White Day 2: The Flower That Tells Lies
- February 15, 2023
- Rootnstudio Ltd.
In "White Day 2: The Flower That Tells Lies - Complete Edition," four individuals return to Yeondu High on the night of March 14th, 2001, to uncover the school's hidden mysteries and confront dark secrets. Jung Soo-jin searches for answers to clear her name, while Kang Seo-yeon investigates her father's death. Meanwhile, an ancient ritual and a powerful ghost await Seo-yeon, creating a chilling atmosphere filled with suspenseful encounters. This immersive horror experience combines Korean folklore and haunting tales, offering a gripping narrative and intense gameplay for players to explore.
Reviews
- The graphics and atmosphere are significantly improved, creating a visually appealing and immersive experience.
- The game features a variety of jump scares and ghost encounters that keep the horror elements engaging.
- There is a lot of potential in the story and characters, with some interesting lore and puzzles that can be enjoyable.
- The AI for the police and guards is frustratingly broken, often seeing players through walls and making stealth nearly impossible.
- Many of the endings are bugged or unattainable, leading to a lack of closure and clarity in the story.
- The episodic structure and lack of manual save options make the gameplay feel tedious and repetitive, detracting from the overall experience.
- story37 mentions
- 16 % positive mentions
- 76 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The story of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its potential but ultimately feeling it falls short due to plot holes, confusing narratives, and underdeveloped characters. While some appreciated the episodic structure and initial intrigue, others criticized the lack of coherence and depth, particularly in later chapters. Overall, the storytelling is seen as a significant weakness compared to the original game, leaving players feeling disconnected and unsatisfied.
“I actually enjoyed the story a lot; it had a mystery that kept my attention all the way through to the ending.”
“I really like the plot of the first two chapters and look forward to the content of the third chapter!”
“This is a cult classic done right, and the hints it makes at what happened in the first one, as if to remind you this is continuing the original story, are fantastic.”
“The story is not that good either; there are a lot of plot holes and it confuses me as a White Day 1 fan. I feel like the writer really didn't do research on the last game because some theories clash with the facts/notes in White Day 1. If White Day 2 is a prequel, why do they have conflicting theories and some notes that don't make any sense?”
“The game fails to build any real tension or create a sense of dread that would make the player feel invested in the game's story.”
“Story-wise, this is a mess. The story makes no sense, the notes feel badly translated and poorly phrased, the English voice acting is terrible, and after playing through the story, I still have absolutely no idea what really happened.”
- graphics20 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game are generally praised as a significant improvement over the original, showcasing stunning visuals and a spooky atmosphere that enhances the experience. However, some players feel that while the graphics are better, they lack the immersive quality and unique art direction of the previous titles, leading to a mixed reception overall. Despite the advancements in rendering quality and detail, the game may not resonate with fans of the original due to its reliance on jump scares and a less engaging atmosphere.
“The graphics are stunning, and the spooky atmosphere is spot-on.”
“It just looks so much better and the graphics are pretty good by my standards, especially considering it's a budget game.”
“Graphics wise, a massive step up.”
“Graphics have not improved much either.”
“While the graphics are an improvement over the first game, the atmosphere is not as immersive as it could have been.”
“The game's visuals also fall short of the original's standards.”
- gameplay14 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- 57 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
Gameplay reviews are mixed, with some players enjoying the unique atmosphere and horror elements, while others criticize the numerous bugs, poor AI, and frustrating mechanics. Many find the stealth aspects lacking and the puzzles nonsensical, leading to a generally disappointing experience compared to its predecessor. Overall, while there are some interesting mechanics, the gameplay is often seen as the weakest part of the game.
“The graphics are very nice, the ambiance is scary, and the gameplay is 100% my favorite.”
“White Day: A Labyrinth Named School is a great game with good mechanics and AI.”
“I also really like the mechanic of the camera; you can use it to take pictures and find even more unique ghosts throughout the school.”
“The gameplay has a lot of bugs and the AI for the police is bad; there are no hidden places, which frustrates me as I try to navigate around them.”
“This game is missing everything good from day one; the voice acting is horrible, the gameplay is boring, and it's obvious that the developers were only focusing on one aspect throughout the development of this project.”
“Gameplay mostly involves stumbling around looking for keys and solving terrible puzzles that at times make no sense (at least in English), while being frustrated by being chased by the ever-annoying NPC who seems to always be where you don't want him to be.”
