Gone Home

 PC
User Score
5.5

Mixed or average reviews- based on 2245 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 939 out of 2245
  2. Mixed: 433 out of 2245
  3. Negative: 873 out of 2245

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  1. frankielee
    Jan 4, 2016
    6
    it was a little bit of a dissapointment for the game was praised a lot and i had high expectations. it is very short and when you finish the game you see that there is no mystery element. although through the gameplay, there is some. i dont know why they placed the "mysterious" objects in the house and the weird previous owner in the game because they have no function at all.
  2. eternalsnows
    Oct 23, 2013
    6
    Gone Home is a difficult experience to describe, especially when it comes to recommending it to someone else. It's an interactive short story, and I do mean short. The script for the written notes and spoken dialog probably wouldn't amount to more than 10 pages. The characters are very broadly sketched with only the smallest hints of depth and complexity. The focus of the narrative is aGone Home is a difficult experience to describe, especially when it comes to recommending it to someone else. It's an interactive short story, and I do mean short. The script for the written notes and spoken dialog probably wouldn't amount to more than 10 pages. The characters are very broadly sketched with only the smallest hints of depth and complexity. The focus of the narrative is a really pretty mundane love story which presents little in the way of surprise.

    What Gone Home does well though is provide a powerful injection of 100% pure, high grade nostalgia directly into the bloodstream. Nostalgia both for childhood and adolescence in general and the 1990s in particular. A story for the ages this is not. A story for people who were teenagers in 1995? Yes. Maybe.

    The writing is good and the voice actor who played Sam did an excellent job. That, coupled with the introspective and tender mood, is enough to carry you through at least one playthrough (80 minutes for me). That said, there's certainly no reason to play again. In fact, when you start looking back over the experience you begin to resent the numerous red herrings whose sole purpose seemed to be to obscure the real focus of the story for as long as possible.

    In the end I found Gone Home to be atmospheric and touching in a simplistic way, but also fundamentally shallow. The asking price of $19.99 on Steam is way, way too high. I'd recommend purchasing only when a big sale comes along, and then only if you're a fan of this genre of entertainment.    … Expand
  3. linkenski
    Sep 3, 2013
    6
    First of all, this is a "reactive" review, and i'll explain what I mean shortly. After seeing so high praise for this game, I decided it was time to play it myself. Is 1 out of 10 justified..? No but giving this a 10 out of 10 is just as bad.

    This game is very interesting and I think a lot of people hating it, are not admitting they actually liked playing it, because arguably this is a    First of all, this is a "reactive" review, and i'll explain what I mean shortly. After seeing so high praise for this game, I decided it was time to play it myself. Is 1 out of 10 justified..? No but giving this a 10 out of 10 is just as bad.

    This game is very interesting and I think a lot of people hating it, are not admitting they actually liked playing it, because arguably this is a very enjoyable game if you like story-focused games. The problem however, is that when everything in Gone Home is said and done, you'll leave house of the Greenbriar family with a feeling of emptiness. It offers what ends up being a very cut and dry, completely ordinary and nowhere near thought-provoking story.

    If someone spoiled the story for you, you've already heard what there is to experience in this game. It offers nothing more and for a 1-3 hour game I don't think the price-point it launched with was justified.

    Don't let this game fool you. It's not deeper than it seems. There is nothing to learn from this game aside from observing the way it tells its story. That's the true meal of Gone Home. It has a lot of great ideas to tell its story, because it uses red herrings as a means to distract the player from the main story and in the middle of the game the player might be unsure of whether it's actually a tragic tale or just an ordinary day for the protagonist.

    I think all the 2s out of 10s this game is getting by the user base is a reaction on all the praise it gets from the bigger video-game reviewers. There's nothing particularly special about the story in this game, and in the end it feels like you've been cheated.

    I'm letting Fullbright off the hook with my review. It was interesting to play Gone Home, and I enjoyed it a lot. But when I finally pieced everything together I realised I might actually have been wasting my time. This is a definitive "hipster-game"    … Expand
  4. ArjanS87
    Oct 25, 2013
    6
    Again I have to say in a game review that people by default try to rate a game as if it was made by the big game companies that produce big series. However, The Fullbright Company is a team that tries to bring their fresh view onto gaming from a virtually unknown reputation.
    The comments about it being a slightly repetitive, short game with little action are definitely true and if you    Again I have to say in a game review that people by default try to rate a game as if it was made by the big game companies that produce big series. However, The Fullbright Company is a team that tries to bring their fresh view onto gaming from a virtually unknown reputation.
    The comments about it being a slightly repetitive, short game with little action are definitely true and if you really need to have this in a game you better can skip this one.
    However, I personally found the narrative to be of such a quality that I kept on looking for new rooms and items, all the way until the end.
    Granted... it is not the best game by far and to say that it is good is already a heavy statement, but for the 10 euros I paid for it, it was well well worth the spending and I'll be keeping a sharp eye onto this fledgling company!    … Expand
  5. chaser2099
    Aug 23, 2013
    6
    As someone who honestly enjoys a good playable story, this hits relatively high. The gameplay is smooth, the sound is smooth, everything regarding the game is smooth. Unfortunately, the game is quite short and on top of that, the story is a bit lacking at points.
  6. PizzaWizard
    Aug 24, 2013
    6
    The best way to describe this is as a virtual easter egg hunt. Instead of easter eggs you find story fragments, you assemble them together in your head to paint a picture, like putting together pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Sure, you don't need every jigsaw puzzle piece in order to understand what the big picture is but some are more vital than others.

