PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo

[h1]A compelling mystery that utilizes the medium well, even if it didn't move me.[/h1] No unmarked spoilers here. If you're reading this on the game's page, this is your sign to play at least the first hour to see if it's for you. The value proposition is excellent. It's $20 at base price and $10 on sale, which feels generous for this 12 hour game which clearly has plenty of love poured into it. The Prologue here is excellent. Almost too excellent because the next couple of hours are heavy on exposition while the game sets up its characters, history, and case details. There are a lot of proper nouns, so I'd recommend taking advantage of the Files tab often to keep track of everything. You'll receive new Files as you uncover clues in conversations and exploring environments. After the Chapter 1 slow stretch, I started connecting clues and got hooked. Even when you fail to achieve your goal in a scene, the fail states are typically very interesting and give you new clues as you move through the story. Like I mentioned in the title, this game uses the interactive medium well. If you'd prefer to go in blind, which I highly recommend, don't read these spoilers on intera…

At first I was worried about the jumpscared but this game strayed away from that while keeping the tension.

I had a great time with this game, the story was very engaging, the few scares created a perfect spooky atmosphere without being terrifying to play through for those who don't like horror, and I loved getting to know the characters and reading through the lore. The art style is gorgeously unusual and I loved the general aesthetic. Highly recommend!

8.5/10 The beginning is a kinda boring due to the amount of information, but it's worth it. The plot is excellent: a perfect mystery, a complex web of connections, and loose threads that eventually come together to reveal the truth. As for the ending... it feels like the story was stretched to make it work, and cause of that, there are some logical issues with it. It's decent, though. This game deserves better marketing.

Compelling paranormal mystery

I am amazed I didn't run into this game sooner, since it checks just about every box I could ask for. Fun characters, well-paced world-building, a mystery to solve, and an absolutely riveting story. The mechanics are so innovative and unique for certain aspects of the mysteries that I'm almost tempted to design my own game because I'm so inspired. Despite my relatively short playtime (actual playtime is probably closer to 8.5-9 hours), I would gladly have paid full price for this if it weren't on sale. I really cannot hype this game up enough, 10/10 absolutely recommend.