Gloomwood

10/10

great immersive sim, its very easy to get lost in the world of gloomwood and its a genuinely enchanting game to engage with. its fun, and it feels very rewarding to make progression. no automated stealth takedowns either- every step forward you make is all on you, and i love that its still got a very long road ahead in terms of development, but even as it is i still find it to be an awesome experience

good

A unique blend of stealth, horror and action that never loses its edge. Not even technically complete, and still one of the best stealth games I've ever played.

The First True Thief Successor The Thief series is my favorite of all time. Nothing has come close in decades. Until Gloomwood. This is the first game that truly captures what made Thief 1 and 2 special. Not just the aesthetics, but the design philosophy. It is obvious this was made by people who deeply understand those games. The atmosphere is sinister and oppressive. The game drops you into a hostile world and tells you nothing. You have to observe, experiment, and figure out where you are and how to survive. That mystery creates real tension. The level design is excellent. Multiple paths. Multiple solutions. You set your own difficulty through playstyle. Go loud and deal with the consequences, or move through the shadows and feel genuinely clever. The weapons and tools are seamlessly integrated into the stealth systems. They are not gimmicks. This is not Thief with weapons. It stands on its own while honoring its inspiration. I also played Dishonored. While some compare this to Deus Ex or Dishonored, I honestly do not see many similarities beyond having equipment at your disposal. The feeling is completely different. Gloomwood captures something older and more deliberate. The retro aesthetic feels intentional and faithful to the immersive sim roots. The environments and animations are crafted with care. Even in Early Access, what is here is polished. Starting a new run feels like chasing the dragon. I genuinely wish I could experience it for the first time again. If Thief meant something to you, Gloomwood will too. I would happily pay much more just to see it finished sooner.

Great game in a dishonored style

its not finished so it feels weird to say its my favorite game i have ever played, but i cant stop even after finishing the latest campaign area. the research update adds so much replayability and even after beating it, when you go back to some places you already got past a long time ago there's a whole new altercation going on. the lore is intriguing, especially because its not really explained and the game isn't done so you have to use your imagination and the many notes in your journal you get along the way. the stealth is my favorite from any stealth game i've played (thief 1-2, dishonored 1, filcher, intravenous 1-2, and assassins creed if you count it as stealth though i wouldn't) although this game is 60% stealth 30% rampage 10% exploration. i've heard people say they didn't like how janky the enemies are, and the fishery area seemed a little hard for my friends when they began it but that's a skill issue and the ai feels amazing. the difficulty is perfect. the models, textures, and character design are beautiful and the atmosphere is #1. one of my favorite aspects is the mantle system, parkour is one of my favorite genres as well as stealth and i love when they combine in some way. and this is a weird detail to love but the doctor has a clean fit on at all times. i love looking at my hands and seeing my well tailored suit, gloves, ring, and whatever beautiful weapon i have in my hands to accompany them. the level design is insane and it blew my mind when i finished an area, lowered a rope, and it connected to an area from before. i don't usually play lots of horror but the scariest areas in this game were probably my favorite. i also really love getting rich, exploding heads, discovering species and creating serums in a dark lab straight out of Frankenstein, and decorating my room in the emerald eye with rare treasures and alien artifacts. i could keep going on but i've already glazed as much as possible, 1000/10 thank you dillon rogers