Spooltape

I do not usually play these types of games, do love the Dev/s though, and was not disappointed.

Spooltape is a short horror visual novel built around a cursed VHS tape, and I think the idea works surprisingly well for such a small game. I am following a documentary filmmaker who finds a tape connected to a cult whose members suddenly disappeared, and he decides to record himself watching it. From there things start getting much darker than he expected. The whole game is presented around that VHS feeling, so it has a very specific old video look that fits the story almost immediately. The atmosphere is easily the strongest part for me. The distorted picture, strange sounds and VHS style presentation make the tape feel uncomfortable even when very little is actually happening. I like how the game does not need to throw something scary at me every few seconds. A lot of the tension comes from waiting to see what is on the tape and wondering whether I should trust what I am seeing. The music also helps because it gradually becomes more unsettling instead of just relying on loud noises and cheap surprises. The choices are also more important than I expected. Spooltape has multiple endings, and the decisions I make throughout the story can completely change how things turn out. I like that because it gives me a reason to play through it again rather than treating the first ending as the end of the game. The different outcomes also fit the whole cursed tape idea quite nicely because I never know exactly how far things are going to go or whether I have made the right choice until it is already too late. The biggest problem is the length. The developer says the full game takes about an hour to see everything, and I think that is about right for what is here. I do not mind short horror games, especially when they have a clear idea and stick to it, but I still finished wanting more. The story has an interesting setup involving the cult, the tape and the strange things happening to the filmmaker, but there is only so much time to explore those ideas. A longer story with more investigation and a few more scenes could have made the whole thing much more satisfying. I also think the visual style can be a bit much after a while. The VHS effects are important to the atmosphere, but the constant distortion and scan lines can sometimes make it harder for me to focus on what I am actually looking at. There is also not much traditional gameplay because this is mainly a visual novel, so most of my time is spent reading, listening and making choices. That is completely fine for me when the story is keeping me interested, but there are moments where I wish I had a little more to interact with. What I really appreciate is that Spooltape does not try to stretch its idea into something much bigger than it needs to be. It is free, it can be played fairly quickly and it gives me several endings to discover. The developer has also made an updated version with things like more font variety, German language support, bug fixes and some extra polish to the presentation. That attention to the small details helps because a game this short really depends on the atmosphere being consistent from beginning to end. Overall, Spooltape is a good little horror game that I think does more with its VHS concept than I expected. I really like the atmosphere, the strange story and the way my choices can lead to different endings. The short length and limited interaction stop it from reaching the higher scores I give to bigger horror games, and the heavy visual effects can occasionally make it uncomfortable to look at for too long. Still, it is free, it has a clear identity and it gives me a creepy little story that is easy to finish in one sitting. For a short analog horror visual novel, I think it is worth checking out. Rating: 6.9/10

Инди-хоррор с элементами головоломки, где игроки разгадывают тайны заброшенной студии. Плюсы: Атмосферное оформление — мрачная и таинственная обстановка; Уникальная механика — взаимодействие с катушками плёнки и записями; Интригующий сюжет — множество загадок и неожиданных поворотов. Минусы: Ограниченное количество локаций — некоторые игроки могут посчитать игру короткой; Однотипные головоломки — задачи могут повторяться; Технические недочёты — возможны баги и проблемы с оптимизацией. Итог: понравится любителям хорроров и головоломок. Захватывающая атмосфера и уникальная механика делают игру увлекательной, несмотря на возможные технические проблемы и однотипные элементы.

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣀⣀⡀⠀⠀⣀⡀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣿⣿⣿⠀⣼⣿⣿⣦⡀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣿⣿⡟⢰⣿⣿⣿⠟⠁ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢰⣿⠿⢿⣦⣀⠀⠘⠛⠛⠃⠸⠿⠟⣫⣴⣶⣾⡆ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠸⣿⡀⠀⠉⢿⣦⡀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠛⠿⠿⣿⠃ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠙⢿⣦⠀⠀⠹⣿⣶⡾⠛⠛⢷⣦⣄ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿⣧⠀⠀⠈⠉⣀⡀⠀⠀⠙⢿⡇ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣠⣴⡿⠟⠋⠀⠀⢠⣾⠟⠃⠀⠀⠀⢸⣿⡆ ⠀⠀⢀⣠⣶⡿⠛⠉⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣾⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣿⠇ ⣠⣾⠿⠛⠁⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣼⣧⣀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣼⠇ ⠋⠁⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣴⡿⠋⠙⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠁ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣀⣾⡿⠋⠀

制作了游戏汉化补丁 github.com/MUMU-DADA/Spooltape-Chinese-Patch/releases 下载最新汉化补丁 解压到游戏根目录后 打开游戏选择语言简体中文 即可应用汉化