The Town of Light

 PC
User Score
7.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 94 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 52 out of 94
  2. Mixed: 23 out of 94
  3. Negative: 19 out of 94

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  1. qrpiech
    Mar 7, 2016
    7
    Rough around the edges due to low budget, especially when it comes to voice overs, but other than that it's an enjoyable, intriguing experience with some really strong, gruesome moments.
  2. PublicNuisance
    Sep 26, 2020
    7
    The Town of Light is a very interesting game. It has a very unique way of telling it’s story through a combination of flashbacks and voice over narrating. The flashbacks are sometimes in first person black and white but other times are a more hand drawn almost dark comic book style. Both are a stark contrast to the normal view of color you usually are in while exploring the asylum. IThe Town of Light is a very interesting game. It has a very unique way of telling it’s story through a combination of flashbacks and voice over narrating. The flashbacks are sometimes in first person black and white but other times are a more hand drawn almost dark comic book style. Both are a stark contrast to the normal view of color you usually are in while exploring the asylum. I thought the story itself was fantastic and very engaging. Many will find it bleak or depressing but I don’t think there is a way to tell a tale like this with a happy upbeat theme without it being terribly unrealistic. My only gripe story wise was even after finishing the game I couldn’t tell you when it took place. The main events in the game take place between about 1938-1944 it seems and Renee was around 16-23 years old. If that is the case how are we exploring this place years after it has been abandoned. Is Renee supposed to be elderly ? I can only see her hands while exploring but they look young to me. In any case I wouldn’t say this detail ruined the game for me in any way. The voice acting is very good as was the live action actress they had for Renee during the live trailer you can view after finishing the game. I liked how even though I can play the game in English all of the details in the Asylum are in Italian as they should be. The graphics were a mixed bag. The sunlight was very well done as were the shadows. The foliage was decent but not great. The flashlight used was poor though in terms of shadow effect. The object detail was also pretty poor. By that I mean walls; desks; signs; windows; elevators; etc. All of the little details and objects that make up the game. I also have no idea how the choice structure worked in the game. There are times in the game where you are having a conversation with a voice in your head and based on what you choose a different logo can appear after but I have no idea what any of the logos mean or how they change future events. I would also say that sometimes it was hard to see when you can interact with objects. When you can the crosshair goes from white to black but the crosshair is very small. The end credits music also suited the game very well.

    I played The Town of Light on Linux using Steam’s Proton. It never crashed on me. There are 3 settings for AA; 4 settings for AO; an FOV slider that goes from 85-105; and 8 other graphics options. To continue what I said earlier about most of the graphics detail just being decent and poor this was not reflected in the performance. I have tried to run this game with an RX 580 8GB and maxed out it would usually be around 40-50 FPS. I then tried with my RX 5700 XT and while it often has decent frame rates they could still drop as low as 18 FPS at times. I reduced the AA from SSAA to SMAA and this helped but the frame rate still dropped as low as 36 FPS at times. This game has very little going on and the detail should not tax most hardware like this. The game either has serious optimization issues or it just didn’t work well with Proton. Chapter 8 was the worst part for frame rate dips I found. Alt-Tab didn’t work. There is no manual save option. The game seems to save at the end of each chapter butt hat is just my guess as it never tells me when it saves. The game uses the Unity engine.

    Input Used: keyboard and mouse
    Game Engine: Unity
    Disk Space Used: 6698MB
    GPU Usage: 1-99 %
    VRAM Usage: 2757-5649 MB
    CPU Usage: 9-59 %
    RAM Usage: 3.5-4.6 GB
    Frame Rate: 18-144 FPS
    Game Settings Used: Ultra; SSAA; bloom and environmental effects on; 1920x1080

    Performance issues; graphics; and save system aside the game is certainly worth playing. The story is truly fantastic and worth experiencing. I finished the game in about 2 hours 42 minutes. I paid $10.49 CAD for it and feel that was a good price for what I got. The current price for it of $20.99 is a bit steep. If you enjoy walking sims or bleak settings I would give this a try.

