We Went Back

About

We Went Back is a single player survival simulation game with horror, mystery, thriller and science fiction themes. It was developed by Dead Thread Games and was released on April 3, 2020. It received positive reviews from players.

We Went Back is a sci-fi time-looping horror game located on an abandoned lunar station. Explore, deduce, and unleash terror in order to find a way out.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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86%

Audience ScoreBased on 3,609 reviews

atmosphere390 positive mentions

optimization30 negative mentions

Excellent atmospheric horror experience with strong sci-fi and space station setting.
Engaging looping mechanic where subtle environmental changes keep players on edge.
Free, visually impressive, with well-designed sound and jump scares that effectively build tension.

Very short game, typically finished within 30 to 50 minutes, leading to limited replay value.
Monster design and animations are underwhelming and detract from scare factor.
Lack of clear instructions or story depth leaves some players confused about objectives and plot.

atmosphere
560 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
70%
29%
1%
The game excels at creating a dense, eerie, and immersive atmosphere characterized by claustrophobic sci-fi environments, unsettling ambient sounds, and visual details reminiscent of titles like Alien: Isolation and Soma. This atmospheric tension is the primary strength, often overshadowing gameplay and story elements, and effectively keeps players on edge despite the short 30- to 60-minute runtime. While some criticisms note that jump scares and certain monster designs occasionally disrupt the mood, overall the atmosphere is widely praised as the standout feature making the experience deeply engaging and chilling.
- “The atmosphere on the space station is great, and the way the environment slowly changes keeps you constantly on edge.”
- “Great atmosphere: the space station setting feels claustrophobic, eerie, and unsettling.”
- “We went back is a standout in psychological horror, delivering a deeply atmospheric and unsettling experience.”
- “The atmosphere isn't scary, there's no eerie music, there's no tension; you just walk and walk without worrying about a thing. When I saw the monster for the first time, I thought 'oh, it's simply a person without skin,' which isn't really scary.”
- “For the beginning of the game, I really was tense due to the atmosphere, subtle changes in the scenery after each loop and the thought of the unknown, but all suspension of disbelief was lost the moment when I was looking around, then suddenly the monster was just standing still in a room.”
- “Although the atmosphere of the game is strong, our goals and the way to achieve these goals do not match the atmosphere, which is disappointing.”
graphics
516 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
31%
2%
The game receives widespread praise for its impressive and detailed graphics, with many noting the atmospheric and immersive visuals that rival higher-budget titles, especially for a free indie game. However, some criticize occasional performance issues, graphical bugs, and the comparatively lower quality of the monster design. Overall, the visuals are a standout aspect, significantly enhancing the eerie space station setting and horror ambiance.
- “The graphics are amazing and the atmosphere that this game creates is intense.”
- “The visuals are incredible and so much attention to detail has been put in.”
- “For a free game, it's a great game, good jump scares haha and nice graphics, well done.”
- “In addition to graphics in general looking a bit dated, the game has very unexpected severe performance problems in some areas.”
- “The game does not run at a steady frame-rate no matter which graphic settings I used.”
- “My only complaint was that this game didn't run very well on my laptop so I experienced a lot of lagging problems even with the graphics at the lowest setting (and this seems to be a complaint by quite a few people).”
story
499 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
62%
11%
The story in "We Went Back" is generally described as short, mysterious, and largely conveyed through subtle environmental storytelling rather than explicit narrative or dialogue, leaving much open to player interpretation. While some appreciate its eerie atmosphere and the puzzle integration with the unfolding story, many feel the plot is underdeveloped, vague, and lacks clarity or depth, which leads to a less engaging experience. Players express a desire for a longer, more fleshed-out story with clearer context, character development, and more meaningful connections to the horror elements.
- “The game excels in creating a pervasive sense of isolation, with excellent sound design and environmental storytelling that ramp up the tension without relying on jump scares.”
- “Set aboard a looping space station, the game keeps you guessing with clever environmental storytelling and tense audio design.”
- “The way it uses environmental storytelling in the ever-changing environment made me want to play it twice because I felt that I missed some details that added to this game's silent but effective story.”
- “There is no real story here, and that was a deciding factor why it's getting negative.”
- “No story line, nothing is explained, it's all just weird and makes no sense, with zero effort to explain anything to the player as to what's happening or why any of this happened.”
