The Miskatonic

About

"The Miskatonic" is a first-person action-adventure game set in the Lovecraftian universe. As the rapscallion Jack, players uncover mysteries, fight cultists, and solve puzzles in a sprawling, open-world university town. With a blend of survival horror and immersive sim elements, players must manage their sanity and resources to survive the supernatural threats lurking in the shadows.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

77%

Audience ScoreBased on 357 reviews

story111 positive mentions

replayability5 negative mentions

The art style is wonderfully charming and unique, effectively blending cute and creepy elements.
The dialogue is fun and humorous, with characters that feel distinct and engaging.
The imaginative take on Lovecraft's mythos creates an intriguing world that keeps players interested.

The game is very short, with a playtime of only 2-3 hours, leaving players wanting more.
There are no meaningful choices or branching paths, making it feel more like a linear story than a game.
The lack of options for text scrolling and save features can hinder the reading experience.

story
325 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
63%
2%
The story of the game is a quirky, darkly comedic take on Lovecraftian themes, featuring a linear narrative that lacks meaningful player choices. While many players appreciate the engaging characters, witty dialogue, and unique art style, they also note issues with pacing, abrupt endings, and a sense of underdevelopment in the plot. Overall, it offers an enjoyable experience for fans of the genre, but may leave some wanting more depth and interactivity.
- “The world and the storytelling and characterization won me over.”
- “It's a charmingly bizarre story that turns what could have been a horrifically dark storyline into something you can smile and laugh at.”
- “The story is lighthearted for most of the duration before 180-ing without warning in the least pleasant way.”
- “The story is nonsensical and rushed, with poor pacing, zero character motivation, and what lore they give goes nowhere.”
- “The story ends quite abruptly and doesn't reveal any motivation behind the characters.”
- “The plot is too short and simply glides through quickly without building up enough tension to make the horror of the denouement payoff.”
humor
118 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
97%
3%
The humor in this game is a blend of dark, absurd, and juvenile comedy, often drawing on Lovecraftian themes and characters. While many players found the writing charming and funny, with moments that elicited genuine laughter, others criticized it for being overly crass or lacking depth. Overall, the humor resonates well with fans of quirky, dark comedy, though it may not appeal to everyone due to its hit-or-miss nature.
- “A humorous and comedic interpretation of the Cthulhu mythos, featuring charming and entertaining characters set against a dark, madness-filled atmosphere.”
- “The dialogue is charming and very funny; it had me laughing plenty of times.”
- “The writing is absolutely hilarious, the Lovecraft love is so real and heartfelt, and everything is my kind of messed up, lighthearted, and absolutely delightful.”
- “Not funny.”
- “No, really, it's not funny.”
- “Oh, and yeah, the jokes are not funny in the slightest.”
graphics
111 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
47%
3%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their charming and unique art style, which blends cute and creepy elements, effectively capturing the Lovecraftian theme. Many reviewers highlight the stunning character designs and immersive visuals that enhance the storytelling experience, despite some criticism regarding the lack of gameplay and repetitive backgrounds. Overall, the artwork is considered a standout feature, making the game enjoyable for fans of visual novels and those who appreciate distinctive artistic expression.
- “The art style is wonderfully charming, the world is a very imaginative take on Lovecraft's expanded mythos, and the characters all feel like unique beings.”
- “The graphics are excellent and the characters are well drawn.”
- “The artwork is both beautiful, adorable, and at times appropriately hideous.”
- “The graphical styling has its charms, but falls flat after 30 minutes of staring at the same dark character models on dark backgrounds across a handful of equally dark locales.”
- “While the art style is admittedly quite cutesy, everything else is underdeveloped.”
- “Overall the game suffers from tone problems; the art style is cute-sexy, the subject matter is dark, and the dialogue is filled with cursing, which makes it feel adult, but the way the game is handled feels juvenile.”
music
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
60%
8%
The music in the game is generally described as fitting and atmospheric, enhancing the immersive experience despite its limited variety, with most tracks being ambient loops or subdued sounds. While some players appreciate the chill vibe and how it complements the narrative, others find it forgettable or lacking in diversity, with only a few notable tracks. Overall, the soundtrack effectively sets the mood but may not leave a lasting impression.
- “Despite the lack of flexibility in controlling the story outcomes, the artwork and the jazz-steampunk background music make the reading experience more immersive.”
- “The first thing that captured my attention was the menu music; I'd happily purchase the track to listen to on occasion, and the ambient sounds created a nice atmosphere and didn't hinder reading the dialogue at all.”
- “The music is awesome and suits the setting perfectly in my opinion, and while the graphics and animations are minimal and simplistic, the character designs are adorable and well-drawn, and the story compensates for the lack of visual effects.”
- “The soundtrack is almost entirely composed of ambient loops, with some okayish royalty-free tracks for the main menu and intro.”
- “The soundtrack is non-existent (the same subtle tune plays on loop), which makes me sad and frustrated because it's such an efficient way to set a mood.”
- “This game is very lacking in music; other than the track that plays on the opening menu and during the credits, I don't think there's any songs at all during normal gameplay, only moments of background noise which doesn't really do much to set a mood or tone since there's no audible dialogue during anything and you can't even make your character walk.”
gameplay
36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
81%
8%
The gameplay is largely criticized for being non-existent, as it primarily consists of clicking on characters and prompts to advance a linear story without any meaningful choices or interactions. Many reviewers describe it as more of a visual novel than a game, lacking traditional gameplay mechanics, puzzles, or player engagement, which leaves it feeling like a simple reading experience rather than an interactive one. While the art and story may appeal to some, those seeking traditional gameplay elements will likely be disappointed.
- “The gameplay doesn't require any special mouse skills, as it only wants you to point at certain characters and posters to pop up additional dialogue.”
