White Noise Online
- May 22, 2014
- Milkstone Studios
White Noise Online is a cooperative horror game where up to 4 players explore haunted areas to uncover clues, while avoiding being caught by a supernatural creature. The game features over 15 playable characters, each with unique perks and skills, and 6 different scenarios. It offers a replay screen to review the team's path and choices, encouraging communication and teamwork for survival.
Reviews
- The game offers a nostalgic experience reminiscent of classic horror games, particularly for those who enjoyed it on Xbox 360.
- Playing with friends enhances the fun, making it a great co-op experience filled with jump scares and laughter.
- The atmosphere and sound design effectively create a creepy environment, contributing to the overall horror experience.
- The game suffers from slow movement speed, making it frustrating to navigate the maps and escape the monster.
- The online community is nearly non-existent, making it difficult to find multiplayer games, which limits the experience.
- The graphics and overall design feel outdated, with many players noting that it resembles a low-budget indie game.
- graphics46 mentions
- 11 % positive mentions
- 78 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many players describing them as outdated and reminiscent of early 2000s titles, often comparing them to PS2-era visuals. While some appreciate the simplistic and cartoonish art style for enhancing the game's atmosphere, others criticize the blocky textures and lack of depth, noting that the graphics can detract from the overall experience. Despite these shortcomings, some players find the graphics adequate for the game's fun factor, especially in multiplayer settings.
“This game has truly next-gen graphics.”
“But the graphics in this game are amazing for just a simple price.”
“The graphics were decent and definitely worked in favor of the game's target atmosphere.”
“This game is pretty fun with friends overall the story is a Walmart version of Slender Man with graphics of a 2008 Dell laptop.”
“It is very scary, but other than that, I can't praise it for anything; murky graphics, lazy environments, and a lack of depth make this game very bad.”
“It all felt out of proportion and everything looked so blocky; very outdated graphics.”
- gameplay39 mentions
- 15 % positive mentions
- 74 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by its simplicity and lack of variety, often compared to the popular "Slender" game, with minimal differences between characters and repetitive mechanics. While some players appreciate the multiplayer aspect and ghost spectating feature, many criticize the overall experience as lifeless, lacking in cooperative elements, and not particularly scary. Despite its basic graphics and gameplay, it retains a nostalgic charm for some, though it ultimately fails to deliver a compelling horror experience.
“The game itself is pretty good though, it's like Slender if it had multiple maps, difficulty levels, and characters with different stats that change up the gameplay.”
“It's a solid game, simple gameplay, basic graphics, enough to immerse you and make you feel like something is always watching.”
“There's also some fun multiplayer mechanics that are rather well thought-out.”
“Very old game with simple mechanics.”
“The gameplay is not fun, there's no real cooperative actions to speak of, the maps are poorly designed and sparsely populated, and indie PC horror games really need to get over the whole 'find random objects attached to random trees' euphoria it seems to be stuck on.”
“At its core, the 'game' (a term I use loosely) is a barely functional, slow-motion walking simulator in which the entirety of your gameplay experience consists of turning on a flashlight.”
- humor13 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in this indie game is widely appreciated, with players finding it particularly entertaining when playing with friends, as the absurdity of the characters and situations leads to hilarious moments. The game's blend of horror and comedy, featuring quirky elements like the invisible man and ridiculous monster designs, adds to its charm, although some players note that the gameplay can be frustrating. Overall, while the humor is a highlight, the game may not be worth a full price purchase for everyone.
“Hilarious with friends”
“I screamed when he popped up behind me yet when I realized how the monster looked... I started laughing.”
“It's like Scooby-Doo and Slenderman had a baby; it has horror and some funny things you can clip through and move through a few walls.”
- story12 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The game's story is largely criticized for being minimal and poorly executed, often compared unfavorably to the Slender Man narrative. Players note that while there is an attempt to create a backstory through collectible tape recorders, it lacks depth and coherence, making it feel almost non-existent. Overall, the narrative fails to enhance the gameplay experience, leaving many feeling that it is not a significant aspect of the game.
“As you scavenge the map for 8 recorders, kind of like the 8 pages in Slender, a story begins to unfold.”
“The story is a little difficult to understand, what happened and how this creature came to be.”
“There's not much of a story to this game; simply put, you and three others investigate different locations in order to discover the truth by collecting tape recorders which contain information.”
“The story here is rather non-existent, with the only narrative coming from an opening scene before the title screen, and the audio content that plays on the cassettes themselves when you pick them up.”
