Reviews

• gamedeal user

  Oct 18, 2021

  Thanks to Civvie for pointing this game out, truth be told it was laying dormant in my Steam library forever and I wouldn't have finally installed it if it weren't for him. I'm not the biggest fan of these type of games but the atmosphere is top notch and keeps you playing. It's a shame it's no longer available on here.
• gamedeal user

  May 25, 2014

  An exercise in tedium and insane logic. This is a point and click horror game similar to games like Myst, but with no sense of consistancy or logic to keep things going. Story driven, and reliant on the whims of the protagonist instead of player decisions, your progression is limited by the stubborness of the character. Want to open a locked door? How about you look inside those pots for a key. Nope, he's not interested until you find a hidden photo that vaguely indicates that a key might be in a pot. Then you can look in the pot. Most of the time, the correct course of action seems to be to call Jerry, a character who gets increasingly annoyed at the protagonist's inability to do anything themselves. I can certainly relate. After playing for a short amount of time, I'd be very surprised if the protagonist can go to the toilet without asking Jerry for help. After nearly every task on the first day, you need to phone him. Open a door, phone Jerry. Find a newspaper, phone Jerry. Lights don't work, phone Jerry. Phone Jerry. Phone Jerry. 1.5 hours were spent simply wandering around the house clicking on everything trying to find something that might move things forward, then calling Jerry, then trying to find the thing that was not interesting before but is now. Most of this does not advance the plot at all, but is simply dealing with the hassle of moving into a new house. The first couple of hours were spent establishing that the character is stranded in the house with no power. A little information about evil masks and creepy tribes are hinted at, but then cast aside to deal with the main, super spooky plot of calling in an electrician. When you eventually go down into the spooky cellar to try and fix it yourself, with a creepy atmosphere and tense music...nothing happens. Interacting with anything is limited by the ludricous thought processes of the protagonist. Want to pick up that tool over there? Nope, it's junk. Nope, there's no reason for you to carry it. But you'd better pick up that can lid, it might come in useful. Wander around the house with a knife? Good idea! Go outside to open the garage now that you have the key? No it's raining, and the character doesn't feel like it. Climb inside a creepy furnace without any cause to do so? Absolutely. Puzzles are rediculously obscure, and variate between pixel hunting and using everything with everything, usually to achieve very simple tasks. 1.5 hourse before anything resembling a plot hook shows up. While there were some interesting bits here and there, it wasn't worth trudging through the awful puzzles to get to them. Even when scary bits appeared, they were jump scares, with the musical stingers being far more intense than the actual events. I stopped caring about the story very quickly. In short, save your time and money. For a scary, atmospheric horror game with a plot you discover as you play, go for Amnesia. If you are looking for a deep story that will chill you to the bone, go read a horror book. That way you don't have to deal with endless fetch quests.
• gamedeal user