    What will determine how much you like    The best way to describe this is as a virtual easter egg hunt. Instead of easter eggs you find story fragments, you assemble them together in your head to paint a picture, like putting together pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Sure, you don't need every jigsaw puzzle piece in order to understand what the big picture is but some are more vital than others.

    What will determine how much you like this game is how much you like the stories. Two of the stories are delivered very well. You have to put the pieces together on your own which makes them very intriguing. The other story is the one the game dedicates itself to most. It is pretty heavy handed and is the most poorly delivered and the least interesting. This is where the game failed with me. If you are annoyed by teenage infatuation then this isn't for you. If you love the 90s and lifetime dramas then you'll be all over this.

    6/10 for an interesting idea that could have communicated an interesting story but failed    … Expand
  7. tbone86
    Aug 28, 2013
    6
    This game is very difficult to rate. I was enthralled with the details in the house and of the story; the problem is that there are just no puzzles or anything to solve. Every answer is plane and simple. This game started off with a creepy feeling, and if they would have gone the horror/adventure/puzzle route, this would have been an amazing game.

    Instead they just told a touching    This game is very difficult to rate. I was enthralled with the details in the house and of the story; the problem is that there are just no puzzles or anything to solve. Every answer is plane and simple. This game started off with a creepy feeling, and if they would have gone the horror/adventure/puzzle route, this would have been an amazing game.

    Instead they just told a touching story, that I still found interesting nonetheless.

    If I knew going into this game what it was, I'd give it a 10. Based on what I thought it was going to be, it's a 1 however. I enjoyed the story, and I was constantly waiting for some kind of twist that just never came. I'll settle on a 6 for effort.    … Expand
  8. Mariokata
    Nov 30, 2013
    6
    I DON’T RECOMMEND THIS GAME AT FULL PRICE

    BUY ONLY AT 75% OFF. Gone home is a first person exploration game. Well maybe it’s not a game but more of an experience. There are no puzzles, no challenge and nothing to put your game skills to test here. This “game” is all about exploring a house, looking at items and basically learning more about the people who live in the house and their    I DON’T RECOMMEND THIS GAME AT FULL PRICE

    BUY ONLY AT 75% OFF.

    Gone home is a first person exploration game. Well maybe it’s not a game but more of an experience. There are no puzzles, no challenge and nothing to put your game skills to test here. This “game” is all about exploring a house, looking at items and basically learning more about the people who live in the house and their background. Without spoiling the story because this is the meat” of the game I will have to say that it tries to create an emotional connection with the user but the problem here is that THIS connection is hard to be established on all people who play the game and it depends on their own norms/values. That is also the reason that some people like the game and others dont. Furthermore this game is full of Easter eggs. If you were born in the 80’s just like me you will find a lot of references here. Some items will bring back memories from your childhood. The “game” is all about creating nostalgia but nonetheless it covers a very sensitive topic.

    Personally the story for ME was not very touching and to tell the truth I enjoyed exploring the house and finding those 80’s and early 90’s easter eggs more. The main story was average and predictable to say the least.

    Pros: beautiful environment that looks and feels like a real house, lots of Easter eggs, 80’s nostalgia is everywhere, good voice work, the soundtrack is excellent and the music fits with the tone of the game

    Cons: main story it’s predictable and boring, there is no real gameplay here, no replayability, the game is only 2 hours long and it’s also very expensive for its duration.

    FINAL SCORE: 6.5/10    … Expand
  9. chellboy
    Sep 22, 2013
    6
    This "game" is hard to rate. Because although it fits the definition of a game, it isnt really. Its more of an interactive book played out through a house. Its only 2 hours but its meant to immerse you and learn the family only through look around the house. The problem is, it doesnt even do that very well. I like the story and the ending but it presence itself in a weird way. It reads youThis "game" is hard to rate. Because although it fits the definition of a game, it isnt really. Its more of an interactive book played out through a house. Its only 2 hours but its meant to immerse you and learn the family only through look around the house. The problem is, it doesnt even do that very well. I like the story and the ending but it presence itself in a weird way. It reads you journal entries from absolutely nowhere, serious where did it come from? There a notes scattered which are pretty interesting but there just isnt enough of them and they are so easy to find. Not to mention they are place in very stupid locations. Such as Sam's private diary being in Kat's room on a bedside table. The story about the haunted house is totally underdeveloped and leads to nothing.

