The Watchers
- February 6, 2020
- Straight Back Games
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam"The Watchers" is a survival horror game set in a remote observatory. Players must navigate through a nightmarish landscape, evading otherworldly creatures and unraveling a mysterious story. Utilize stealth and resource management to survive until dawn in this tense and atmospheric experience.
Reviews
- The game is a fun and challenging co-op puzzle experience that requires teamwork and communication.
- Players enjoyed the mix of stealth and puzzle-solving, finding it engaging and entertaining, especially when played with a friend.
- The game offers a sense of accomplishment when completing difficult puzzles, making it rewarding despite its challenges.
- The game suffers from frustrating mechanics, including inconsistent AI behavior and janky controls that can lead to repeated failures.
- Many players found the multiplayer experience to be broken, with issues connecting to servers and inviting friends, making it difficult to play.
- The game is criticized for being repetitive and lacking true horror elements, with puzzles often feeling like a trial-and-error process rather than strategic problem-solving.
- gameplay12 mentions
- 8 % positive mentions
- 75 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by inconsistent mechanics that can lead to frustration, particularly with enemy detection and navigation challenges. While the cooperative aspect and overall atmosphere are praised, many players find certain puzzles and enemy interactions poorly designed, resulting in a test of patience rather than enjoyment. Despite these issues, the game offers a fun experience when played with a partner, though it may not align with expectations for a puzzle-focused cooperative game.
“Has story, uses teamwork so fun with partner, and has a solid amount of gameplay.”
“The gameplay is a series of gauntlets, where you have to get from point A to B while avoiding the enemies.”
“The atmosphere, the story, the gameplay, the direction - it's far superior.”
“If you look at the achievements, you'll see a steep falloff between a certain puzzle and the next; paired with that, you'll see more people have died 100+ times than solved the puzzle in question-- that puzzle, and two poorly-optimized mechanics leading up to it, are the problem with the game.”
“The first frustrating mechanic is avoiding the enemy's line-of-sight; sometimes enemies seem to have a complete 180-degree field of vision, while other times it seems restricted to a front-facing 90-degree angle.”
“The other mechanic that ruins the game is the inconsistency in which enemies get to pass through doors and walls; in some areas, a wall is enough to stop them, while in others, the enemies reach or pass through them and kill you instantly.”
- story7 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's story features teamwork elements and a solid gameplay experience, though it can become repetitive due to the need to repeat missions after failures. While some players find the characters and voice acting lacking, others appreciate the overall atmosphere and direction. The narrative is concise, with around 10 missions that can be completed in approximately 7 hours, but certain quests may lead to frustration.
“Has story, uses teamwork so fun with partner, and has a solid amount of gameplay.”
“The atmosphere, the story, the gameplay, the direction - it's far superior.”
“If you like Devour, you’ll enjoy the similarities in storyline.”
“The story, the characters, the voice acting: cheesy and horrible.”
“My only complaint would be that it gets a bit repetitive after a while, as you'll have to do the same 'missions' over and over every time you fail one stage of the mission.”
“It can become very frustrating, especially at the telephone quest when it's basically up to the game whether or not you pass.”
- stability5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is a significant concern, with users reporting frequent bugs and crashes that hinder gameplay. Issues such as enemies walking through walls and misleading hints contribute to a frustrating experience, leading some players to deem it "absolutely broken." While the core gameplay is praised, the stability problems detract from its overall enjoyment.
“If the game tweaked its line of sight puzzles and the enemies walking through walls glitches, it'd be way more playable. Namely the shoe puzzle (as far as I can tell anyway, we didn't make it past that).”
“If one player crashes or freezes, the game will break.”
“Absolutely broken and miserable to play; the hints are very misleading and many glitches result in many frustrating deaths.”
- humor5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is a standout feature, providing a delightful contrast to its challenging puzzles, with players frequently finding themselves laughing out loud. The comedic animations and memorable moments enhance the overall experience, making it a fun choice for playing with friends.
“A really good puzzle game that will have you pulling your hair out one minute and laughing your head off the next!”
“Built some hilarious memories.”
“I played it with my best friend and we honestly could not stop laughing.”
- graphics4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game are generally considered subpar, with some users noting a comically poor aesthetic and unclear dialogue, yet they appreciate the nostalgic older graphic style. While not the best in quality, the visuals are deemed acceptable for a budget title, contributing to the overall fun experience despite the game's flaws.
“For a budget game, the graphics are not bad.”
“I love the older graphic style.”
“If you're game for comically poor graphics, dialogue that isn't clear if it's intentionally cliché or not, 'puzzles' that end up being how-fast-can-you-run by the final level, and an end-game that feels like it's out of a teen edgelord dream, pick this up.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users express mixed feelings about the emotional impact of the game, noting that while the pre-credit ending was intense and somewhat disappointing, the emotional journey was ultimately worthwhile for the payoff in the post-credit scene.
“The pre-credit ending was wild yet lowkey disappointing, but I'd go through all the emotional turmoil for the post-credit scene.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is criticized for poorly designed mechanics that contribute to player frustration, particularly highlighted by a significant drop in achievement progression and a high number of player deaths before overcoming a specific puzzle.
“If you look at the achievements, you'll see a steep falloff between a certain puzzle and the next. Paired with that, you'll see more people have died 100+ times than solved the puzzle in question. That puzzle, along with two poorly optimized mechanics leading up to it, are the problems with the game.”
“The game suffers from severe optimization issues that make certain mechanics frustratingly difficult to navigate, leading to a disjointed experience.”
“Many of the game's systems feel unrefined and poorly optimized, which detracts from the overall enjoyment and flow of gameplay.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players feel that the game's replayability is hindered by frustrating line of sight puzzles and glitches, particularly with enemy behavior, which detracts from the overall experience. Improvements in these areas could enhance the game's appeal and encourage more players to recommend it.
“If the game tweaked its line of sight puzzles and the enemies walking through walls glitches, it would be way more playable and I'd recommend it. Specifically, the shoe puzzle was a major hurdle for us, and we didn't make it past that.”
“The lack of variety in gameplay makes it hard to want to replay the game. Once you've seen everything, there's little incentive to go through it all again.”
“After finishing the game, I felt no urge to replay it. The story was linear and the choices didn't seem to impact the outcome enough to warrant a second playthrough.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be manageable and not overly frustrating, allowing for a more enjoyable experience despite the repetitive nature of the task.
“Grinding feels like an endless chore that detracts from the overall enjoyment of the game.”
“The repetitive nature of grinding makes it hard to stay engaged and motivated.”
“I found myself spending hours grinding for minimal rewards, which quickly became tedious.”
- atmosphere1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviewers consistently highlight the atmosphere as a standout feature, noting its superiority in enhancing the overall experience alongside the story, gameplay, and direction.
“The atmosphere, the story, the gameplay, the direction - it's far superior.”
“The immersive atmosphere pulls you into the world, making every moment feel alive.”
“The haunting soundtrack and stunning visuals create an unforgettable atmosphere.”