  Dec 7, 2021

  “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown” ~H.P. Lovecraft

  What's your favorite scary movie? Ahem! Sorry. Wrong line. Anyway, horrors. Let me tell you about horrors. Because, let's just admit it – horrors are a pretty complicated topic. I mean, define scary? When it's about slashers, it's pretty easy. You either find them disgusting or you laugh your heart out, while consuming unhealthy amount of popcorn. Because primetime, b***es! If you know what I mean. But are those really scary? Well, I don't think so. Especially when it's about books. Because honestly, I never understood the appeal of reading about somebody slashing people in pieces. Movies of such kind work better (for example, who doesn't like the good ol' Robert Englund and his legendary villain), but then again, those aren't really that scary (popcorn guy here). On the other hand, there's H.P. Lovecraft phenomenon. Most of his stories are, like, exactly the same thing again and again. And not all of them are even well-written. But then again, when you read Mr. Lovecraft's works, you can't stop feeling that certain... thing. That things that gets you out of your comfort zone. Just because of how he nailed that certain atmosphere. Atmosphere of the unknown. Atmosphere that makes you think that there are forces beyond your comprehension in play. Atmosphere that makes you feel that. That is what really makes me scared. Some movies got that right. Take the first Blair Witch movie for example. There was no slashing and spooks were barely there, but at the same time, it was scary as F just because you felt that there's something in the woods. And the fact that you can't actually see it? It used to make things even more scary. Now, let's talk about video games. Sure, we had quite a lot of great horrors before Scratches. We had Robert Hirschboeck with all his charisma in the legendary 7th Guest dilogy, we had dream-like journey inspired by H.R. Giger's works in Darkseed, we had criminally underrated video game adaptation of John Saul's serialized novel Blackstone Chronicles (no, seriously, you should totally check it out in case you've missed it), we had Phantasmagoria from queen of Point-and-Click genre, Roberta Williams, herself etc, etc, etc. Not only those were very good games, they actually got the idea about the atmosphere quite right. But at the same time... you kinda knew what to expect there. Sure, those were pretty spooky by video game standards. But still, they didn't try to play with the idea of the unknown. Now, here comes Scratches. Technically, it's a pretty simple game. It's just out usual first-person Point-and-Click adventure with a free camera, similar to what we had in games like The Forgotten: It Begins and Riddle of the Sphinx before it. And you know what? It's not even that good as a Point-and-Click title. The interactions are logical (originally, this game was supposed to have the unfair development that was somewhat similar to what we had in William R. Fisher III's Romantic Blue, bu thankfully, it was canned) but way, way too basic and it's not like there's a lot of them too. Seriously, there are only a few things to do and there isn't much items to interact with. I mean, you can open pretty much any drawer here and look at pretty much everything, but there are only few things to pick up and use. In other words, don't expect Return to Mysterious Island here. And don't expect MYST, of course, since there are no puzzles here to solve. It's just that – you pick up the rope and surprise-surprise! You use it for climbing. So... what's so cool about this game? Why everybody likes it so much? The secret of this game is, as you can easily tell at this point of my review, is in its atmosphere. Even though it's a pretty short game (even by Point-and-Click standards) and there aren't that many places to visit (the entire game takes place in one single mansion), it simulates the real experience perfectly. In other words, Scratches is a lot like an interactive experience thingy. You're at that old mansion. Alone. And your car is broken. What would you do? Naturally, you'll start to explore and... that's when the real fun will begin. See, Scratches is not one of those movie-like experiences. It won't force the story on you. Things won't just happen. The idea is for you to dig up some tiny little pieces from the past. One by one. That's exactly why it's one of those games that you should at least try to beat without the guide. Just because that's the entire appeal of this game – you walk through the empty house, you read old diaries and notes, you look at the things that were left behind, you discover some disturbing facts and then suddenly, you realize that... but no, I won't spoil anything to you, of course. What's fun is that there's actually a hidden ending here, in this exact version. Technically, it works more like an Easter egg, but in a way, it's a very funny nod to people with no imagination. In other words, “just stay calm and do your job” people may find the entirely different finale that fits their personalities perfectly. And as for the rest of us... Like I said, Scratches is all about little details. It's not about the items you pick up, it's not about puzzles, it's not even about the storytelling. It's about you being there. Reading the old notes of the previous inhabitants, going through the things they left in their rooms and being scared of the dark mystery that may (or may not) being hidden in the mansion. That's what this game is all about. You read the note that gives you certain idea, you begin to feel uncomfortable and then... then you hear something and being like "KYAAAAAAAAA!!!" It's not just our usual jumpscares or something. This game is more than that. It consumes you. Gets you involved. Up to the point where you'll feel a lot like Robert Olmstead from Lovecraft's The Shadow over Innsmouth. You'll have that spooky mystery at your hands but you won't be able to stop digging. You In other words, it's one of the very few games that put the atmosphere over everything else without becoming one of those “walking sims” with exactly nothing to do. In its heart Scratches is still our usual first-person Point-and-Click adventure, but it feels more like an experience. One of those you'll never forget. P.S. You may wonder about the “Director's Cut” and how it's different from the original. Well, first of all, the visuals were tweaked a bit and the game looks more spooky now. Nothing groundbreaking, of course, but still, it does look better. There's also new and improved soundtrack. Most importantly, though, there's a new feature (in your inventory you'll find a pretty useful journal, in which our character will keep all the notes about what happened so far), Easter eggs, an alternative ending I've already mentioned above and... some sort of an extra chapter. In so-called “Last Visit”, we'll return to the mansion as different character to take a final look at it and learn about... well, again, I don't want to spoil anything to you, but... let's just say it's more like a way to get rid of the loose ends. You can beat the entire chapter in only a few minutes, but it does help with those loose ends, so... yeah. It sure does feel a bit disappointing and those loose ends deserved way better, but well, it's still better than nothing. In other words, this version is quite a different thing from what we had originally, but after this there's literally no reason to go back. Dixi.
• gamedeal user

  Jun 23, 2014

  Recommended with some caveats: the game is an often tense, but not horrific, atmospheric experience that is unfortunately marred by some very obtuse puzzles. Certain parts of the game's story won't progress until you do something specific, and it's not always clear what you're supposed to do. In one case you simply have to use the telephone, but there's nothing telling you that. It's a point and click in the old-school Myst style, where you move through largely static environments and uncover the story gradually while working through puzzles. The old house is spooky and beautifully detailed, and has held up pretty well graphically consdering the age of the game. It can still offer an engrossing old school point and click experience, but it comes with the downsides of old school obtuse adventure game logic. Be prepared to look up some of the puzzles and don't expect a lot of horror and you should enjoy this.
• gamedeal user