    The house is very interesting and well designed for most of the time. I actually really enjoyed myself and the ending warmed my heart, but it was afterwards I realised the faults. Its fun just unfinished and underdone. Add more notes and make it longer and this would be with the absolutely ridiculous price. This game should not have been worth more than $5.    … Expand
  10. M0vingon
    Sep 7, 2013
    6
    Don't buy into the hype, but don't fall for the extreme negativism either. I bought this game as a result of the reviews. To me it doesn't earn a 10 or anything above a 6.
    The amount of game play to complete does not, IMO, warrant a $19.99 price tag. Unlike other users, I had no issues with glitches or the functionality of the game.
    The storyline was engaging enough to keep me playing    Don't buy into the hype, but don't fall for the extreme negativism either. I bought this game as a result of the reviews. To me it doesn't earn a 10 or anything above a 6.
    The amount of game play to complete does not, IMO, warrant a $19.99 price tag. Unlike other users, I had no issues with glitches or the functionality of the game.
    The storyline was engaging enough to keep me playing (which is saying something), but the end was sadly predictable. I found myself waiting for something startling to happen, but it didn't. Frankly, short was good considering I was tired of following the predictable plot line.
    The ability to interact with objects was unnecessarily overdone. There were far too many empty drawers to open, tissue boxes and 3-ring binders to pick up- all with no relevance to the game. And no, I don't care about the nutritional information on the cans of cola strewn about the mansion.
    Props to the devs for the retro theme. I had particular fun with the 3D print in Sam's room as a throwback to the '90s.
    I would like to have seen the parents' individual storylines fleshed out much more.
    Overall, I'm giving it a 6, because I feel that this genre of game has massive potential (think Zork from the '80s), but it is also extremely difficult to do well. It is easier to captivate with big baddies and shiny loot than to engage the player with simple environments and story driven plots. Gone Home had me engaged from the beginning to end, but ultimately I may not have had the patience for it to go on much longer as it is written. For the price, I am looking for better.    … Expand
  11. ShalashaskaJC
    Sep 9, 2013
    6
    It's just not my adventure. The love story was nice, and it looked fairly good, but it's lacking substance for the price. This should be a $10.00 USD game for the two hours it took to complete it. I liked it, yet it needs another year of making it into a full game.
  12. fffred
    Oct 26, 2013
    6
    This story-telling game has an interesting story, and the theme is rarely seen in video-games. The tone, atmosphere and style are good and bring a new approach to this genre.

    But for 20 dollars, I expected to play more than 2 hours, and the technical realization was not satisfactory (mostly because of lags). On top of that, the game system becomes repetitive at the end of the two hours    This story-telling game has an interesting story, and the theme is rarely seen in video-games. The tone, atmosphere and style are good and bring a new approach to this genre.

    But for 20 dollars, I expected to play more than 2 hours, and the technical realization was not satisfactory (mostly because of lags). On top of that, the game system becomes repetitive at the end of the two hours of playing. The right price would be around 5 dollars.

    Last thing, even if the subject of this game is interesting and challenging, it could have been developed more, and could have avoided some clichés. I hope that this game will encourage such "serious" subjects to be developed.    … Expand
  13. Reace
    Nov 10, 2013
    6
    Pretend yourself in a situation where you are left to be alone at your friend's house and they gave permission to "Do whatever you want, anything at all" and you thought of exploring the house. While you are at it, will you get disturbances like in horror movies? Find a secret passageway that leads you to new chain of adventures and secrets? Discover the mysteries of the family of yourPretend yourself in a situation where you are left to be alone at your friend's house and they gave permission to "Do whatever you want, anything at all" and you thought of exploring the house. While you are at it, will you get disturbances like in horror movies? Find a secret passageway that leads you to new chain of adventures and secrets? Discover the mysteries of the family of your friends that can be life changing to yourself?

    None whatsoever. and that is exactly what Gone Home is. a realistic own home exploration game that only focus on telling you family stories on top of putting nostalgic items from the 90 's for display.

    For myself, the main story are not as interesting. In fact, it gets predictable the further you go so there's not much surprises. Game-wise, it's very casual which could easily bore you. If you care about the game play, and storyline means nothing much to you, I won't suggest this game.

