tl;dr: overall, the collection was great and 100% worth experiencing for yourself. some of the games aren't too good, but others make up for it.
let's start this review off with the hub world (made by lovely hellplace) as i cannot rank it with the others, even if i'd consider it a 13th game. it has a bunch of great puzzles for you to solve and is very atmospheric. the puzzle and story writing is solid and the scares the place has to offer work really well! i have no complaints about the hub at all, it's great. but with that out of the way, let's get to the short horror games(listed from my least fav to most fav)
number 12 - the thing in the lake by panstasz
oh boy, do i have a lot to say about the thing in the lake, what should i even begin with? it has an extremely frustrating difficulty. there's a random chance that an enemy will appear every time you try to leave a room, it does nothing but make you have to hurry back to another screen transition, not to mention it can happen in some rooms where you have no chance of escape, great! i'm also not too fond of the game's story(feels a bit weird and disconnected) and any seriousness it tries to have it taken away in its secret ending.
number 11 = the toy shop by mahelyk
this one really didn't work for me. what it's trying to do is neat, but it ends up janky and not the most interesting to me
number 10 = another late night by secret cow level
it's more funny than scary, and the execution of what's going for ain't the best, it feels like it doesn't fully realise what it wanted and doesn't leave any lasting impression with its story.
number 9 - arcadletra by vidas games
so many jumpscares! the game also feels really disconnected and like it's trying to go for two or three different storylines at once(?), it's really weird but i don't hate it
number 8 - to the end of days by scythe dev team
i have no idea if i like this more or less than arcadletra. the health regeneration is really annoying and takes a while, which takes away from the intensity and urgency this game is going for. there is also an extremely loud screamer enemy and the voice acting isn't good, but i feel like it's what the game was going for(it kinda sounds like it's parodying max payne). other than that, this was a really atmospheric game, with a pretty neat finale and vibe throughout
number 7 - touched by an outer god by wither studios
the gameplay gets really repetitive after a while, though the concept is quite interesting, liked it a bunch
number 6 - sucker for love by akabaka
i don't like dating sims, the characters aren't my favs, it's less horror than most of the other games but the one scare it did have was really good
number 5 - undiscovered by torple dook
it has a really unique camera angle, the game is pretty solid throughout, it nails the "discovering a previously unknown tomb" vibe it's going for and my only complaint would be that it's a bit janky at times. very solid game!
number 4 - solipsis by daniel mullins games
only negative thing i could say about this game is it's lacking gameplay-wise, the story, atmosphere, scares and setting are all great!
number 3 - squirrel stapler by david szymanski
i struggle to say anything negative about this game, it's unique, has engaging gameplay, great ideas and great utilisation of said ideas. it also has the best ending of all these games. i cannot tell you anything negative about this game other than the story being not the best, not bad either though. uhh maybe it's a bit hard at times? not hard enough to get me frustrated though so it's not an issue.
number 2 - charlotte's exile by john szymanski
a really unique concept for gameplay and the story that i love, not the best scares, though they weren't that bad either
number 1 - the diving bell by bathysfear games
all the compliments that i gave to squirrel stapler apply here too, however i like this game's atmosphere and story much more. it also has an actually well developed protagonist. the diving bell is absolutely wonderful and my favourite game from the second dread x collection!
let's start this review off with the hub world (made by lovely hellplace) as i cannot rank it with the others, even if i'd consider it a 13th game. it has a bunch of great puzzles for you to solve and is very atmospheric. the puzzle and story writing is solid and the scares the place has to offer work really well! i have no complaints about the hub at all, it's great. but with that out of the way, let's get to the short horror games(listed from my least fav to most fav)
number 12 - the thing in the lake by panstasz
oh boy, do i have a lot to say about the thing in the lake, what should i even begin with? it has an extremely frustrating difficulty. there's a random chance that an enemy will appear every time you try to leave a room, it does nothing but make you have to hurry back to another screen transition, not to mention it can happen in some rooms where you have no chance of escape, great! i'm also not too fond of the game's story(feels a bit weird and disconnected) and any seriousness it tries to have it taken away in its secret ending.
number 11 = the toy shop by mahelyk
this one really didn't work for me. what it's trying to do is neat, but it ends up janky and not the most interesting to me
number 10 = another late night by secret cow level
it's more funny than scary, and the execution of what's going for ain't the best, it feels like it doesn't fully realise what it wanted and doesn't leave any lasting impression with its story.
number 9 - arcadletra by vidas games
so many jumpscares! the game also feels really disconnected and like it's trying to go for two or three different storylines at once(?), it's really weird but i don't hate it
number 8 - to the end of days by scythe dev team
i have no idea if i like this more or less than arcadletra. the health regeneration is really annoying and takes a while, which takes away from the intensity and urgency this game is going for. there is also an extremely loud screamer enemy and the voice acting isn't good, but i feel like it's what the game was going for(it kinda sounds like it's parodying max payne). other than that, this was a really atmospheric game, with a pretty neat finale and vibe throughout
number 7 - touched by an outer god by wither studios
the gameplay gets really repetitive after a while, though the concept is quite interesting, liked it a bunch
number 6 - sucker for love by akabaka
i don't like dating sims, the characters aren't my favs, it's less horror than most of the other games but the one scare it did have was really good
number 5 - undiscovered by torple dook
it has a really unique camera angle, the game is pretty solid throughout, it nails the "discovering a previously unknown tomb" vibe it's going for and my only complaint would be that it's a bit janky at times. very solid game!
number 4 - solipsis by daniel mullins games
only negative thing i could say about this game is it's lacking gameplay-wise, the story, atmosphere, scares and setting are all great!
number 3 - squirrel stapler by david szymanski
i struggle to say anything negative about this game, it's unique, has engaging gameplay, great ideas and great utilisation of said ideas. it also has the best ending of all these games. i cannot tell you anything negative about this game other than the story being not the best, not bad either though. uhh maybe it's a bit hard at times? not hard enough to get me frustrated though so it's not an issue.
number 2 - charlotte's exile by john szymanski
a really unique concept for gameplay and the story that i love, not the best scares, though they weren't that bad either
number 1 - the diving bell by bathysfear games
all the compliments that i gave to squirrel stapler apply here too, however i like this game's atmosphere and story much more. it also has an actually well developed protagonist. the diving bell is absolutely wonderful and my favourite game from the second dread x collection!