Veritas
- February 12, 2020
- Glitch Games
- 7h median play time
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Get on Apple Store"Veritas" is a single-player mystery point-and-click game offering around 7 hours of playtime. As the player, you awaken in a mysterious facility with no memory of the previous day, and must solve puzzles and gather clues to discover the truth and escape. Using the Glitch Camera, you'll document your surroundings and use the photos to help solve puzzles and uncover the facility's dark secrets.
iPad
iPhone
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Phone
Windows
Android
Mobile Platform
Tablet
Reviews
- The game features a wide variety of clever and engaging puzzles that challenge players and encourage creative thinking.
- The built-in hint system is well-designed, providing helpful nudges without giving away full solutions, making it easier for players to progress.
- The graphics and atmosphere are well-executed, contributing to an immersive experience that blends horror and humor effectively.
- The game suffers from significant performance issues, including laggy controls and unresponsive UI, which can frustrate players during gameplay.
- Many players reported game-breaking bugs, including lost progress and disappearing inventory items, leading to a lack of polish and reliability.
- The story is often criticized for being weak and clichéd, with an unsatisfying ending that fails to deliver on the narrative potential.
- story31 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 68 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The story in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it clichéd and lacking depth, often feeling like a mere backdrop to the puzzles. While some appreciated the blend of horror elements and humor, others criticized the disjointed narrative and unsatisfying conclusion, leading to a sense of futility in the lore. Overall, the story seems to be secondary to the puzzle-solving experience, which may disappoint those seeking a strong narrative.
“Very well executed with an interesting storyline.”
“This story concept offers a lot of opportunity for sequels or parallel stories.”
“The game itself is bogged down by a bizarre genre-hopping story with a lame ending and frankly awful performance for the PC.”
“The story presents itself as a horror story - filled with diaries to find, blood trails, and bodies - but it also includes humorous pop culture references which clash with that theme immensely.”
“The story itself is incredibly cliché, and I quickly found myself disregarding the more detailed logs on the computers throughout the game when it became clear the story would likely lead to nothing, making all the lore pointless and the stakes next to zero.”
- gameplay7 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The gameplay features an innovative camera mechanic that allows players to take in-game screenshots for note-taking, enhancing the experience. However, the game is criticized for its short duration of around 7 hours and the presence of game-breaking bugs that can lead to lost progress. While the puzzles are challenging and engaging, some players find them overly difficult and poorly explained, leading to frustration.
“Their staple game mechanic - the camera which lets you screenshot various game elements - is a brilliant way of providing the player with the tools necessary to take notes without having to grab a pen and paper (or commit long codes to memory).”
“I like the mechanics and the puzzles, but it just wasn't worth the aggravation and I don't see how I could have ever progressed to the end anyway.”
“Only 7 hours of gameplay, and that was with dozing off during the last chapter.”
“I had one game-breaking bug early in my gameplay and lost all my progress.”
“The puzzles are extremely difficult, and that is fine, but occasionally the answers did not make sense, or the mechanics of the puzzle weren’t explained.”
- graphics6 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
Overall, the graphics have received positive feedback, with many players expressing love for the visual style and smooth performance. However, some noted that the dated graphics contributed to the game's somber atmosphere, aligning with its tragic narrative.
“The audio and graphics are just fine and run smooth as silk, and just about everything is mouse controlled, which is a plus.”
“My main reason for buying the game was the graphics; I'm in love with those types of graphics.”
“Love the graphics.”
“The dated graphics added to the depressive nature of the game and the story was one of tragedy.”
- grinding5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, particularly due to the cumbersome navigation across a large map and the repetitive nature of fetch quests. While some puzzles offer satisfying moments, the overall experience is marred by slow interfaces and a lack of meaningful story progression, leading to a feeling that the game drags on longer than necessary.
“Moving between screens in order to navigate the massive map is tedious and frustrating, and makes the normally satisfying process of returning to an earlier area to solve a puzzle take ages.”
“I am at a loss as to how something basic like this gets into the final product of a game, unless it was a genius trick by the developers to make it feel like the game you just played was longer than you thought (which isn't necessary, because this game was so tedious it already felt like it took longer than 3 hours to finish).”
“The few good moments you'll have with this game - both with the story and puzzles - are bogged down by the foreknowledge that the story won't amount to anything substantial, and the slow, tedious interfaces you need to interact with to play the game.”
- stability5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability has been criticized for being overly buggy, with significant glitches causing issues such as lost saves and screen freezes. While some players found the experience enjoyable despite these problems, the overall consensus suggests that the game requires substantial improvements in stability.
“Full game is way too buggy!”
“Although it glitches three fourths of the way through the game and I lost all my Steam saves (this was fixed), I had to play until that point with a walkthrough.”
“Way too buggy to waste your money.”
- atmosphere5 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is characterized by a relaxing yet occasionally spooky ambiance, with a dark and mysterious tone enhanced by a solid soundtrack. However, some users feel that the execution falls short, lacking in storytelling and overall atmosphere despite the presence of challenging puzzles. Overall, the atmosphere is described as gloomy and claustrophobic, contributing to a tense experience.
“The atmosphere I found was very relaxing and a bit spooky at times.”
“A very difficult escape room clone with puzzles that will provide a challenge but won’t deliver on story or atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere is incredibly gloomy and felt claustrophobic.”
“The atmosphere is dark and mysterious with a solid soundtrack.”
- music3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in the game is highly praised for its delightful soundtrack and immersive ambiance, enhancing the dark and mysterious atmosphere. Players appreciate the engaging sound design that complements their interactions and exploration within the game.
“Once in the game, you're treated to a delightful soundtrack and sounds as you interact with things or even just hang around listening to the ambiance of each room.”
“The atmosphere is dark and mysterious with a solid soundtrack.”
“Love the music.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by the main character's witty remarks and the juxtaposition of comedic pop culture references against a horror backdrop, creating a unique and entertaining contrast. Players appreciate this blend, which adds a lighthearted touch to the otherwise dark narrative.
“I love the funny things the main character says.”
“The story presents itself as a horror narrative filled with diaries to find, blood trails, and bodies, but it also includes humorous pop culture references that clash with that theme immensely.”
- optimization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The optimization of Veritas has been criticized for poor performance on PC, with players experiencing significant issues despite the engaging puzzles. The game's technical shortcomings detract from the overall experience, leaving users frustrated with its lack of polish.
“While a lot of the individual puzzles in Veritas are still very fun, with answers hidden in the environment in interesting ways, the game itself is bogged down by a bizarre genre-hopping story with a lame ending and frankly awful performance for the PC.”
“It's been a long time since Myst pioneered this kind of game, and yet with all this time, my modern gaming PC can't seem to run this poorly optimized point-and-click romp in any way I'd call satisfying.”