    I like the game as it is, but I'm not sure I enjoy it enough.    … Expand
  14. arh5103
    Nov 10, 2013
    6
    I really enjoyed this game for what it was. An "escape from the room" type game on a bigger scale with a decent story to follow. Not much replayability sadly which is what I was hoping/thinking it would have. I thought in places, at least, there was some potential for further explanation for certain parts of the story. Not bad though overall.
  15. victorhjkl
    Dec 8, 2013
    6
    Gone home has a very short story but it doesn't mean that the it isn't good, in the game you just have to go through the story without trouble there isn't guns or something like that, Gone Home is boring sometimes it hasn't amazing graphics, just some persons will like this game, but if story is just what you are looking for in a game you will enjoy it.
  16. Murther
    Dec 2, 2013
    6
    I liked this game for the most part. It makes you piece together the story yourself, through searching your house and discovering clues as to where your sister and parents have gone. It's a form of storytelling that I think should be in more games. I thought the story was superb... until I got to the end. I left my ninety minute experience angry and disappointed, because this game tricksI liked this game for the most part. It makes you piece together the story yourself, through searching your house and discovering clues as to where your sister and parents have gone. It's a form of storytelling that I think should be in more games. I thought the story was superb... until I got to the end. I left my ninety minute experience angry and disappointed, because this game tricks you into believing something interesting is going on... But it's not... seriously at the end it was a huge let down, and the game tricks you like this on purpose. It's also too expensive, don't pay more than a couple of dollars for this game it's way too short.… Expand
  17. homosaur
    Dec 12, 2013
    6
    I agree with most of the people on here that say Gone Home is conceptually brilliant and essential, and I also agree with those that think the story is somewhat bland. I appreciate the unique perspective, and the game really drips with nostalgia for the 1990's Portland underground. It really does feel like it really understands time and place. However, there's actually little story, it'sI agree with most of the people on here that say Gone Home is conceptually brilliant and essential, and I also agree with those that think the story is somewhat bland. I appreciate the unique perspective, and the game really drips with nostalgia for the 1990's Portland underground. It really does feel like it really understands time and place. However, there's actually little story, it's more of a short interactive fiction work.

    It's also too expensive. If I had paid $20 for this like some on here, I'd be furious with the length and lack of interaction. At $10 it's still a bit pricey. I'm not sure if the high cost is due to a custom engine, but if that's the case, they should have likely got something off the shelf and made the game cheaper. Unless you can get this for $10 or less, I unfortunately cannot recommend it despite the fact that it's something everyone should play once.    … Expand
  18. Citizen2BX
    Mar 11, 2014
    6
    Over all was interesting. I like how the story of it unraveled. Seemed to have just enough clues to help solve what ever simple puzzle was going on, and, or on where to go next.
    It really kept me glued to it most of the time for the few hours it took to play/walk the game.
    I think they are on to something here, but in the end I was a bit cheated and disappointed. I was starting to    Over all was interesting. I like how the story of it unraveled. Seemed to have just enough clues to help solve what ever simple puzzle was going on, and, or on where to go next.
    It really kept me glued to it most of the time for the few hours it took to play/walk the game.

    I think they are on to something here, but in the end I was a bit cheated and disappointed.
    I was starting to feel let down when it was obvious where the story was headed. What was the main story I thought was just a side story.

    Either at one time, or, it's just to throw you off, you play because you hope there is something supernatural in the house. For a while I suspected that maybe I would find "Sam" hanging to death in
    some secret passage.

    Instead I am forced to hear some homosexuality story. Not that I have some hatred towards homosexuals, but then at the same time I don't really need to know all the details of it.
    I don't really care if you want to have sex with animals or inanimate objects, etc., for the most part I'd be like okay, yea, please don't tell me about it, I'm not asking.
    But like a lot of homosexuality in the media, etc., as in this game you are forced to know about it, and it ends up being the story.

    I don't like all the "haha you thought you would see ghosts, or something (interesting)". Yea I'd rather see those things then rather have it all be about homosexuality.

    I don't see how people gave this the "game of the year" last year.
    Other then like Hollywood it seems obligatory for like minded people to give such subject matter high praises. Like it was no big surprise that "brokeback mtn" got so many Oscars et al.

    Okay, just over hyped and shallow in the end.    … Expand
  19. WinkOrDie
    Jul 1, 2014
    6
    The bad thing about reviewing this game is that the game is not very depth mechanics wise. This review is basically hindered on the fact of how well I liked the story and the few characters that are in it.

    I enjoyed the story quite a bit, I did find myself really enjoying the character development and recording. It really let you into the life of you (Kaitlin) and your sister you hear    The bad thing about reviewing this game is that the game is not very depth mechanics wise. This review is basically hindered on the fact of how well I liked the story and the few characters that are in it.

    I enjoyed the story quite a bit, I did find myself really enjoying the character development and recording. It really let you into the life of you (Kaitlin) and your sister you hear through recordings (Sam).

    The audio was pretty great. The voice acting was solid, not that this was an extremely difficult job but great nonetheless. The music was pretty solid queuing in when needed and the song at the ending makes a nice parallel to something you hear from your sister earlier on it hit home with the song at the end.

    Graphics... I am not one to talk about graphics too much because I do not care about them unless they take you out of the experience the game is going for. For this game I think they are okay, nothing spectacular in the sense the textures are a little messy which take you out of the "zone" but for what it is it's okay. Period.

    The length of the game is very short. Even with someone like me who read every document and what not, it only took me ~2 hours. That is good and bad... Good because the story could only really a hold a 1-3 hour length. Bad because some people have paid $10-$20 for this game and it is not worth that price at all. I picked it up today on the steam sale for $2.99. Yes it was worth that price tag and maybe a $5-7 price range but nothing more.