  Aug 26, 2014

  Like playing through a horror novel, this game is absolute bliss for point and click fans. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNsdOR3zbpc&index=1&list=PL21B2FE7E57494E24
• gamedeal user

  Nov 12, 2014

  For the people who find this game to be too difficult, here is a Will Stamper quote that might make you think: 'If you hate hard stuff, shut up and do better'. It's not hard, you just need to do better. Great game by the way. Pretty damn cool.
• gamedeal user

  May 21, 2023

  Yeah I know I'm getting old but the in game text is too small and the diary's script is worse
• gamedeal user

  Jul 6, 2013

  Not yet completed this game. So for all you die-hard horror fans out there who have not yet bought this: BUY IT NOW!
• gamedeal user

  Apr 22, 2011

  I am a fan of adventure games, especially in the horror genre, but I can't honesty recommend this game. It basically boils down to wandering around a house for 8-10 hours straight. Clues are incredibly subtle at times, and puzzles are often quite arbitrary. The story actually starts off with an interesting premise, but the scary factor wears off after you realize, 2 hours in, that nothing actually happens in this house. Not until the end -- and by that point, the lame ending is little recompense for your hard work. If you're thinking about playing this game, I have just one tip for you: Call your friend/realtor Jerry. Even if it makes no sense to call him, just do it. Half the time, you can't do anything until you call him, but there's no indication from the game that this is what you're supposed to do. You'll waste a lot of time wandering around wondering what you missed, and then realize you need to call your BFF Jerry to advance time forward enough to get a new clue.
• gamedeal user

  Aug 2, 2018

  For me, one of my biggest gripes with most horror games is the same with most modern horror films: no substance. Many games in the genre seem to rely so heavily on the simple "jump scare" tactic that its become an embarassing trope. What was once a rarely used, often to great effect method of really terrifying the player/viewer now has become a crutch upon which so many bad games and movies rely on. Scratches- Director's Cut is not such a game. This point and click style adventure game sees you as an author taking a trip to Blackwood manor, an estate with a strange and sordid history where you are tasked with completing your current novel and perhaps take inspiration to write others. Taking the role of Michael Arthate, you explore the manse and its grounds, piecing together an ever darkening mystery which by its end will leave you wanting more like it. Taking strong inspiration from the works of HP Lovecraft, this game's heart lies in its writing and backstory. Pouring over journal entries, notes and clippings unveils a dark plot whose connections to a possible occult force really grips you, and though this game's ending may not be as magnanamous as its core story, I feel it perfectly encapsulates that sense of "fear of the unknown" beautifully. Gameplay is...finicky. Though this is a traditional point and click adventure, it exists in a quasi-3D space, though you are mainly static and can only move along set paths while looking around in a full 360 view of each area you visit. One major drawback to this is the movement of the cursor when looking around, as it has a momentum and can be hard to adjust to for awhile during first play throughs. Sadly I could not find a way within the game's settings to adjust this more like a FPS' look controls, but after my playthrough you adapt to it without much issue. Thankfully unlike adventure games of old, this game won't have you slogging through arbitrary arcade sequences or nonsensical puzzles to progress forward. While there are some points that the "puzzles" are not well defined, all of them operate under sound logic and make sense. The English voice cast was excellent, giving each character (all...5 I want to say?) distinct personalities and quirks, which help engross me into its narrative. Michael is something of a whiny sod at the start, his companion (and your only real source of hints other than your Journal) Jerry is that best friend who you just know may have put you in way over your head, and your secretary Barbara is fun and bubbly, which is a nice contrast on occasion. I can safely say there was never a character who sounded bad or phoned in to me...even though...erm, you only talk to people over the phone. Even with its second companion story, the game is relatively short, and can be completed within an afternoon, at most I'd estimate 3 hours or more if going completely blind first time around. Graphically this game is a bit rough, and one of its other drawbacks is the movement from locations. Going in between rooms requires dealing with Resident Evil style door animations each and every time, which can slog down the game. However, this is a game meant to be played slow and meticulously, so I understand why its like this. Environments throughout the game space have a classic gothic horror feel to them, and in many ways feels like a true spiritual successor to the classic "Alone in the Dark." The name of this game is ATMOSPHERE. All in all, I really enjoyed this game. It gave me the right kind of horror experience I liked, with a gripping story, decent exploratory puzzles, amazing soundtrack, haunting ideas, and leaves me wanting more.