- “The story was underdeveloped and lacked a satisfying conclusion.”
gameplay
263 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
66%
5%
The gameplay is primarily a short, atmospheric walking simulator with a central time-loop mechanic that adds mystery but offers limited interaction and puzzle complexity. While some players enjoy the tense and immersive experience with manageable puzzles, others find it repetitive, minimal, and lacking depth or meaningful player agency. Overall, it’s a visually impressive but brief game with simple mechanics that may appeal most to fans of atmospheric exploration rather than challenging gameplay.
- “A short walking simulator–style game with looping mechanics that has you wandering through rooms and hallways, slowly piecing together a puzzle to unlock the ending.”
- “The time-loop/environmental change mechanic as you travel around the vessel is central to both gameplay and narrative, adding layers of mystery and urgency as you unravel the truth behind the station’s demise.”
- “The gameplay loop is solid and tense, scares are a little cheap, very detailed environment (tons of text and symbols that are perfectly readable but play no role in the gameplay sadly), and a rat that you wish you could pet.”
- “The puzzles, on the other hand, aren’t particularly engaging, and I must admit I didn’t really understand the purpose of the various items you have to collect... just another mechanic in the end, but still, a bit more logic overall would’ve been welcome.”
- “The 'puzzle', if you can even call it that, is just a laughable exercise in 'find the one and only thing in this entire room you can interact with, then do it.' The mechanics and linear 'plot' force you into hokey jumpscares that seem purpose-built for looking into your webcam while you pull scaredy faces.”
- “Repetitive gameplay, cheap scares, broken visuals, choppy performance, a gamebreaking glitch with the vent, and an extremely unsatisfying end to a skeletal and unexplained story.”
optimization
84 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
53%
36%
The game's optimization is widely criticized for severe performance issues, including frequent stuttering, frame drops, and poor frame rate stability, even on mid to high-end PCs. Many players report that lowering graphics settings does little to improve performance, indicating fundamental optimization problems. While some note the potential and quality of graphics, the overall experience is hampered by unpolished and inconsistent optimization that requires significant improvement.
- “A short, surprisingly well made and optimized horror game with a lot of potential.”
- “4- good optimization, 60 fps on epic settings RTX 2070 Super.”
- “Despite optimization, ran it on a 760 with everything at low and still had fun.”
- “Within the first 4 minutes of gameplay, I turned down the graphics 7 times and it did nothing to help the lag spikes. Optimization is terrible.”
- “I have way more than minimum system requirements, but cannot get more than 10 fps with constant stuttering.”
- “Performance was rather uneven, getting from 45fps to 140fps.”
music
59 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
68%
5%
The game's music and sound design effectively enhance its horror atmosphere, using eerie, ambient tracks and well-timed jumpscare audio to build tension and anxiety. While some players find the soundtrack average or not particularly memorable, many praise the strong, immersive soundscape that complements the visuals and gameplay, especially when played with headphones. Overall, the music plays a key role in creating a chilling, suspenseful experience despite the game's short length.
- “The real horror is in the sound design of the game; without loud noises for the jumpscares, it wouldn't be scary, but there are also a lot of random sounds that trigger as you walk around the station, which had me on edge that something was about to happen.”
- “The atmosphere, graphics, sound effects, music, etc. is all great.”
- “The timing is well done, music is amazing, and once you put together the story in your head you are still left wanting more.”
- “There’s no voice acting other than an announcer lady and absolutely no soundtrack or musical tracks that I can remember or notice, though that’s all okay.”
- “The atmosphere isn't scary, there's no eerie music, there's no tension, you just walk and walk without worrying about a thing... when I saw the monster for the first time, I thought "oh, it's simply a person without skin" which isn't really scary.”
- “None of it is scary, there's no real atmosphere beyond generic horror music and a couple jumpscares.”
stability
38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
5%
95%
The game suffers from frequent bugs, glitches, and optimization issues, including severe bugs causing players to get stuck or experience disappearing characters, random lag spikes, and audio problems. While some players report smooth performance on good PCs, many encounter crashes, long load times, and frustrating glitches that hinder progression. Overall, the game’s stability needs significant improvement to enhance the user experience.
- “Super polished, runs great at full settings, all that.”
- “Did it all in 1 run super good game no glitches or anything, should definitely add multiplayer though.”
- “Bugs and glitches, one severe issue: I was stuck in the vent exit on the first try and the astronaut just disappeared into thin air.”