    For those saying this shouldn't be a game, I disagree wholeheartedly. The reason being this game could not exist as is in another medium. It is far too short and lacks depth to be a book or a movie.

    Overall, it is a good game, with a huge emphasis on story so don't expect anymore mechanics from a interactive story. Should you pick it up? Yes, if you enjoy JUST a story and ONLY if you can find it from a $0-5 price range. I feel very bad for the people who spent $20 on the game so I do understand where there frustrations come from.    … Expand
  20. gloriouspotato
    Nov 18, 2016
    6
    Ultimately, Gone Home is a story about the struggles of a teenager coping with the stigma of homosexuality and the sad realities of life, including the dysfunctions in her family and history of the setting the game takes place in. A well told story overall, but otherwise quite unremarkable in all other aspects of the game.
  21. Metatarsals
    Aug 21, 2014
    6
    This is more of an interactive novel than it is a game - and no matter how much I wanted to really like it (riot grrl?! hell yeah!), it just didn't have the game play to back up to $15 price tag.

    I beat this game in about 80 minutes, which is saying something. I love to take my time, winding through a game and exploring all of its hidden secrets, but there wasn't a whole hell of a lot    This is more of an interactive novel than it is a game - and no matter how much I wanted to really like it (riot grrl?! hell yeah!), it just didn't have the game play to back up to $15 price tag.

    I beat this game in about 80 minutes, which is saying something. I love to take my time, winding through a game and exploring all of its hidden secrets, but there wasn't a whole hell of a lot of that in this game. You're just walking around in half lit rooms, trying to figure which hallway you're in, trying to move the story forward. This is something that would have definitely worked better as a short story or even a short film.

    Maybe the console update will see some improvements, here's to hoping! Not the best, but not the worst either. A solid 6.    … Expand
  22. nscime1234
    Dec 15, 2014
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game Gone Home is an interactive story game that is told from the perspective of Kaitlin Greenbriar who has just returned home from a trip around Europe. Upon her arrival at the house she finds that it is deserted and there is an ominous letter left for her from her sister. The ultimate goal of the game is to figure out what’s happened to your family by examining the many different items that can be found in the house.

    After you get Sam’s note on the front door of the house you immediately begin assuming that something bad must have happened to your family for them not to be there. After being introduced to all of the members of the family you slowly begin to put together everyone’s stories. I found that the game focused more on the life of Sam then it did on her parents. Although that might have been the intention I felt like it made me disinterested in what her parents were doing. Although I liked the way that the game used different items and documents to get parts of the narrative across I found that it became annoying to constantly be picking up and closely examining every single item in the house to decide whether it was important to the story or not.

    I liked the fact that the game was based more on real life and telling a story through interacting with different items within a house. But the game did raise some questions that kind of threw me off even though it’s probably just me nitpicking. First I find it kind of strange that there’s a way you can traverse the house and pick up all the items in a pretty much chronological order. Even though the ultimate path you choose is up to you it just seemed kind of strange that all of the documents that detail the beginning of the family’s experience in the house would all be in one section of the house. I personally think that it would have been more interesting for the items to kind of be more scattered about so that it’s more of a puzzle for the player to put together the entire story.

    The second thing that came to mind was “is it just me or is the Greenbriar family made up of a bunch of complete slobs. Seriously there are piles of paper and other items just left about everywhere in the most disorganized fashion. Was recycling not a concept back in 1995 because no one is going to be able to find anything in the casual pile of one thousand post it notes left on a table. In fact some of the things in the house seem to have been lying there for over half a year and no one bothered picking it up. For example Katie got back on the 6th of June 1995 and she discovered a sheet on the ground and a document from around when Sam started school on September 6th 1994. That would be almost ten months that those documents were left lying on the floor. But I guess I could really just drop the nitpicking and call the Greenbriar’s messiness a somewhat arbitrary plot device.

    Overall I found the game and it’s concept to be rather interesting. The graphics were pretty good and gave the house some nice detail. Even though I found the ending to take a surprising and somewhat disappointing turn I would recommend that you play the game for yourself to make your own experience in the Greenbriar house.    … Expand
  23. possumboss
    Dec 15, 2014
    6
    Gone Home is a game about a girl named Katie who returns home from a year long trip to a new house. When Katie arrives she discovers that her family is not in the house and appear to be missing. Katie then searches the house to find clues to her family’s whereabouts. While Katie searches the house she uncovers shocking secrets about her family that have been carefully hidden for years.Gone Home is a game about a girl named Katie who returns home from a year long trip to a new house. When Katie arrives she discovers that her family is not in the house and appear to be missing. Katie then searches the house to find clues to her family’s whereabouts. While Katie searches the house she uncovers shocking secrets about her family that have been carefully hidden for years.

    Gone Home has one of the best stories that I have ever seen in a video game. (Though calling it a video game is a stretch). Gone Home takes the player on a 3 hour journey through one of the most densely packed stories in modern gaming. It is hard to talk about the story without ruining the ending. But what can be said is that the setting has the player thinking about one thing while the story is going in a completely different direction. The ending comes as no surprise to the player once they reach it, but the ending would seem absurd at the start of the game. The ending leaves the player with no loose ends and a certain happiness for the characters.

