You wake up alone in the dark, unsure of where you are or how you got there. Thunder rumbles in the distance, and all you have to illuminate your surroundings is a lighter...

Dying Flame is a top-down horror walking simulator with strong exploration and puzzle-solving elements. Inspired by Japanese games like Ib, Mad Father, and The Witch’s House, Dying Flame was created with RPG Maker MV by RoundTable Games Studio, a five-person team based in Malaysia. Their goal is to make games that tell compelling stories, and their flagship game carries that torch with aplomb.

GRAPHICS 8/10

Ever-present darkness conceals detailed pixel graphics. 

Pixel graphics have a wide range of shading and realism, but Dying Flame sits comfortably on the upper end of that spectrum. Moving around a black screen with only a lighter to guide you doesn’t afford many opportunities to show off the developers’ artwork, but it does evoke a powerful sense of vulnerability as you traverse the largely unseen expanse of the mansion. Intermittent flashes of lightning provide the only fully-lit glimpses of your otherwise pitch-black surroundings. When you encounter the mansion’s light-sensitive occupant, your game becomes something akin to a text adventure as you are forced to douse your light and feel your way through complete darkness. 

SOUND QUALITY 8.5/10

Listen closely—it could mean the difference between life and death.

As M. Night Shyamalan will tell you, what lies hidden in darkness is often more terrifying than what is revealed. RoundTable Games Studio displays their understanding of this critical rule with Dying Flame’s effective sound design. The void around your character’s small circle of light is sporadically filled with whispers, banging shutters, and disembodied giggles. However, the audio in this game does more than just create atmosphere. Creaky floorboards and broken glass underfoot help the player navigate the darkness when lighting up is too risky. These noises are heart-stopping in their clarity, while actions like leafing through a book or opening a door generate stock sound effects of lower quality. Music is mostly absent except during important scenes or when it plays a role in solving puzzles. Only a disquieting ambiance provides the backdrop for your footsteps as you wander the crumbling manor, but when even that falls silent, beware: you’re not alone.

GAMEPLAY 8/10

Keep to the shadows as you explore, gather items, and solve puzzles.

Even though I love horror games like Viviette and Never Again, I’m barely brave enough to take that next step into the shadows where jump scares undoubtedly lie in wait. Indeed, Dying Flame has its fair share of blood-curdling moments. As James, your singular goal is to find your wife, Mary, and escape the hellish manor together. During your search, you uncover tools, cigarettes, and journal entries that help you unlock the mansion’s mysteries.

This game tests your memory and nerves by making you maneuver around obstacles and dangerous pitfalls in total darkness while a horrific creature lurks nearby. These tense encounters balance out calmer moments when the player attempts to solve various puzzles around the manor, some of which require note-taking to crack. Smoking a cigarette provides both a checkpoint and a backup light source, but if you’re running low on smokes, the desire to save your progress begins to war against the feeling that you might need them later. This clever mechanic lets the player get a sense of what it must be like to resist the nagging need for nicotine. How long can you go without a fix? Your answer may just be the key to getting out alive.

CHARACTERS 7.75/10

What will you sacrifice in the fire?

The only characters in the game are the protagonist James, his missing wife, Mary, and a repulsive monster that stalks the dark corridors of the mansion. The characters’ movements are a little stiff, but their personalities come through clearly. We learn quite a bit about the married couple through James’s monologues and even more from the pages of Mary’s journal. Their personal history is also ingrained in mementos found throughout the mansion. Together they paint a picture of a relatable husband and wife in whom we find ourselves invested as the game progresses. But something else—something all-consuming—lurks just beneath the surface of their relationship. Our journey with James explores his battle with guilt and addiction as he searches for Mary in a waking nightmare.

STORY 7.5/10

A haunting story about one man’s devotion...and his demons.  

Dying Flame’s story is told through the eyes of James, a lifelong smoker who wakes up in an abandoned house he doesn’t recognize. After finding his wife’s journal, James sets off on a desperate quest to find her. The scattered pages of Mary’s journal, which James gathers as he explores the mansion, slowly reveal a tale of sickness, addiction, and enduring devotion. Dying Flame is a metaphor for the guilt that takes hold when our choices have terrible consequences for the ones we love. Your actions have a direct impact on the final verdict in James’s trial by fire, meaning you will more than likely need to play through the game at least twice if you want to see a happy ending. If treading the same ground again and again is off-putting to you, this may not be your cup of tea. 

OVERALL 7.9/10

This frightening puzzler has a heavy subject matter that sticks with you. 

Dying Flame’s visual mechanics, realistic characters, and fantastic sound design create a creepy and memorable experience. Jump scares abound, and the puzzles are just the right amount of challenging. Being visually handicapped now and then was difficult, but my desire to discover the fate of James and Mary drove me past my occasional frustration to the end of their terrifying tale. With four possible endings, there is plenty of room (perhaps too much) for multiple play-throughs. If you’re not afraid of the dark and you’re looking for a challenge, you’ll definitely get your money’s worth from this scary head-scratcher. 

Dying Flame was released for PC on March 22, 2021 and is currently available on Steam and itch.io. The latest version of the game was updated on April 20, 2021. The version reviewed was 1.0.5. The reviewer purchased this game at full price.