The Long Reach
- July 18, 2018
- Painted Black Games
What The Long Reach may occasionally lack in originality, it more than makes up for in inventiveness, personality, and bubbling slow-burn horror chills. This is a well-written, atmospheric horror adventure, and it deserves your attention.
Get on Steam
Get on Xbox Games StoreIn "The Long Reach," players delve into a psychological horror story set in a fictional town. As the game's protagonist, players uncover a twisted plot while navigating various environments and solving puzzles. With a focus on narrative and exploration, the game utilizes pixelated graphics and a 2D perspective to convey its eerie atmosphere.
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Playstation 5
Windows
Xbox One
Xbox Series X|S
Linux
PlayStation
Playstation Vita
Xbox
Reviews
- The Long Reach features a deeply layered story that effectively combines psychological horror with intriguing narrative elements.
- The game boasts a unique aesthetic and well-crafted sprites, contributing to an oppressive atmosphere that enhances the horror experience.
- Good sound design and music add to the overall immersion, creating a spine-chilling sense of dread throughout the gameplay.
- The script suffers from juvenile dialogue and repetitive character interactions, making it difficult to engage with the narrative.
- Gameplay is plagued by glitches and a lack of originality, which detracts from the overall experience.
- Puzzles often rely on process of elimination rather than thoughtful engagement, leading to a frustrating gameplay experience.
- graphics4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics are praised for their appealing aesthetic and well-crafted sprites, contributing to an oppressive atmosphere that enhances the game's themes. The unique art style effectively complements the gameplay, although some reviewers noted a disconnect between the visual tone and the narrative's balance of humor and tension. Overall, the visuals are a strong point, enriching the player's experience.
“The general aesthetic of the world is appealing, with well-crafted sprites, and the atmosphere is appropriately oppressive.”
“The unique aesthetic enhances the overall experience, contributing to the game's immersive quality.”
“The art style effectively plays with sanity, adding depth to the visual experience.”
- story4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The story in "The Long Reach" features a well-crafted, atmospheric world that blends psychological horror with engaging dialogue and optional interactions. However, the inconsistent tone—shifting between humor and tension—can lead to a disjointed experience, as characters often sound alike, making it feel exhausting at times. Overall, while the narrative is layered and gripping, it struggles with tonal cohesion.
“A deeply layered story with the scares to match, The Long Reach brings back the basics of psychological horror by keeping players both intrigued and nervous until the very end.”
“The Long Reach offers a slice of horror to the adventurous and puzzling among us, presenting a well-told and gripping story through its range of dialogue and optional interactions.”
“The general aesthetic of the world is appealing, with well-crafted sprites, and the atmosphere is appropriately oppressive, but the overall story feels bound together by a script that can't decide between humor and tension.”
“When every character speaks the same way, alternating between sarcastic quips and actually moving the plot along, it makes for an exhausting experience.”
“The story lacks depth and fails to engage, leaving players feeling disconnected from the characters and their motivations.”
- stability3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's stability is marked by minor glitches that, while present, do not significantly detract from the overall experience. Players find it engaging despite its flaws, suggesting a solid foundation for the developers' future projects.
“Though its gameplay is riddled with glitches and its narrative full of flaws, the long reach keeps tempting you to peer around the next murky corner.”
“Despite minor glitches and perhaps not offering much in the way of new content to the genre, it finds itself as a well-made and engaging first release for developers Painted Black Games, and I look forward to seeing their future work.”
“[no particularly original ideas presented, minor glitches]”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -150 % neutral mentions
- 150 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is characterized by appealing aesthetics and well-crafted sprites, creating an appropriately oppressive environment. While it effectively delivers a well-written horror experience, some users feel the narrative struggles to balance humor and tension. Overall, it is recognized as a compelling atmospheric adventure worth exploring.
“The general aesthetic of the world is appealing, with well-crafted sprites, and the atmosphere is appropriately oppressive, though the overall story feels bound together by a script that can't decide between humor and tension.”
“This is a well-written, atmospheric horror adventure, and it deserves your attention.”
“The general aesthetic of the world is appealing, with well-crafted sprites, and the atmosphere is appropriately oppressive, but the overall story feels bound together by a script that can't decide between humor and tension.”
“The game tries to create a dark atmosphere, but it often falls flat due to inconsistent pacing and poorly executed dialogue.”
“While the visuals are striking, the atmosphere lacks depth and fails to immerse the player in the world.”
- music2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music and sound design in the game are generally praised for their quality and unique aesthetic, although some users noted an issue with a mismatched loop that detracts from the overall experience.
“Good sound design and music, apart from the mismatched loop, creates a unique aesthetic.”
- gameplay2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The gameplay is marred by glitches and lacks innovation, yet it maintains an intriguing narrative that encourages players to continue exploring despite its flaws.
“Though its gameplay is riddled with glitches and its narrative full of flaws, the long reach keeps tempting you to peer around the next murky corner.”
“While it doesn't do anything that's new gameplay-wise, I found the narrative to be intriguing throughout and worth sitting through to the end.”
Critic Reviews
The Long Reach Review
The Long Reach just barely misses the mark thanks to a painfully tone deaf script full of juvenile dialogue and puzzles that rely on process of elimination as much as actual thought-work. The general aesthetic of the world is appealing, with just well-crafted sprites, and the atmosphere is appropriately oppressive, but the overall story feels bound together by a script that can't decide between humour and tension. When every character speaks the same way, alternating between sarcastic quips and actually moving the plot along, it makes for an exhausting experience. Along with repetitive dialogue trees, it's hard to immerse oneself into the narrative. The game is short enough and might be worth buying on sale, but it certainly shouldn't be purchased for full price.
50%The Long Reach Review
A deeply layered story with the scares to match, The Long Reach brings back the basics of psychological-horror by keeping players both intrigued and nervous until the very end.
80%The Long Reach (Switch eShop) Review
This game's reach is longer than my patience for it.
50%