    The game doesn’t boast the most high definition graphics or the most cutting edge gameplay but the attention to detail makes up for it entirely. The not so high quality graphics even add to the atmosphere of the house. The graphics are meant to be played on a low brightness which has the player often turning around to see if that shadow was indeed a person or not. The attention to detail in the house was extraordinarily good. Everything in a 1995 home was there, with the exception of shoes, but one would not even notice this unless it was mentioned to them. The player learns all there is to know about a family in the mid 90’s, from tacky furniture to VCR’s it is all there.

    To call Gone Home a video game is a stretch. It is more of an interactive story in the form of a video game. In a contemporary video game the player makes choices and has different ways to overcome different puzzles or challenges. In some games the way one completes a task will affect what happens later on or the level of difficulty. Gone Home is extremely linear. There are no two ways of finding things or opening doors in Gone Home. Everything is laid out for the player to find, the only thing that can change is the order in which things are found.

    Gone Home is an excellent experience. The story was compelling, the setting was unique, accurate and added a level of realness to the story. But to call it a video game is a stretch. The game is definitely good there is no question about that, but if one does a excellent first run through they will feel no need to play it a second or third time. A truly good game would compel the player to play more than once, it is a game you can come back to years later and still have the same experience as you did when first played. Gone Home doesn’t achieve this. I would still highly recommend this game though.    … Expand
  24. SondreVa
    Nov 1, 2015
    6
    Gone home is a game about Kaitlin, who have just come home from he backpacking trip in Europe. When she comes home no one is there, and she finds clues to where the rest of the family have gone.

    The good things about this “game” is that it has a somewhat great story, and you can interact with almost all the 1990s artifacts you find in the house. The amount of details the developers put    Gone home is a game about Kaitlin, who have just come home from he backpacking trip in Europe. When she comes home no one is there, and she finds clues to where the rest of the family have gone.

    The good things about this “game” is that it has a somewhat great story, and you can interact with almost all the 1990s artifacts you find in the house. The amount of details the developers put in to the house is also astounding. It is like they googled the 1990s and just put everything in the house. So if you are a 90s kid you will most likely get a nostalgic feeling. The journals were also really well written, and the voice actor for Samantha did an amazing job of making you invested in her, but the gameplay felt really slow, mainly because you could not sprint, so you had to take your time with everything. Which I personally don’t like, because I am really impatient. The graphics was not amazing, but they aren’t really the focus of the game either, and you cant expect really expect the most advanced graphics from a crew of 3-4 people.

    Gone home is a very short game, I spent 1-2 hours on the game, this includes the entire story, inspecting various 90s artefacts and even using the developer commentary. Because of the lack of length of gameplay I don’t think this game should be priced at 20$. And I personally would not really call this a game, sure it is interactive, but you would get the same experience from watching a short movie with the same plot.

    As I said I only spent about 2 hours on the game, so the story is not that long and it is not really detailed, and I would like to see journals written by both her parents, Daniel and Lonnie. It was an interesting concept to only follow Samantha, but the story became very predictable after 4 journals.

    It is not the best game I’ve played but it is certainly not the worst either. But I think Fullbright as a company has great potential, and Gone home is good steppingstone to make great games.    … Expand
  25. eliseefristad
    Nov 8, 2015
    6
    Gone home is a first person interactive adventure game set in 1995. The player takes on the role of Kaitlin, a girl who returns from a year abroad to find that the new house her family has moved into is completely empty. The player then has to search through the house for clues to locate where Kaitlin’s family could be. As you play you come over hidden secrets of the other family membersGone home is a first person interactive adventure game set in 1995. The player takes on the role of Kaitlin, a girl who returns from a year abroad to find that the new house her family has moved into is completely empty. The player then has to search through the house for clues to locate where Kaitlin’s family could be. As you play you come over hidden secrets of the other family members all while unsettling noises is to be heard everywhere…

    The first thing that hit me about this game is its flawless graphics, the game never fail to flow elegantly between different moves the player makes and I almost forgot I was looking at a game and not a real home. It was a brilliant idea to choose the narrative to be Kaitlin who along with the player is discovering the house for the first time.

    The tone of Gone Home sets it up to be a creepy and scary game. There is something unsettling about hearing the rain outside while you are walking through a large and unfamiliar house and I was constantly waiting for a jumpscare or something really scary and dramatic to happen and was a bit frustrated when I realized the whole gameplay contains of walking around the house solving puzzles and looking for clues. After I got over that I realized just how amazing the story was and I was astonished of how many details the creator put into it to make it feel like your dealing with real life people. The journal and voiceover part was done wonderfully and made you really connect with the character Samantha and sympathize with her.