    My Score: 7.5/10

    My System:

    AMD Ryzen 5 2600X | 16GB DDR4-3000 CL15 | MSI RX 5700 XT Gaming X 8GB | Mesa 20.1.7 | Samsung 970 Evo Plus 500GB | Manjaro 20.1 | Mate 1.24.1 | Kernel 5.8.6-1-MANJARO | AOC G2460P 1920*1080 @ 144hz | Proton 5.0-9    … Expand
  3. SuperkenGaming
    Jun 8, 2017
    6
    The town of light
    Unsettling
    The Town of Light is a psychological horror adventure game Here you play as Renee… A former patient of the old abandoned psych ward you visit in the 1940s… You revisit to learn the truth about your time here… You also learn about the disturbing practices of these hospitals throughout your journey… This is very much a walking simulator type game... And    The town of light
    Unsettling
    The Town of Light is a psychological horror adventure game
    Here you play as Renee…
    A former patient of the old abandoned psych ward you visit in the 1940s…
    You revisit to learn the truth about your time here…
    You also learn about the disturbing practices of these hospitals throughout your journey…
    This is very much a walking simulator type game...
    And Renee is very much a crazy person...
    She talks to herself while you play the game…
    The first task the game gives you is to find a doll...
    And she insists the doll is cold and not feeling well…
    So you have to find a way to warm her
    this sets the tone for the kind of experience you’re going to be going on
    The Town of Light is a pretty enjoyable 2 to 3 hour long journey...
    The hospital is decently sized... not too big, not too small…
    So going back and forth to the different areas to trigger a new scene or memory, or learn more about Renee’s mental disorder isn’t too big of a hassle…
    As the game definitely sends you all over the place and back again…
    Tons of back tracking here… listening to Renee as she worried and checking out the spot she tells you to go to…
    And looking at the not so helpful map on the wall to know where you should be going…
    It isn’t back tracking for the first moments of the game, obviously as everything is new..
    This is when the game is the most intriguing, but the middle chunk of the game just feels like a chore as you’re going over the same spots in the hospital again to open a new door for a quick bit of dialog…
    Sometimes acting as the voice inside of Renee’s head making choices or explaining things to her…
    So this game does definitely have a great and creepy ending...
    Getting there almost doesn’t feel worth it... As this really is just a game of going to the right spot…
    The Town of Light does psychological horror right though…
    I was definitely creeped out while playing which made this shallow and repetitive game at least a little enjoyable to go through…
    A give The Town of Light
    a 6/10    … Expand
  4. Crimert
    Dec 6, 2020
    6
    First of all, it's not a horror game. There aren't any jump scares, if you expect them... It can be defined as a walking simulator + psychological narrative game. The story is really sad but the story-telling could be better. 3hrs on record.
  5. FRIST_008
    Jun 15, 2023
    7
    Сюжет 9, остальное 5... на ПК будет по лучше чем на консолях. С графикой тут полная беда из-за юнити

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
64

Mixed or average reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 22
  3. Negative: 2 out of 22
  1. Game Debate
    Jul 31, 2017
    55
    So while the research and attention to detail that went into Town of Light is good, and they're addressing a very important issue, the developers have failed to adapt it into a game format. I'd go as far to say you'd be better off watching a documentary or show about it. Actually, the game even makes an attempt at this. When you finish the game, you see this little video play button at the bottom of the title menu. It was actually a live-action video of the institute in its current 2017 state, which makes you understand how they've tried to recreate the exact place in-game, and there are also scenes with an actress playing the role of Renee and recreating events from the game. It actually makes for a better viewing experience than the game itself.
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  2. CD-Action
    Jul 21, 2016
    35
    The Town of Light reminded me of similarly short and unpleasant Neverending Nightmares. Both games tried to tackle the subject of mental illnesses and both failed utterly. [07/2016, p.51]
  3. Destructoid
    May 31, 2016
    65
    If you’re looking for a jump-out action packed horror game, The Town of Light is not for you. But I urge you to open your mind and consider it a separate learning experience.
    Read full review
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