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"The Story of Henry Bishop" is a narrative-driven game where you play as Henry, a real estate agent in the 1970s. When a mysterious client, Mr. Johnson, shows interest in an old mansion in Maine with a dark history, Henry is drawn into a series of unsettling events that change his life forever. As Henry, you will uncover the terrifying truth behind the house and confront your deepest fears.

The Story of Henry Bishop screenshot
The Story of Henry Bishop screenshot
The Story of Henry Bishop screenshot

80%
Audience ScoreBased on 276 reviews
story44 positive mentions
grinding2 negative mentions

  • The game has a spooky atmosphere and decent level design for an indie title.
  • The story is engaging and features multiple endings, providing some replay value.
  • Despite its flaws, the game is enjoyable and offers a few good scares.
  • The graphics are janky and outdated, detracting from the overall experience.
  • Combat mechanics are clunky and frustrating, making encounters less enjoyable.
  • Voice acting and dialogue are poorly executed, which can pull players out of the immersion.
  • story
    186 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story of "The Story of Henry Bishop" has received mixed reviews, with many players appreciating its intriguing plot and multiple endings, despite its brevity and some narrative inconsistencies. While some found the storyline engaging and atmospheric, others criticized it for being predictable and lacking depth, often comparing it to other horror titles. Overall, the game offers a decent narrative experience, particularly for its low price, but it may not satisfy those seeking a more original or cohesive story.

    • “The story of Henry Bishop is a great short story that throws you in for a loop!”
    • “The story is captivating (although some things are hard to relate to).”
    • “The story of Henry Bishop is a psychological thriller; you will find yourself in the shoes of the main character, exploring the old mansion and learning the horrible secret of the family that disappeared without a trace in the house.”
    • “The biggest drawback to the game was actually the flow of the story.”
    • “The story is really dumb, basically a guy wants to bring back his dead sister and learns African voodoo, and you are the poor idiot who gets caught in the ritual; needless to say, the ending was absolute trash.”
    • “Don't let the title fool you, the story of Henry Bishop is terribly written.”
  • atmosphere
    52 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its spooky and eerie qualities, effectively contributing to the horror experience with impressive graphics and sound design. While some users noted issues with audio effects and clunky gameplay mechanics that detracted from the overall immersion, the general consensus is that the game successfully creates a palpable sense of dread and tension, making it a standout feature. Overall, the atmospheric elements, including lighting and enemy design, are highlighted as significant strengths, enhancing the horror adventure experience.

    • “The graphics and atmosphere were both amazing, played in 4K max settings.”
    • “I thought the horror was done very well, with few jump scares and mostly atmospheric horror.”
    • “The atmosphere, the sounds, the lights... the fact that there's a variety of creepy enemies and you panic every time you come across one of them... and that you can actually fight them!”
    • “4/10 it had the atmosphere of a horror but none of the other ingredients necessary for the spooks.”
    • “And sometimes the audio effects were quite weedy and instead of building atmosphere it actively detracted from it.”
    • “-voice acting/dialogue- clearly neither voiced by, nor written by English speakers (which is completely understandable given the game's developer) this really takes away from the atmosphere the game is trying to build.”
  • graphics
    50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many users noting a janky and outdated appearance typical of Unity games, yet some praise the overall atmosphere and aesthetic appeal, particularly in 4K settings. While certain elements, like monster designs and environmental details, are appreciated, others mention performance issues and a need for graphical upgrades. Overall, the visuals are described as decent but not groundbreaking, with a few standout features enhancing the experience.

    • “The graphics and atmosphere were both amazing, played in 4K max settings.”
    • “There are many other older games that are starting on the exact same, even with the whole Africa story which is repeating in many different titles (maybe this is where the author took inspiration from), however, graphics and the whole atmosphere are really one huge positive surprise.”
    • “Top notch graphics, story, and voice acting.”
    • “The graphics are very janky and outdated.”
    • “Graphics are pretty standard as far as most Unity games go, but there's an overall jankiness to the whole proceedings.”
    • “I did not expect an indie game to ever require me to turn the graphics down on it; the game just ran pretty poorly most of the time, very choppy and not smooth at all.”
  • gameplay
    44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay is a mixed bag, featuring a variety of elements such as puzzles, exploration, and combat, which keeps it engaging despite some clunky mechanics and a mediocre plot. While the horror aspects and smooth mechanics are praised, players note issues like poor level design and a lack of originality. Overall, the game offers a decent experience, particularly for horror fans, but improvements are needed for future iterations.