    So, the 10. 000 dollar question: Is Gone Home a good game? I’m not sure if I would call it a game at all. It hits me more like a visual novel than anything else. The creators succeeded in making you feel that you are walking through a real home, looking through the belongings of a real family, which usually is not a characteristic for video games. Since I view video games as an escape mechanism from everyday life I cannot say that I enjoyed Gone home that much. But I appreciate the originality and it is a well-made and interesting game, no doubt in that. I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a different kind of computer game that does not revolve around action and shooting stuff.    … Expand
  26. 14samajb
    Dec 7, 2015
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. GONE HOME - Created by Fullbright Company

    Gone Home is a computer game created and designed by the team in Fullbright Company. The game was first released 15th of August, 2013.

    The game takes place in a empty mansion in Arbor Hill, Oregon, America. The environment of the game is a mix of thriller and adventure. You as a player get to explore the mansion as Kaitlyn Greenbriar, who is one of the daughters of the Greenbriar family. It’s the 7th of June, 1995, in the game and Kaitlin has just returned home from a year long trip to Europe, but she comes home to an empty house. As Kaitlin we get to walk around the mansion and find clues about what's going on and where everyone has gone.

    What we didn’t like about the game it that the atmosphere of the game is giving you a scary impression, but in fact there is nothing scary happening throughout the game. The setting is dark, messy and mysterious. The rain is pouring outside and the thunder comes when you least expect it, which makes you believe that something or someone is about to scare you. I guess it’s a success from the creators side, but to us it just didn’t make any sense.

    But what we did like about the game was that we got to walk around the house by ourselves and decide which room we walked in to. There were objects around the house that we could pick up, for example letters and they gave us clues.

    Overall, it’s a nice game. We would recommend it to people in all ages. It’s a good game if you are a new gamer and don’t have a lot of gaming experience.

    By Kaja & Sandra    … Expand
  27. Pesper
    Dec 7, 2015
    6
    I’ve played the Gone Home, which is a very story based game where you play as the character Kaitlin who recently came home from a year of studying in Europe. You get to this new house where the family moved in too when Katie went traveling, but you quickly notice that there is no one home and then you find clues to solve the mystery by Kaitlins sister Samantha and i will not tell you moreI’ve played the Gone Home, which is a very story based game where you play as the character Kaitlin who recently came home from a year of studying in Europe. You get to this new house where the family moved in too when Katie went traveling, but you quickly notice that there is no one home and then you find clues to solve the mystery by Kaitlins sister Samantha and i will not tell you more since I’ll spoil too much.

    This is a new type of game for me so it was very interesting and when all games you played have been spooky or action packed you kind of go into the game just waiting for something scary or you needing to run away from something. I’m not going to tell you if i got scared or not because i guess some of you will get the same feel. To be honest it’s not my kind of game, maybe it is because I’m mind is damaged because of all the previous action games I played. I feel like it’s too slow and lacking interaction with things in the house, I want more of a challenge when I play video games.

    When i played this game I did it as a school project, which I feel like it made me enjoy it a lot more than I would if i’d play it on my free time. So as a game to play to learn I feel like it’s really good, because it’s an alternative to reading (in my opinion) boring books and watching a movie which often is not my kind of movie since a teacher with different taste in movies did choose the movie. By the way in Sweden we often study at least 13 years and it’s refreshing playing a game instead of all the boring books and movies.

    So I think it’s a really good alternative to play for school projects, but otherwise it’s not my kind of game but i would lie if i wouldn’t say that really well done and an interesting plot.    … Expand
  28. stinabaum
    Dec 7, 2015
    6
    Gone home is a adventure game that takes place 1995 in Arbor Hill in Boon County. Katie Greenbriar has been away for a year. When she gets back she expecting her family to be home, but they are not. She gets curious and want to know what’s been happening. She searching for clues and the first thing she found was a note on the door. The note was written by Sam, her sister, which says thatGone home is a adventure game that takes place 1995 in Arbor Hill in Boon County. Katie Greenbriar has been away for a year. When she gets back she expecting her family to be home, but they are not. She gets curious and want to know what’s been happening. She searching for clues and the first thing she found was a note on the door. The note was written by Sam, her sister, which says that she is going away for a while but not where or for how long. Katie goes in and searching for clues in every corner in the house. She found different clues that says different things so that she has to puzzle the links together to find her family. It is Katie´s younger sister Samantha who is pulling you through the story but you’re playing as Katie.

    Gone home is a well made non-violent game with a lot of emotions. The story drags you in the game into the mystery story. It is a game you really get to know the players deepness. Gone Home is a game that really proves that you don’t have to kill people to keep things interesting. The story is well written and feels real and like someone had experience and represent the story.    … Expand
  29. olivialouise
    Dec 7, 2015
    6
    GONE HOME

    Developers: Fullbright Designers: Steve Gaynor Released in the year 2013 The game is set to the year 1995, in Portland, Oregon. We experience and play the game in the first-person, through Kaitlin Greenbriar, the oldest of two sisters. She has just come home from a year abroad in Europe, and find the new family house empty. She has no idea where her mother, father or    GONE HOME

    Developers: Fullbright
    Designers: Steve Gaynor
    Released in the year 2013

    The game is set to the year 1995, in Portland, Oregon. We experience and play the game in the first-person, through Kaitlin Greenbriar, the oldest of two sisters. She has just come home from a year abroad in Europe, and find the new family house empty. She has no idea where her mother, father or sister are. As she searches through the house she discovers well hidden secrets about her family.

