tl;dr: dreadx2 is definitely an improvement over this one and brings some nice changes to the table (10 games in 7 days each -> 12 games in 10 days each + introducing a hub world), yet this collection still has some great games worth playing! i'd recommend it, as it's also a bunch cheaper than the other collections.
as this is a collection of games, it would only be fair to review each separately.
it's also worth mentioning that unlike the other collections, this one has no hub world and 10 games made in 7 days. i'm glad they decided to change this in the future titles. without further ado, let's get to the short horror games!(ranked from least fav to most fav) oh and a quick note - i'd say i like the top 4 about equally, those games were extremely hard to rank and i'm still not completely sure about their placements.
number 10 - rotgut by snowrunner games
the most glitchy, meaningless, terribly optimised walking simulator out there, i have no words for rotgut. the devs could have done much more seeing their potential in soda drinker pro.
number 9 - don't go out by secret cow level
the game gives you so many cards which are just useless, there seems to be only one way to get through the night and i got it figured out in under 10 minutes. the pixel art's good though and the game has a fun, unique idea. there's missed potential here.
number 8 - the pay is nice by oddbreeze
has some interesting concepts, but it's really short and has a very abrupt ending i think. not too bad but i can't put it any higher.
number 7 - the pony factory by david szymanski
it's probly the worst game by him that i have played, it's still not bad but the gameplay gets very stale. the ammo refills and medkits are balanced well though and the game's concept is pretty original. oh almost forgot to mention, gotta love the slow down button that this dev puts into his games.
number 6 - mr bucket told me to by strange scaffold
it's a survival horror game with resource management, but the resources felt really janky at times, i couldn't tell how to refill this or that. still a really interesting game, with a good story. this is the first game on this list that i liked quite a bunch.
number 5 - summer night by airdorf games
the gameplay drags on for slightly too long, though the scares were good, the game was unique and the ending was well done.
number 4 - shatter by lovely hellplace
these devs could do so much more with a full release of an rpg(cannot wait for what dread delusion will have to offer once it gets out of early access!) but even as a short game, shatter is very charming and unique, i love it even if it's certainly not the best game out there(it's kinda short too).
number 3 - outsiders by mahelyk
so much better than this dev's title in dreadx2!! at first i unfortunately missed the point of this game and kept resetting instead of dying, but once i figured it out, i can safely say this game was one of the best in the collection.
number 2 - carthanc by scythe dev team
again, miles better than their feature in dreadx2. carthanc has a similar vibe to "to the end of days", but the gameplay here is much more enjoyable. great atmosphere, great setting, great gameplay. my only complaint is that they could make the enemies not be walking screamers, it gets annoying after a while.
number 1 - hand of doom by torple dook
it's amazing. original, very charming and i can't wait for its full release on steam. with each title you can expect torple dook's games to be some of the best, truly unique ones in these collections.
as this is a collection of games, it would only be fair to review each separately.
it's also worth mentioning that unlike the other collections, this one has no hub world and 10 games made in 7 days. i'm glad they decided to change this in the future titles. without further ado, let's get to the short horror games!(ranked from least fav to most fav) oh and a quick note - i'd say i like the top 4 about equally, those games were extremely hard to rank and i'm still not completely sure about their placements.
number 10 - rotgut by snowrunner games
the most glitchy, meaningless, terribly optimised walking simulator out there, i have no words for rotgut. the devs could have done much more seeing their potential in soda drinker pro.
number 9 - don't go out by secret cow level
the game gives you so many cards which are just useless, there seems to be only one way to get through the night and i got it figured out in under 10 minutes. the pixel art's good though and the game has a fun, unique idea. there's missed potential here.
number 8 - the pay is nice by oddbreeze
has some interesting concepts, but it's really short and has a very abrupt ending i think. not too bad but i can't put it any higher.
number 7 - the pony factory by david szymanski
it's probly the worst game by him that i have played, it's still not bad but the gameplay gets very stale. the ammo refills and medkits are balanced well though and the game's concept is pretty original. oh almost forgot to mention, gotta love the slow down button that this dev puts into his games.
number 6 - mr bucket told me to by strange scaffold
it's a survival horror game with resource management, but the resources felt really janky at times, i couldn't tell how to refill this or that. still a really interesting game, with a good story. this is the first game on this list that i liked quite a bunch.
number 5 - summer night by airdorf games
the gameplay drags on for slightly too long, though the scares were good, the game was unique and the ending was well done.
number 4 - shatter by lovely hellplace
these devs could do so much more with a full release of an rpg(cannot wait for what dread delusion will have to offer once it gets out of early access!) but even as a short game, shatter is very charming and unique, i love it even if it's certainly not the best game out there(it's kinda short too).
number 3 - outsiders by mahelyk
so much better than this dev's title in dreadx2!! at first i unfortunately missed the point of this game and kept resetting instead of dying, but once i figured it out, i can safely say this game was one of the best in the collection.
number 2 - carthanc by scythe dev team
again, miles better than their feature in dreadx2. carthanc has a similar vibe to "to the end of days", but the gameplay here is much more enjoyable. great atmosphere, great setting, great gameplay. my only complaint is that they could make the enemies not be walking screamers, it gets annoying after a while.
number 1 - hand of doom by torple dook
it's amazing. original, very charming and i can't wait for its full release on steam. with each title you can expect torple dook's games to be some of the best, truly unique ones in these collections.