Scarlet Hollow Reviews

Coming form the first game of the devs, I knew I would like this game. But instead I ended up loving it. There are so, so many different paths this game can take thanks to the different combinations of traits your character can take. It was super fun exploring how each of my decisions played, the "good" and the "bad" ones. I once again fell in love with the art style which could look very pretty in some scenes and effing terryfying in others. Considering this is a visual novel, I did not expect to get scared that much at certain points thanks to the visuals. But the sound design did its part regarding that, too. Way too realistic at times. It was awful. It was great. Kept me on edge even after finishing my first playthrough. REALLY looking forward to the next episode of this gem!

If you like dialogue games, exploring choices, and discovering hidden gems, this game is one you'll most likely enjoy. The music, art, and dialogue all work together to create the mysterious world of Scarlet Hollow where your actions have real consequences on your character and the story line. To create some diversity in playthroughs, you have 6 characteristics that you can choose and you're free to combine 2 (or 3 in hard mode) however you like. The game, full of wonderful characters with their own motivations, balances humour and intensity to keep you engaged throughout. I have yet to play chapter 5, but I cannot wait for it to come out! POSITIVES: Strong story line Characters are in-depth Music Controls are easy Interesting dialogue WARNING: Don't play if you don't like dialogue and reading - there's a lot (which is the beauty of it!) DISCLAIMER (If you are new to choice based story games): Like with all choice-based games, there are some key points in the story that must be hit. Don't expect the game to go in COMPLETELY different directions each play through. My review is relatively biased since this is the type of game I typically enjoy - there are only a couple of instances where the dialogue might not be what I would choose, but that is personal preference and I cannot put that to the creators.

AHHHH THIS GAME IS SO GOOD. I am NOT the type to ever replay games but I have in fact replayed the first four chapters (what are currently out while writing this review) about 5 times soon to be six. There is so much to this game and each time you can play it different and experience different things. SO MUCH. I have still yet to experience everything and who knows if I will ever? Another note, even if you're not the biggest fan of horror, this game really isn't that bad with it. I find myself with the tendancy of a low horror tolerance and this game was fine by my books.

Black Tabby Games are some of the most talented story-tellers and developers I have ever had the pleasure of discovering. Scarlet Hollow is an unsettling visual novel that will keep you hooked the whole way through. If you enjoyed Slay The Princess, I can say with utmost confidence that you will enjoy Scarlet Hollow just as much, if not more. If you're thinking about it, go for it. I loved every second of this game and I cannot wait for the release of future chapters.

Incredible game, it’s extremely easy to replay as there are 21 different trait combinations to pick from at the start of the game. Additionally every choice you make matters and impacts the story. It’s funny, the characters are charming, and the horror is top notch. It doesn’t rely on cheap jumpscares and is generally unsettling especially in chapter 4. The only problem is that currently the game is not complete. Even so Scarlet Hollow is an amazing game that’s well worth the price. Even more so if you enjoyed Slay the Princess.

As somebody who lives in NC, can confirm the game is lore accurate. In seriousness. this game is amazing. well written with a million different choices to make. Big and small. Worth every penny.

Up there with Disco Elysium, Roadwarden, 80 Days, and Fallen London as one of the best narrative games I've ever played.

The only negative of this game is that it's not yet finished. But even with the chapters we have as of the time of writing this review (4 out of the 7 planned), I think it is entirely worth its price. As of the 4 chapters, I've also 100%-ed the game achievements, which should tell you how lovely it is for someone to want to go back and experience every option of a visual novel. The writing spans from comfy, to tense, to funny, to scary, to a mix of all the above and more. And the art is beautiful as well. It's not [i]majestic[/i] per se, but it feels human, if that makes any sense. The sound design is also great; I haven't played that many visual novels, but I thought they would feel much more stationary, whereas Scarlet Hollow has both a beautiful soundtrack, and an abundance of properly timed sound effects. For anyone who has been playing the game throughout the years and the constant updates, it's heartwarming to see the developer's improvement. And for anyone who is curious about testing the waters before jumping in: the first chapter is free! I think it's a decent taster, especially after the "Roads Untraveled" update they had. Overall great recommend, unless it has a disastrous ending, but with the developer's track record so far in both Scarlet Hollow and Slay the Princess, I don't think that's going to happen.

Thanks to a little nudge from a new online friend I’ve made who lives in North Carolina, I got to play this wonderful gem of a game (and we’re definitely going to go cryptic hunting whenever I make my way to the US like what Stella does. Long live cool cryptids). The characters are lovely. Stella, Kaneeka and Tabitha are stand-outs to me. I love the trait system, it makes every playthrough feel fresh and new. I love how choosing different traits will also largely change the outcomes of the story and situations depending on what you chose - some will really, really help you to get the “‘best outcomes’”, but some just make the game even more fun to play (talk to animals is funny just to see what the animals say. Frou-Frou is a sassy smug mf). The art is gorgeous. The town and countryside design is beautifully detailed, there’s so many new, fully drawn scenes instead of just different backgrounds with the same sprites. The art has been made with the utmost care. I also like this game as an outsider (I’m from Australia) because I’ve learnt a fair bit about American terms and folklore from this that I wouldn’t have known about. I like Scarlet Hollow even better than Slay the Princess. I was originally going to wait until all the episodes were out, but I’m so glad my friend gave me the push to play. Now I’m like a drug addict going through withdrawal waiting for the rest of the episodes to come out. I will be waiting very patiently, but also a bit like a rabid animal.

Start of my first playthrough: Acted as a respectable houseguest, made myself a PB&J, went out to town and was invited to have a lovely cup of coffee with one of the locals. Start of my second playthrough: Ate the biohazard in the ancient takeout box, stumbled to the local library, screamed at everyone inside that the place was haunted, ran outside and vomited into a bush. Conclusion: Peak fiction.