    The house is very large, with many rooms and hidden passages. To explore the whole house must find these passages and keys. In order to do this, we need to find documents and codes. Gone Home’s designers has done a great job in making us feel like we actually are the person walking around in the house. We can grasp things, throw it away and get frustrated when we cannot open a door or a drawer because something is in the way.

    The game is as mentioned, set in 1995, which is easily recognizable with the styling and the old cassettes.

    The game atmosphere is scary. You are always on the edge, waiting for some sort of climax or something horrifying to happen, but this never occurs. The scary atmosphere comes from all the spooky sounds of both rain and thunder and all the creaking from walking and opening a drawer and a door. When you walk in to rooms the lights are always out and you can see lighting strikes regularly. Also the background music plays a major role when it comes to my first impression of the game.

    My first impression of this game was far from the same impression I was left with after playing it to the end. You start to play with the feeling that something terrible has happened, and that you will find a something like a dead body around the next corner. When you play your way to the end and find out where Katie’s family are, you get somewhat disappointed with the story.

    You feel more like a detective than a member of the family when you go through the house. I see similarities to the concept of "escape rooms"

    Gone Home is nothing like other games I have played, I really enjoyed the game concept but I had wished there was a better story behind it and more challenging.    … Expand
  30. Karolineemblem
    Dec 8, 2015
    6
    Gone Home

    The videogame “Gone Home” is developed by The Fullbright Company and designed by Steve Gaynor. It was published on August 15 2013. Gone Home is a mysterious and romantic video game. The game is set in Portland, Oregon in 1995. You play as the eldest daughter of the Greenbriar family, Kaitlin, who just arrived home after a year abroad. She expects her parents and sister to    Gone Home

    The videogame “Gone Home” is developed by The Fullbright Company and designed by Steve Gaynor. It was published on August 15 2013. Gone Home is a mysterious and romantic video game. The game is set in Portland, Oregon in 1995. You play as the eldest daughter of the Greenbriar family, Kaitlin, who just arrived home after a year abroad. She expects her parents and sister to greet her when she gets home, but instead Kaitlin only finds a deserted house, filled with secrets. What happened here? Where is everyone? These are both questions you will find answers to as you play the game.

    You can wander around the Greenbriar house and get to know what happened to the family by investigating the clues and secrets hidden around the house. There are no set goals in the game, however the game rewards and encourages you for exploring new areas of the house and finding all of the secret messages. All the clues lead you to one place that explains everything clearly.

    The game is very well designed. It allows you to open doors and drawers, and find out what´s inside. It even has furniture and small things like movies, which makes it feel extremely real, almost like you are actually in the house. In the beginning I was really confused because I did not know what I was looking for, but as I continued playing I understood what to do. After a while, I started to find the game a lot more interesting. I noticed that as you play and you start finding clues, you don´t want to stop, you just want to find more answers.

    Gone Home is also very different from most games because it has no fighting involved in it. Most games use combat as their main focus, but Gone Home is different. Because there is no risk of dying, it allows the player to carefully examine everything so they don’t miss any pieces of evidence. But this does not mean that you can relax when you are playing the game! If you aren’t very alert when you are playing the game, you could miss important clues and other pieces of the story.

    The main thing future buyers should be aware of is that when you complete the game, you can´t replay it with the same surprises, because you already know the what the outcome is. You can beat the game quickly because you will know the story line and all of the secret short cuts, and finding secrets won’t be as fun because you know them already. This means that after the first time you play, you will have completed the whole game.

    I would recommend this game to anyone who likes mysteries, uncovering secrets, and using their brain to think about what has happened. It could also be fun for people who are used to violent games, because it is so different from them, and opens a new world of video games to them. Even though you can only play it once, it is still a fun game and I would recommend you give it a try!    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

12
#12 Best PC Game of 2013
11
#11 Most Discussed PC Game of 2013
3
#3 Most Shared PC Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
86

Generally favorable reviews - based on 56 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 49 out of 56
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 56
  3. Negative: 0 out of 56
  1. JeuxActu
    Feb 10, 2015
    85
    Grow Home is an interesting surprise from a publisher who get used to mismanaging his own IP's. This platformer like no other has everything going for you and for a very low price tag. You can easily give it a try.
    Read full review
  2. IGN Italia
    Jan 5, 2014
    95
    A beautiful, emotionally engaging, artfully crafted game, completely centered around exploration and telling a mature story through interaction.
    Read full review
  3. RPG Fan
    Dec 2, 2013
    75
    A story that will move some and alienate others.
    Read full review
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