“It almost mirrors Slender, and not well, where choosing characters and the enemy are ill explained, no story to speak of, and awful level design means that this game is good for a cheap scare if it is on sale, but full price may be hard to swallow.”
“The story is a little difficult to understand what happened and how this creature came to be.”
- atmosphere11 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is generally praised for its effective sound design and ambient music, which contribute to a genuinely spooky experience, especially in dark settings. However, opinions vary on the graphics and overall execution, with some players noting that while the atmosphere has potential, it can be undermined by less engaging gameplay elements and inconsistent visual quality across platforms. Overall, the atmosphere is highlighted as a key strength, particularly when experienced in solitude or with friends.
“The atmosphere and music have been nailed perfectly.”
“Some of the maps were genuinely spooky in an atmospheric way.”
“The ambient sound is really creepy and lends itself perfectly to the atmosphere.”
“Great potential, good atmosphere, but is nothing more than a shittier, goofier rendition of Slender.”
“This also negatively affects the atmosphere, losing the thick dread of ever-present danger and replacing it with a comically lazy monster that does little to impede your progress.”
“In this version, the graphics are really clear and not scary in my opinion, but on the Xbox, it's all fuzzy and has weird static effects; the Xbox has a way better scary atmosphere.”
- music7 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews; while some players praise it for effectively enhancing the creepy atmosphere and building tension, others find it repetitive and unpleasant. Overall, the ambient sounds are highlighted as a strong point, contributing significantly to the game's eerie tone.
“The atmosphere and music have been nailed perfectly.”
“The music and sounds set a good creepy tone.”
“Ambient music and sounds are simply 10/10.”
“The music was awful, really repetitive to the core and just made me feel like I wanted to vomit. I'm not even joking.”
“The visuals and music are also simple.”
“You should probably play some old Scooby-Doo music; it makes it feel right.”
- stability4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's stability is generally solid, with only a few minor graphics glitches reported that do not significantly impact gameplay. Players have noted that while these issues can be annoying, they are manageable, and the game performs well on both PC and Mac.
“This release is amazing, and they have done a great job porting it over to PC. The game runs smoothly on Mac computers as well.”
“The stability of the game is impressive, providing a seamless experience without any crashes or major bugs.”
“I appreciate how well-optimized the game is; it runs consistently without any performance issues.”
“Has a few graphics glitches that are annoying in solo play.”
“There are a few minor glitches that do not affect the gameplay.”
“There are a few minor glitches, but you can easily work around them.”
- grinding3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and monotonous, with many expressing that it quickly becomes boring after an initial period of enjoyment. The repetitive nature of traversing uninspired environments leads to a frustrating experience where meaningful progress feels elusive.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“It was kind of fun for 30 minutes, then it became really boring and more tedious than anything.”
“This culminates in a dull, monotonous game that sees you spending the bulk of your time walking in circles through nondescript environments, making it nearly impossible to make any progress and incredibly tedious as you constantly retrace your steps.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has drawn mixed reactions, with some users noting the need for advertising to encourage replayability. While the current discounted price of $4.49 is seen as affordable, there are concerns that the developers may be prioritizing quick profits over long-term engagement.
“For the low (currently discounted price) of $4.49, you too can support game developers who are only in the gaming industry for a quick cash grab!”
- replayability1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -500 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players highlight that the game's mechanics ensure each match feels unique, significantly enhancing its replayability.
“Each match feels unique, significantly enhancing the replayability.”
“The variety of strategies keeps the gameplay fresh and encourages multiple playthroughs.”
“With so many different outcomes and choices, I find myself coming back for more.”
“The lack of variety in missions makes it hard to feel motivated to replay the game.”
“Once you've completed the story, there's little incentive to go back and play again.”
“The game feels repetitive after just a few playthroughs, diminishing its replay value.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is praised for its smooth performance, creating an immersive experience without disruptive window modes, which enhances the scare factor reminiscent of titles like "Slender: The Arrival." Additionally, it effectively punishes cheaters, adding to the overall tension and engagement.
“The game runs smoothly, and there's no window mode, which can give players a big scare, similar to 'Slender: The Arrival', where hackers get humiliated for cheating.”
“The optimization is impressive, allowing for seamless gameplay even in intense moments.”
“I appreciate how well the game performs on lower-end systems without sacrificing visual quality.”
- character development1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviewers praise the character development for its unique and distinctive designs, setting it apart from other games in the genre.
“The character designs are unique and different from any other game I've seen.”
“The depth of character development really makes you feel connected to each character's journey.”
“I love how the characters evolve throughout the game, making each decision feel impactful.”