Shelter

 PC
User Score
7.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 98 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 51 out of 98
  2. Mixed: 32 out of 98
  3. Negative: 15 out of 98

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  1. Kernie
    Dec 29, 2013
    10
    Shelter is a great game its the best badger simulator youll ever play. it is a bit short but thats okay because its amazing i loved playing it. its more about the art and emotional experience than gameplay and story
  2. Hunnoycombe
    Jan 21, 2014
    9
    While Shelter may certainly be short and linear (and drastically overpriced), it makes up for it fully by including adorable badger babys and and a heard rending ending..
    Thumbs up high!
  3. Rattlefinger
    Aug 28, 2013
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I must say I am yet to finish the game, I am on the third "level" (the one with the raging river), but got stuck and that presents an opportunity to molt from badger back into human form and try to write a few thoughts down.
    I must say, the game introduced itself a bit harsh to me, because in the first few minutes I had no freaking idea what to do. I could quickly determine the controls move the camera with the mouse, standard WASD movement, "crouching" with Control, left-click calls for your kids, or grab the item in front of you but I was confined to a few meters of an underground den with five of my offspring. One of them did not move at all, was quite different color than the others, and could not do anything with him. I don't want to completely spoil the beginning, so I just say that this was not a bug, it's a feature, a steep uphill start of the learning curve. Because in the end I learned that the hungrier the little badgers are the more grayish they become. So, comparing the colors give you an advice which one to give the food to. Anyway, when the family is whole the game starts, indicated by the appearance of the creators' names, and you can leave the den. The following few minutes are pretty straightforward, with help from on-screen advices of your badger's abilities. You learn how to gather food, eventually you can try yourself at hunting (f***ing frogs...), and become a professional badger mom.
    If you anticipate an open-world, sandbox survival game, you'll be disappointed, just as well if you'd like to see your badger get involved in jump-kick duels with other forest animals. Most of the time you will scour the area for food, mostly apples, carrots and some other thingies you pull out of the ground. Sometimes you get to hunt other animals, but be careful, you get one shot each time, so you better succeed. In fact I quite understand the frogs that once they reach the safety of water after being chased around they would not stick their noses out again, but still, f**k them. Luckily, in my experience, it is not a matter of utmost importance to be a good hunter; a vegetarian diet still provides enough nutrition for the kids to not die of hunger, and vegetables does not flee or hide.
    But the time will come when _you_ better do that. A giant bird of prey patrols the sky at the end of the first level, and it is a deadly threat to the kids. But you must cross that field, you just have to. Do what your instinct tells you (or me), stay in high grass, and only move when the bird is moving away from your position (its shadow is a great help). Don't try to outrun it on long distances. When you reach the knocked over trunk at the other side of the field, you're safe. At least until the next level starts.
    It is nighttime, and I must say the game becomes more a survival horror than the Resident Evil series recently. It's dark, with only one or two meters around you lit up, and strange noises can be heard. And sometimes _something_ gets close. A branch cracks just a few meters away, and your offspring start to flee, getting out of your "aura" quickly. You cannot call them back, so you must follow them if you want to see all of them again. That is where I lost the first little badger. I'm not saying I started to cry, but frankly, what I felt was far from happiness.
    And that is where the game is the strongest. You may or may not like the style of the graphics, but somehow you get attached (at least I did) to those five little badgers whose survival depends entirely on you. They may spot the food, gather and hop excitedly around it, but they can't get it, they need your help. They would be easy prey for that bird, but with caution you can lead them to safety.
    Other than that the only thing remaining to "review" is the music, but I think that is even more subjective than the graphics. Personally, I like it. I am sure they spent a great deal of time with it, too.
    At last, let me tell you why I gave it an 8, instead of 10, which otherwise the game would deserve, in my opinion. First, I think it has no real replay value. There are no difficulty levels, and the levels are pre-made. I may start it over again some time after I finish it, but I think there will be no surprises left by that time. However, that still would only decrease the score to around 9.8, but, as I mentioned in the sentence, I managed to be stuck on the third level. Not adventure-like stuck, not knowing what to do or where to go, but bug-like stuck in the river after an (unsuccessful) frog-chase (really, f**k those guys). My badger just stood in the water, and did not react to the controls. The only option was to exit, and restart the level. Yep, no checkpoints, except at the start of the levels, but that alone wouldn't be a real issue. However, bugs exist, and this game looks bug-free otherwise.
    Final words: I don't know how long the game is, but, I must say, I did spend far more than 9 euros on far worse games, so I am not complaining.    … Expand
  4. ShamrockVA
    Aug 31, 2013
    10
    If you haven't PS3 for playing Journey, Flow, Flower but love games like these buy it. 1-2 hours of freestyle gameplay awaits you! Also, if you like design in games, you should see it.
  5. Jakim
    Aug 29, 2013
    9
    I cried at the ending.
    I think this sentence and the score I gave is enough, but there is a minimum of 150 characters, so the game is an emotional adventure, which makes you almost cry if you loose a badger, and will definitely make you cry at the end, if you care about animals
  6. Dementy88
    Sep 20, 2013
    9
    Very emotional game. For the hour of play I managed to experience a kaleidoscope of emotions. I have not experienced in a gaming sense of responsibility to this moment. Yes, the game is very short, it is negative. But during this hour, I experienced what many games can not present in eight hours.
  7. parshakov
    Dec 25, 2013
    10
    I want more games like this! Maybe with a family of city rats this time? And based on CryEngine or Frostbite 3?

