DreadOut

Much room for improvement but the concept is good, several bugs, otherwise it was enjoyable, I think the length is fine but I expected more

These are initial thoughts, not a full review. I have not played the Fatal Frame games myself, but I have wanted to. Also, I am a bit of a wuss when it comes to horror games. I enjoyed games like Resident Evil 4 and FEAR, but these are action games with horror elements. Horror games are another beast entirely. People talk about how bad the controls are - and they are not wrong. Still, it is harkening back to games on the PS1 & PS2 that had janky controls. It could very well have been a deliberate choice to wrong-foot players and make them uncomfortable. After all, this isn't an action game; it is a horror game first and foremost. Having limited ability remap the controls (I can't use triggers? Really?) is surprisingly effective at wrong footing the player. Also the camera swings around a bit too freely, but this can also be a deliberate choice as it requires the player to maintain cool. One thing this game nails, though, is atmosphere. Linda walks slowly but has a run function and cannot run while taking photos. The first level's setting is unsettling. Everything looks dirty and cobbled together, like nature is encroaching on the location as it crumbles. Linda appears to wake up in this place without much more context than the player. It gives me the creeps to walk around this house that appears to have been recently abandoned. All in all, I'm looking forward to spending more time in this world.

Standard gameplay from the 2000's survivor hoorror.

Honestly, I figured I would ignore the negative reviews to make my own judgement. This game should be called "Dreadful" instead of "Dreadout" because of how god awful this is! I know I'm basically reviewing this game prematurely as I've only played a few hours. However, I've been playing this garbage experience fumbling around for what feels like forever trying to figure out what to do! There is absolutely no real guidance for the player to progress. You'll be searching around these huge areas for a LOOOONG time just trying to figure out what you need to find and do. The game tells you to pay attention to the blue aura that surrounds your camera for indication that something important is in that area, but the game is so broken that it indicates on the wrong level, when it could be indicating below you or above you! I swear this game is like a walking simulator. Plus this game is WAY TOO DARK! Seriously, what is with these cheap games having pitch black darkness!? The phone light doesn't even help much. Characters, plot, VAs, and the overall experience is horrible! It truly does feels like one of those cheap Unity engine flash horror games where everything feels so awkward and out of place. The voice acting is so bland, and the interactions are cringy. It's never explained why Lin is completely silent and somehow has the ability to kill ghost with her cell phone. Everything happens without reason and explanation. Maybe I'm just reviewing too early....but honestly this is beyond disappointing for a horror game. Nothing is scary! I was hoping that maybe this game wouldn't bore me to death so quickly, especially since I got this on sale after waiting a long time for it! Honestly, what little bit of money I paid for this trash wasn't worth it. I even had issues just trying to install the damn thing on my computer! Do yourself a favor and don't listen to positive reviews! This game might be inspired by fatal frame but quality-wise it's just garbage compared to it.

Graphical quality even with the best setting is really poor. Lots of glitches everywhere. Puzzles are awful and barely worth the title. No background story so no engagement with the characters and what little story there is. Then you add some weird bugs. Terrible all round.