SIMULACRA Image
Metascore
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User Score
6.8

Mixed or average reviews- based on 16 Ratings

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  • Summary: An interactive horror experience of exploring a missing woman’s phone.
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 2
  2. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. Nov 2, 2017
    70
    Despite my numerous complaints with it, SIMULACRA was, at its core, a title that had me engrossed.
  2. Mar 26, 2018
    60
    While not flawless and more focused on narrative than puzzles, SIMULACRA manages to be a fun experience by offering more player agency than its lost phone contemporaries, throwing players into an ongoing missing persons investigation – with a supernatural twist.
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 11
  2. Negative: 2 out of 11
  1. Jun 4, 2021
    9
    The game has worth the price. However, I got some unrevealed questions.
    What happened to her bf after his leaving?
    Who was the kidnapper?
    The game has worth the price. However, I got some unrevealed questions.
    What happened to her bf after his leaving?
    Who was the kidnapper?
    Who was James? Has the real James was the kidnapper? (because there was a smoothie conversation in the ending)
    What about that sheriff who has been calling us? What was his impact in this story? Just to make the bf leave, or what?

    Yeah, I've completed the game only one time and saw only one ending, however, it wasn't enough for me. Come on guys, you have done a huge work on this game, couldn't you make a bit more informative endings?
    Sure, there could be different forks of circumstances with their own denouements, but in this way the game looks sort of 'dry' or what.
    No doubt, I owned it only for 1,11 bucks, and this game definitely worth 10$ or more. For it's money it's 11 outta 10. At the same time it's upset for me, because I've appreciated your job that you have done, but it looks really unfinished.
    Just because of that 9/10
    Expand
  2. Dec 19, 2022
    9
    great great great great great great great great great great great great great
  3. Oct 13, 2018
    8
    Good game and very creative. Not particularly scary, but more like disturbing. It is good that it has different endings. It's not difficult,Good game and very creative. Not particularly scary, but more like disturbing. It is good that it has different endings. It's not difficult, it's pretty much just dialogues, reading texts, watching videos and photos. The best and the most creative part is that it strongly questions your morality, by making you use someone else's phone, involving their internet activity etc. İn its core, it questions the social media and our fake internet personas. It has some good points on these. I think the horror aspect could have better and enriched. Better visuals and sound effects were needed for deeper immersion. Expand
  4. Oct 2, 2021
    8
    Simulacra is a found phone simulator. Apparently that's a genre now.

    On a phone, the premise of Simulacra is something special: What if
    Simulacra is a found phone simulator. Apparently that's a genre now.

    On a phone, the premise of Simulacra is something special: What if your phone turned into someone else's phone, and you could hack into it to snoop out all the little things about our life that we entrust to our phones these days. And because said phone gives you complete access to the online persona of the owner of that phone, you also get to moonlight as an online predator.

    It still works well enough on the PC, although the immersion is somewhat diminished.

    But hey, it's OK, because Anna, the owner of the phone, is in trouble and you are the only one with access to enough information to maybe help her. And also… this is just a game.

    If I sound like I'm down on the game for the icky things it expects you to do, I'm actually not. The game never shies away from pointing out how questionable the means you employ are, and if you want it, you can go about things in the most ethical way possible. You won't get the best ending, though.

    The actual means by which the game let's you morally compromise yourself are quite simple. Some light social hacking, catfishing, actual hacking, two simple mini-games. The rest of the time you read dialogue or watch a few videos with above average novice actors, and thus follow along a nifty little horror story whose ending felt very rushed but still packed quite a punch.

    The game is a bit railroady, though. The main thing you do is converse with Anna's contacts via multiple choice chat, and oftentimes the few options you have are very obviously pushing the story in the direction it wants to go. Thanks to the brevity of the game, this never gets too grating, though.

    The main freight of meaning and engagement this game transported for me was the fun and glee you can actually get out of pretending to be a terrible person with access to someone else's phone, and thinking about what that actually means for the hellscape we are all constructing for ourselves. There is no way around it: If you have no moral compass, being a troll is a very good time. Good thing then that in Simulacra, the moral justification comes with the box.

    TLDR: Interesting little title whose premise and insinuations become more horrifying the longer you think about it. Bit on the short side, but well worth experiencing.
    Expand
  5. Sep 3, 2023
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Interesting game. Neat concept. I wish they wouldn't have gone for a supernatural story, as I think the idea of searching for a missing woman by digging through her phone is interesting enough as is. The idea that you are just some random guy who picked up her phone and is now answering all of her messages is a little weird. Wish they would've come up with a better explanation. BUT the game was neat. I plan on playing the others to see if they improved upon the concept Expand
  6. Jan 16, 2021
    6
    This game is actually based on using your investigative skills. It wasn't completely bad, but it wasn't a good game either. 4hrs on record.
  7. Apr 11, 2021
    1
    No redeeming qualities, it's boring, and to hide the fact that it's boring they have cheap jump scares that don't add anything to the game.No redeeming qualities, it's boring, and to hide the fact that it's boring they have cheap jump scares that don't add anything to the game. The majority of your time is spent reading which would be fine if the dialogue was any good and if the story was any good. Expand

See all 11 User Reviews