    • “The gameplay here really has a little bit of everything; small puzzles with easy-to-find solutions, minor key finding, melee and gun combat, and stealth.”
    • “The sheer variety of gameplay elements means that you are unlikely to become bored with one particular set of tropes that the game throws at you.”
    • “-gameplay- this has everything but the kitchen sink; puzzles such as cryptic lock combinations to figure out based on object acquisition, hiding from murderous characters, animating mannequins, exploration, finding notes/newspapers/journal entries, and even some gun-play in the final quarter or so of the game, where you no longer have to run and hide from the things trying to kill you.”
    • “This game has so much effort put into most of it for a real mediocre plot, real okay gameplay, and really not great level design.”
    • “If you're going to have enemies as strong and fast as this, or have weak weapons with very limited reach, or be as vulnerable to hits as you are, you have to compensate by having substantially more health pickups or a dodge mechanic.”
    • “Brief sparks of something wonderful, but it's marred by poor translation, so-so voice acting, not-so-great combat (until you get the gun), some formulaic gameplay, and two 'meh' endings, one far more lackluster than the other.”
  • humor
    16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game primarily stems from the voice acting, which many players find to be hilariously bad, contributing to an unintended charm. While some dialogues are hit-or-miss, the overall cheesy translation and spelling errors add to the comedic experience, making the game entertaining in a quirky way. The ending twist is also noted for its accidental hilarity, further enhancing the game's humorous appeal.

    • “Also, the voice acting is hilarious; it's so bad I was laughing constantly.”
    • “Hilariously bad voice acting and spelling errors, which are top-notch entertaining.”
    • “I love the voice acting; it's funny bad but in a good way!”
  • grinding
    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious, often requiring significant time investment, likening it to needing a "second life" to manage it. This grind is particularly frustrating as it precedes challenging boss fights that demand multiple attempts to overcome.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “It's a tedious section made worse because right after is a boss fight that I had to fight a few times.”
  • stability
    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Overall, the game's stability is relatively solid, with only minor issues such as animation glitches and a few instances of invisible walls. Players noted that while there are some bugs, they are not pervasive, and the experience is generally smoother compared to other titles with more significant stability problems.

    • “As far as bugs/glitches go, the only thing I found was that if you open a door and you back off because it's gonna slam you in the face, the door shuts again instead of fully open.”
    • “The monster animations were much better, from the attack to the movement. The level design is very simple, not many complaints about it. Graphically, it's pretty okay; I've seen worse games full of glitches and bugs. This one doesn't seem to have many, besides some invisible walls I came across two times in an open room.”
    • “This game is short and I liked the story of this game even though it has some animation glitches.”
  • music
    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game is generally well-received, evoking strong Silent Hill vibes that enhance the atmosphere, particularly at the beginning. While it effectively contributes to the overall experience, it is considered decent rather than exceptional, serving its purpose without standing out as award-winning.

    • “The music in the beginning gave me some very solid Silent Hill vibes and it was a very welcoming feeling.”
    • “But, if you're looking for a relatively well done Russian-made game that has pretty good scares and a fair soundtrack, look no further!”
    • “-Music- it's not bad, but it's not award-winning either; it does the trick, albeit by the skin of its teeth.”
  • optimization
    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's optimization is frequently criticized, with users reporting poor performance even on high-end machines, leading to choppy gameplay despite achieving high frame rates. Many players have to disable effects to improve performance, indicating significant issues with asset management and overall optimization.

    • “The game has poor optimization, and the use of assets is too noticeable.”
    • “My biggest problem with it is that it's poorly optimized. On my machine, I have to play it with all the effects disabled, and although I have high FPS, the game gets choppy at times.”
    • “Optimization sucks sometimes.”
  • monetization
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The monetization strategy of the game appears to rely heavily on advertisements, which may indicate a free-to-play model or a significant emphasis on in-game purchases. Players have noted that the game draws heavily from established titles like "Outlast" and "Resident Evil 7," suggesting that its monetization may also be influenced by the success of these franchises.

  • emotional
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players note that the game effectively elicits strong emotional responses, particularly fear and trepidation, which is a hallmark of the horror genre. Overall, it successfully achieves its intended emotional impact.

    • “The horror genre is designed to provoke trepidation in the viewer/player, after all, so if nothing else, the game succeeds in its emotional impact (at least in my view).”
  • replayability
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's replayability is somewhat limited due to its short length of about two hours; however, players may find incentive to replay it to explore alternative endings. While the single-developer aspect is acknowledged, the potential for different outcomes offers a slight boost to its replay value.

    • “The game offers a surprising amount of replayability, especially if you're interested in exploring the alternative endings that I haven't seen yet.”
    • “Despite its short length of about 2 hours, the game has replayability due to the different paths and outcomes you can experience.”

Buy The Story of Henry Bishop

3h Median play time
3h Average play time
3-3h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs

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