some users felt that adding dialogue choices or exploration elements could have made the story more engaging.
- “Feels like it belongs under movies or video category rather than gaming, but the animation and story are cute enough that you can't be mad at that!”
- “On another hand, it would have been interesting if, instead of making such a short game, we were given the option to choose different dialogue options to continue the story and explore the different holes, even if it wouldn't make a big difference to the story line, just... be able to do something.”
- “It took less than a minute to finish the game (just left it running in the background to write a review), and there is absolutely nothing you can do apart from clicking for the next dialogue, not even be surprised about the story line (as there isn't any).”
- “It would have been interesting if, instead of making such a short game, we were given the option to choose different dialogue options to continue the story and explore the different holes, even if it wouldn't make a big difference to the story, just to be able to do something.”
- “This is a one minute story about towns in holes.”
gameplay
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 67% negative mentions
The gameplay is generally simple, involving basic mechanics like digging, jumping, and avoiding obstacles, which some find satisfying. However, others criticize the game for lacking meaningful interaction, reducing it to mostly clicking through poorly written dialogue with minimal engagement.
- “Mechanics are simple but satisfying — dig, jump, and avoid chaos.”
- “As a visual/interactive novel, this doesn't feature any notable gameplay; it's just a lot of clicking through badly written dialogue that would never have been accepted or published in print, which poses the question, 'how did something this badly written end up on Steam?'”
- “There is no real interaction or mechanic outside of moving through 2-3 minutes worth of pages, but it’s not really my place to decide what is or isn’t a video game.”
graphics
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The graphics are praised for their cozy, inviting art style that creates a charming underground world, complemented by appealing visuals that enhance the overall experience.
- “Art style is cozy and inviting, like a tiny underground world you actually want to explore.”
- “I like the poem and visuals a lot.”
- “I like the visuals and the audio was great too.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The atmosphere is praised for its appealing style and engaging mood, leaving users hopeful that the creator will expand the concept into a full game. Overall, it sets a promising and captivating tone.
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions
Grinding in this game is described as tedious and slow, likened to having to click repeatedly through text rather than smoothly experiencing a story. This repetitive mechanic detracts from the enjoyment, making progression feel more like a chore than engaging gameplay.
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The humor is dry and self-deprecating, relying on witty, understated jokes. It may appeal to those who appreciate subtle, ironic comedy.