- “The optimization is bad or I don't even know if there is any optimization... It lags on every possible setting, max and lowest, and it just can't be played because of those lags, glitches, and stutters.”
- “So far the game has been too buggy to advance past a certain point, either the same room looping endlessly before a scripted event where the monster kills you that you cannot avoid, or the same event happening then respawning you out of bounds and forcing you to restart; I've seen nothing beyond this point despite my attempts.”
replayability
29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
42%
34%
The game generally has low replayability, with most players indicating it is primarily enjoyable during the initial playthrough. Replay value is mainly driven by chasing achievements or uncovering missed details, but the experience tends to become predictable and loses its appeal upon repetition. Despite this, many find it worthwhile given its short length and, in some cases, being free.
- “Replay value is low, but you can play it maybe two or three times to pick up on all the details you may have missed the first time around and to acquire any remaining achievements.”
- “Some extra content is a nice touch, as it encourages replayability.”
- “As well with the inclusion of Steam achievements, it adds a lot of replay value with me beating the game a total of three times just to get all the achievements.”
- “No replay value: once you know the loop, the magic fades.”
- “There is no replayability though.”
- “Also it lacks replayability and is very predictable and scripted.”
humor
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game largely stems from its unintentionally funny monster design and overly predictable jump scares, which many players found more amusing than scary. Several moments, including bugs and gameplay quirks like crashes and password guesses, added to the comedic experience. Overall, while aiming for horror, the game often delivers laughs through its clunky visuals and predictable scares.
- “The first time I saw the monster, I actually started laughing.”
- “Unfortunately, scary moments are more funny than scary, but even though it's scary how much you will laugh (so there is something scary about it).”
- “In short, it is basically PT dressed up in a space suit, but while it starts off pretty creepy, it soon devolves into a series of startling sounds and sudden movements - with occasional appearances made by a fairly funny looking 'scary monster.'”
grinding
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
88%
Reviews consistently describe the grinding aspect as tedious and repetitive, often involving retracing the same locations with minimal variation. While some find the slow pacing and repetition somewhat tolerable, many express frustration with the drawn-out, monotonous gameplay that detracts from the overall experience.
- “The gimmick of going through the same location again and again and again with minor variations is tedious.”
- “This becomes especially tedious due to environmental repetition; it would have been nice to instead introduce different locations and settings, to at least add atmospheric variety, rather than being forced to retread the same territory.”
- “I'm fine with somewhat boring gameplay if story and atmosphere make up for it, but that kind of gameplay is not just boring, it's annoying and tedious and gives me a headache.”
emotional
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players experienced a range of emotions from this game, including sadness, unease, and occasional frustration, with some moments evoking genuine emotional impact. While the horror elements succeeded in creating tension, certain aspects diminished fear, leading to feelings of invincibility rather than terror for some. Overall, the game effectively provoked emotional responses consistent with its genre.
- “I cried.”
- “This game made me feel sad; please feed Billy Bob, he needs to pack on some pounds.”
- “This game made me feel uneasy while playing it, which is exactly what a horror game should do.”
character development
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
14%
43%
Character development in the game receives mixed feedback: some players praise the emotional connection and compelling storyline, while others find it lacking depth, with weak character designs and minimal plot progression. Overall, opinions vary between appreciating strong character moments and feeling underwhelmed by limited development.
- “I have to say the character development in this game was incredible; you could really connect with the characters' feelings and the ending was really eye-opening. The plot line was just fantastic.”
- “Looks beautiful, great set and character design.”
- “I wish we could feel the same or a similar feeling when we see monsters' character designs.”
- “The game is a single hallway with no plot, no character development, and only at times a sense of endless frustration for which you are never rewarded.”
- “Meets Alien Isolation but it's very short and I feel I need character development, a plot, and a full game.”
- “Very quick and boring with bad character designs.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Monetization in the game appears minimal or unobtrusive, with no direct complaints about in-game purchases; instead, the focus is on environmental storytelling through period-appropriate advertisements and references that enhance immersion.