    The gameplay was quite intuitive, although sometimes I had to learn on my mistakes just like I would if I was a real badger!

    I think the game wasn't too long or too short.
  8. CaKeS
    Dec 29, 2013
    8
    A really cool game, whoever says it's bad because it's short has no perception of what makes a game good. The game is the CORRECT length, if it were longer it would be dragging out, if it were shorter it wouldn't feel like a journey. The graphics are interesting and I must say very well done, as well as pleasing to look at. The gameplay basically consists of you leading your babies toA really cool game, whoever says it's bad because it's short has no perception of what makes a game good. The game is the CORRECT length, if it were longer it would be dragging out, if it were shorter it wouldn't feel like a journey. The graphics are interesting and I must say very well done, as well as pleasing to look at. The gameplay basically consists of you leading your babies to safety, overcoming obstacles and catching/gathering food for them. The hunting mechanics could've been better, I could never catch a fox (I'm lead to believe the game's not even meant for you to be able to catch one). Despite the game being pretty short, I got on odd attachment to my kids, and felt pretty bad if I happened to loose one. It's a cool concept but could've been executed a tad better, but nonetheless this game stands pretty solid. I'm not convinced it's worth $9.99 simply because of the play time you get out of it, since it's short and you can't really play through it again because it'd be the same thing (very linear). If it's on sale, I recommend it, I got it for like $2.49 so I definitely got a good deal!… Expand
  9. ChoicestGames
    Sep 21, 2014
    8
    Shelter is admittedly a terribly short game with gameplay not too dissimilar from games like Lemmings and From Dust, with respect to ensuring the safety of your followers. However, the emotional journey the game takes you on, with you starring as a mother badger, is ultimately a unique and memorable experience. The game is a tribute to all mothers out there that would do anything toShelter is admittedly a terribly short game with gameplay not too dissimilar from games like Lemmings and From Dust, with respect to ensuring the safety of your followers. However, the emotional journey the game takes you on, with you starring as a mother badger, is ultimately a unique and memorable experience. The game is a tribute to all mothers out there that would do anything to protect their young.… Expand
  10. ericcoutinho
    Mar 8, 2014
    8
    It started to me like: "What the hell is this game?!"
    I found it boring, meaningless, lacking so many things...
    But then, firstly the awesome soundtrack - kind of a sad and beautiful blues - started to put me on a certain mood. After that, the graphic art seems to found out his place, in addition to a growing concern about the "children" and some cruel things you must to do in order to    It started to me like: "What the hell is this game?!"
    I found it boring, meaningless, lacking so many things...

    But then, firstly the awesome soundtrack - kind of a sad and beautiful blues - started to put me on a certain mood. After that, the graphic art seems to found out his place, in addition to a growing concern about the "children" and some cruel things you must to do in order to keep them fed. And that's it... i can't say anymore without spoil.

    Shelter is a beautiful ode to nature and motherhood.
    You can give it to your own children if you have some, and show them some simple and important lessons about nature. It's a short (like 2 hours), different game, which will certainly add one more experience for those who are seeking for new things.    … Expand
  11. ExpVortex
    Jul 21, 2014
    10
    Amazing game, the experience was unlike anything else. Yes, it has a short story but its one of a kind. You find yourself attached to the cubs as you journey your way through harsh conditions. I loved it.
  12. janosbiro
    Oct 27, 2015
    9
    Shelter is a game about the hardships of motherhood, and so the game truly speaks a universal language. You are a mother badger taking care of your cubs, feeding them and defending them from predators. It makes you care so much about your little cubs that you can even think they have very distinguished personalities. Some players have given names to them, and reported interesting emotionalShelter is a game about the hardships of motherhood, and so the game truly speaks a universal language. You are a mother badger taking care of your cubs, feeding them and defending them from predators. It makes you care so much about your little cubs that you can even think they have very distinguished personalities. Some players have given names to them, and reported interesting emotional responses when one of them died. This game can communicate with a primitive instinct in all of us: the love for the little, the innocent and the frail.

    Throughout the game you learn to fear and hate eagles as they were monstrously evil. But in the end, you identify with them. They are in the exactly same position you were: trying to feed their loved ones. The threatening predator becomes a loving mother. And so the games shows how every mother is also a fearsome predator, ready to kill for the most pure and sacred love of all. This alone made me cry.    … Expand
  13. arcticGTS
    Apr 9, 2019
    8
    Shelter - A tiny emotional adventure of badger mom and her little badgers. This work of art, shows the player a cruel animal world, how difficult it is to survive with small and practically defenseless animals ... The visual part is very interesting and beautiful, the music is top notch! This game made me cry ... I highly recommend it.

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
69

Mixed or average reviews - based on 29 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 18 out of 29
  3. Negative: 2 out of 29
  1. IGN Italia
    Jan 5, 2014
    90
    A simple but incredibly powerful experience, that uses interaction to convey well known themes in a different, emotional and bizarrely frightening way.
    Read full review
  2. Level7.nu
    Dec 12, 2013
    70
    Shelter is a game about being a badger and strange as that may sound it is first and foremost a pleasant and beautiful little adventure. It doesn't really strive to anything majestic but it's still a great game for those who want something different.
    Read full review
  3. PC PowerPlay
    Oct 28, 2013
    90
    If you found Proteus poignant and Gone Home felt like going home, Shelter will break your heart. [Nov 2013, p.88]
See all critic reviews »