Fears to Fathom: Carson House is the 3rd installment in the Fears to Fathom series. And, though this might be a unpopular opinion, its by far my favorite of the 3 games I have played so far.

The story to me, is the best here, and really feels like a revamped Home Alone, where it has a better build up, and it hits a lot of the same beats, but I think Carson House hits those beats, significantly better.

We also are bringing the series back to a house, which to me is scary when a situation like an intruder is breaking in, because we can all relate to being in a house, late at night. When you start to do concepts of being in totally abstract places, we lose that realism factor, and we can't really relate to the fear that much.

This game is just really good, and really bumped this series up for me, where I am really interested in Ironbark Lookout to play, because I was very impressed by this. All the games so far have improved upon themselves, so if Ironbark is an improvement, then I'm sure I will quite like it.

Overall: 8/10

first game of the year

another fear to fathom game this one feels like a more fleshed-out version of the first episode being once again in a suburban house but now with more things happening and a bit more story it is a better game for it but once again very much feeling similar to the episodes with ambiance being the great scary factor but everything else falling a bit short the addition of security cameras did add to the scares thankfully without turning the game into five nights at Freddy's also there weren't any fake out jumpscares in this one which is good but I also beat the game without getting caught so idk as for the actual jumpscares again the ending feels a bit goofy to the way character models look but definitely scarier than episode 2 if anything i wish they developed the story further I dont think English is the first language of the dev but still a bit more than she was a drug addict boooo would be nice

Carson House returns the Fears to Fathom series back to basics with another suburban house location, with you trying to survive an intruder. It's clear how far the developer Rayll has come from the first game as there's a surprising level of interactivity and detail around the house. There's even a section where you bike to the grocery store, with real purpose to the story other than to show off a fully modeled store and shake things up from the house location. It's funny how long these games are taking to the get to the scary bits- almost like Rayll just wants to make a chill, immersive lo-fi life sim but has to get the jump scares in there somewhere to sell copies.

Carson House has a very oddly told story, with a massive red herring that ultimately has nothing to do with the direction it takes. It's pretty befuddling because the foreshadowing is so strong that I was expecting some huge reveal and then what is really going on is pretty simple and not all that interesting. Even still, the climax will leave you pretty breathless, with more forgiving checkpoints than chapter two, and ultimately this was another good time.

This is by far the best episode. I think this story is perfectly realized and captured. The jump in quality here is really something else.

There's a lot going on in this story behind the scenes and it builds up in a gradual way. Everything clicks by the end but you're not sure how until it happens. I wouldn't call the game subtle, but it is in the right moments.

I think the reason why this episode and villain work is because the character has an existing connection to them. The other episodes are just old creepy men that you don't know. But this time you get blindsided because your main character knows this person. There is history, and real pain.

This villain feels the most human, yet at the same time she feels the most monstrous. Those hollow vacant eyes. That unnerving smile. The way she stands there. Laughing, shaking. What I like about it is that there's a practicality to it as well due to the addiction.

A lot of these games have stuff going on in the background that you can miss if you're not paying attention. But this one has the most love put into it. When you take the time to go over the game, you realize you were being watched basically the entire game. Yet they draw zero attention to it.

As a setting, the second game is better. But this feels more scary because of the background behind the story. The story is more personal. It's easier to connect with. And I think someone you would know in real life that could do this is the more terrifying thing.

The episode isn't perfect, the stuff on the computer is slow. The story feels stretched out a bit artificially to create tension. But it's a minor gripe overall.

I think this is a knockout release and cemented the Dev as someone to look out for. Theres real talent here.

The pacing for this game is so fascinating to me. It’s like a job simulator, sort of. You pop in for the shift — in this instance, house-sitting for a local media personality — it all starts normal before things quickly start to escalate, but the main thing of note is how much time the game allocates to these distinct sections. Mainly, you spend over half the game in the period where you’re just… doing your job: exploring the house you’re taking care of, doing odd jobs the homeowner texts you to do, and mostly just… hanging out. Taking in the general atmosphere. Doing all the fun little side things that are around for you to do. It’s honestly rather cozy, which, when the game eventually does start adding horror to the equation, makes the before and after feel like two separate experiences rather than part of the same game. Not to say it isn’t effective, though: there’s a gradual process in stripping away your comfort, a real excellent job at making you realize the danger of the situation even before you actively start being preyed on, and the way the game manages to release that tension — through jumpscare or other big moment — is all really, really, effective. I do think the pacing does leave the horror off to a bit of… whatever the opposite of a head start is once it’s meant to come in, and I think for all the buildup the final do-or-die section could’ve stood to be a little… more, but other than that I liked this. Props for making a job simulator horror game that isn’t just ‘you are working the graveyard shift and are also the only employee in the store for some reason.’ It’s nice to see something that takes a look at a subgenre — and all the little inconsistencies in the tropes they tend to use — and then proceeds to take its own spin on it, making it feel more true to life while at the same time not diluting (or, at points, even enhancing) the horror aspect. And so far this series has been at least two-for-three in capturing that. Consider me impressed. 7/10.