- atmosphere12 mentions
- 92 % positive mentions
- -17 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive and spine-tingling qualities, with many reviewers highlighting the effective use of "atmospheric scares" and ambient music that enhance the horror experience. While the sequel shows improvements in graphics and maintains a creepy vibe, some feel it doesn't fully capture the immersive storytelling of the original. Overall, the unique atmosphere and brand of horror are considered standout features, compensating for some gameplay shortcomings.
“Episode 1: great start, really nice atmosphere.”
“There are many 'atmospheric scares' like faces in windows that come in and out of existence that will definitely give you a fright, as does my mortal enemy, the locker ghost!”
“White Day 2 looks amazing, has great ambient music, and has a greater atmosphere than the remake.”
“The atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, lacking the depth that I expected.”
“Despite the game's potential, the atmosphere is dull and fails to immerse me in the experience.”
“I found the atmosphere to be quite lifeless, making it hard to engage with the game.”
- music8 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 13 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the atmospheric and effective background music that enhances the gameplay experience, others criticize the overall sound design as generic and lacking in memorable tracks. The menu soundtrack is noted positively, but there are calls for more diverse and engaging music to elevate the game's soundscape.
“I really liked the menu soundtrack.”
“The sound design and music is pretty good!”
“White Day 2 looks amazing, has great ambient music, and has a greater atmosphere than the remake.”
“And the soundtrack and familiar sounds, where are they?”
“Even before the game starts, the background music is scary enough to make it hard to play alone at night.”
“A couple of years later and I'm still waiting for White Day: Swan Song (turns out that got cancelled) and White Day 2: The Flower That Tells Lies comes out.”
- character development2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviewers note a notable absence of character development in the game, which detracts from the overall experience. This lack of depth, combined with reliance on jump scares and uninspired design elements, contributes to a forgettable gameplay experience.
“Another significant departure from the original game is the lack of character development.”
“The game's reliance on jump scares, lack of character development, mundane puzzles, and uninspired visuals and sound design result in a game that is forgettable and uninspired.”
- optimization2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has significantly improved with recent patches, enhancing performance, movement, and overall stability compared to its initial release, which suffered from frequent crashes and frustrating gameplay issues. Players appreciate the updates that have made the experience more akin to the original while addressing previous shortcomings.
“Now with patches and all that, the game plays much more like the original, but with better, updated movement, and is quite well optimized, especially compared to how it was before, which ran very poorly, crashed quite a bit, had AI issues, and also had specific places where you would just instantly die for no real reason, before you had the chance to react to anything that was going on.”
“The performances, graphics, art style, and characters alone are enough to continue making me love the original, even after all these years.”
- grinding2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious, particularly due to the cumbersome setup and large collision boxes that complicate navigation and chases in confined spaces. This results in a frustrating and time-consuming experience.
“The main issue is how well-known the original game is for being incredibly tedious to set up.”
“His collision box is also huge, making it really hard to kite around him in small rooms, which makes the chases even more tedious and time-consuming.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The sequel's characters are criticized for being forgettable and one-dimensional, resulting in a lack of emotional depth and motivation that diminishes the overall impact of the narrative.
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The monetization of White Day 2 has been criticized as a cash grab, with users expressing dissatisfaction over its high price for an incomplete experience and the presence of DLC despite fundamental issues in the game.
“White Day 2 is a rushed-out cash grab that should not be charging half the price it does for this 'ep1', let alone what it currently does. It's atrocious that it already has DLC when the core fundamentals of the game are at times broken.”
“The monetization in this game feels exploitative, with overpriced DLC that adds little value to the overall experience.”
“I can't believe how much they are charging for additional content when the base game is so lacking. It feels like they are more interested in making money than delivering a quality product.”
- humor1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by the amusingly broken AI at launch, which provided players with entertaining moments despite the port's various issues. Overall, while the game faced technical challenges, the comedic elements added a lighthearted touch to the experience.
“The port had quite a few issues on launch (even some now, but not really anything that ruins the game, at least in my opinion). However, when it first launched on PC, the AI was so hilariously broken.”
“The humor in this game is top-notch, with witty dialogue and absurd situations that had me laughing out loud.”
“I love how the game doesn't take itself too seriously, with plenty of funny moments that keep the experience light-hearted and enjoyable.”