- “A unique art style with quirky and interesting characters along with a fairly relaxed style of gameplay, mostly being what is expected of a visual novel.”
- “I really like visual novels to just tell me a story and not have any arbitrary choices that in the end don't change anything, so if you are fine with reading a good story and don't have to have 'gameplay' in everything, this is 100% recommended.”
- “I can't even offer a halfway decent summary of the plot because the whole experience is just wall-to-wall nothingburger—nothingburger characters in a nothingburger world with literal nothing in the way of gameplay to boot.”
- “Sadly, the complete lack of choice, game mechanics, level design, or anything resembling it, means that this isn't actually a game at all.”
- “It's a visual novel, but as far as gameplay is concerned there are no puzzles, branching options, choices, or any real player interaction at all.”
character development
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
19%
14%
Character development in the game is generally viewed as lacking depth, with many reviewers noting that while the character designs are visually appealing and unique, they often lack background and personality. The artwork is praised for its quality and creativity, contributing to an engaging visual experience, but this does not translate into meaningful character growth or narrative depth. Overall, the focus on aesthetics overshadows the development of the characters themselves, leaving them feeling somewhat superficial.
- “The art style, character design, and world design is great; every character you see, whether they are a random background character or someone central to the plot, looks unique and interesting in their own special way, but not to such an extreme degree that it's overbearing.”
- “The music is awesome and suits the setting perfectly in my opinion, and while the graphics and animations are minimal and simplistic, the character designs are adorable and well-drawn, and the story compensates for the lack of visual effects.”
- “Jack Cayless's artwork is probably the highlight of this game; there are lots of attractive character designs, and you'll definitely find a new waifu or three.”
- “There is no real character development.”
- “However in contrast, not only are the side characters all completely forgettable but the world design itself is the exact problem the main character design avoids.”
- “Character design/concepts are much desired.”
atmosphere
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
47%
18%
The atmosphere of the game is a unique blend of dark, madness-filled elements from the Cthulhu mythos, enhanced by a humorous and comedic twist. While the ambient sounds and menu music contribute positively to the overall experience, some players found the soundtrack repetitive and the pacing slow. Despite development challenges, the game successfully creates a charming and engaging atmosphere through its characters and writing, though it occasionally struggles with maintaining a distinct tone amidst its references.
- “A humorous and comedic interpretation of the Cthulhu mythos, featuring charming and entertaining characters set against a dark, madness-filled atmosphere.”
- “The first thing that captured my attention was the menu music; I'd happily purchase the track to listen to on occasion, and the ambient sounds created a nice atmosphere and didn't hinder reading the dialogue at all.”
- “Bottom line: cleverly written and creative story, I liked the characters a lot; I loved the art style, atmosphere, and sense of humor.”
- “You go in excited, reading everything, getting into the atmosphere... wondering when the prologue will end... ok... we're still in prologue... wait... *sigh*”
- “Thus removing almost all of the potential for the world to be its own world, and for the atmosphere to even exist as everything is just one big reference.”
- “The lack of distinction between tasteful and tactless references to sexuality also poisons the atmosphere.”
replayability
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
36%
45%
Overall, the game has minimal replayability due to its linear structure, lack of choices, and absence of alternate endings or achievements. While some players enjoyed the story and humor, the consensus is that once completed, there is little incentive to replay, as the experience remains largely the same.
- “Nice replayable visual novel.”
- “I completed the game in 4-5 hours, and given that it's a linear story, the only opportunity for replayability is that you might have missed some dialogues (yes, that can happen).”
- “On the upside, there are no achievements tied to the game, along with no alternate endings or dialog options (that I could find), which means zero replayability (a mercy for us all).”
- “Good mix of horror, mystery, and comedy, although, as some reviewers have pointed out, the lack of choices takes away replayability.”
- “I beat it in like three hours and, since there's no real options or anything since it's a purely linear visual novel, the replayability is minimal.”
emotional
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a mix of humor and heartfelt moments, though the all-caps dialogue can detract from the emotional weight in certain scenes. While the writing is praised for its hilarity and Lovecraftian charm, it sometimes leads to a subdued reading experience during more intense emotional moments. Overall, the blend of lightheartedness and deeper themes creates a unique emotional landscape.
- “The writing is absolutely hilarious, the Lovecraft love is so real and heartfelt, and everything is my kind of messed up, lighthearted, and absolutely delightful.”
- “Reading experience - the all-caps dialogue has me straining to not mentally evoke the entire cast shouting at each other; it ended up ruining the perception of the emotions in some situations because by later points I was reading everything with a subdued tone when things got emotional.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and uninteresting, often feeling that it detracts from the overall experience. While some appreciate the game's length as being just right, the repetitive nature of the grinding can lead to frustration and boredom.
- “The story, like everything else in this visual novel, is tedious, uninteresting, and bland.”
- “This happens every single time I try to play the game, and now it's just tedious sitting there going through this process several times before it actually works, which is sad since it looks like a really fun game.”
- “Just the right length; not too long for anything to get tedious.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The monetization aspect of the game has received criticism for promoting itself as more than a visual novel while also being perceived as too short, leading to a sense of dissatisfaction regarding its value.
- “The monetization strategy feels overly aggressive, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending extra money.”
- “I was disappointed by how many features were locked behind paywalls, which really detracted from the overall experience.”
- “It seems like the game is designed to push players towards in-game purchases rather than focusing on delivering a complete experience.”