The Vanishing of Ethan Carter

 PC
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 854 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 596 out of 854
  2. Mixed: 188 out of 854
  3. Negative: 70 out of 854

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  1. Richard_dias
    Aug 15, 2023
    7
    That's a gorgeous game with a nice narrative, but I came to realize that "walking simulatores" are not my thing. That being said, it seems like The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a pretty good title for the genre.
  2. lesiuML
    Jul 22, 2023
    5
    I guess I was just expecting something entirely different... At first I was really curious about this game and I thought it will be something like "kingdom come deliverance" walking simulator but short and detective action. How sadly surprised I was when paranormal activities started to happen... I thought this would be a game with realistic down to earth story but I was unfortunatelyI guess I was just expecting something entirely different... At first I was really curious about this game and I thought it will be something like "kingdom come deliverance" walking simulator but short and detective action. How sadly surprised I was when paranormal activities started to happen... I thought this would be a game with realistic down to earth story but I was unfortunately wrong. Game isn't bad but it would be so much better with real life story not some completely nonsense demonic cult story...… Expand
  3. Reviewer13
    Feb 5, 2023
    6
    Complete snooze fest all in all. But the premise was somewhat interesting and the world was pretty. But just didn't personally find it very fun to play.
  4. hileger
    Oct 25, 2022
    7
    Атмосферно простенькие головоломки ,версия redux еще стало круче, спустя несколько лет можно еще поиграть
  5. 4ya5h1
    Oct 3, 2022
    6
    not my type of game.
    at first sight it was pretty good and interesting but i just cant seet for a very long time and just walk in this game. story and quests are too rare. i didnt like gameplay and its not as much story as i want. also game is pretty old and visual is not good so walking is not only uninteresting also it is a little unbeautyfully
  6. actinium
    Jul 18, 2022
    6
    / /
  7. dariazzo_
    Apr 11, 2022
    6
    There is something missing here, and it's not the protagonist. I have nothing to say about the creative direction and graphics overall: the game looks stunning and have personality. I firmly question, however, the stiffness of its narration. You can skip all events, and then you are asked to recover them to see the final of the story. Murders can be skipped altogether, leading to theThere is something missing here, and it's not the protagonist. I have nothing to say about the creative direction and graphics overall: the game looks stunning and have personality. I firmly question, however, the stiffness of its narration. You can skip all events, and then you are asked to recover them to see the final of the story. Murders can be skipped altogether, leading to the feeling you have missed a large chunk of content as the game impose you to recover only part of the plot.

    The ending has a classical approach to paranormal, to science fiction, reminiscent of a certain, brilliant, literature. In itself the plot is interesting enough, and the pacing as diversified as possible to keep things interesting. With a better rhythm, less walking and multiple endings according to the amount of secrets you have uncovered, the overall score would have been higher.    … Expand
  8. Wrathzo
    Mar 22, 2022
    7
    The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a 2014 horror adventure video game developed and published by The Astronauts. The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is set in an open world environment, in which the player can roam around and explore at will; in its opening the game notes that it "does not hold [the player's] hand", and as such features very little by way of explanation to the mechanics.
  9. Tomle1202
    Mar 19, 2022
    6
    The Vanishing of Ethan Carter lacks the proper amount of player's agency to compensate for its beautiful but ultimately boring sandbox that demands too much for too little reward.
  10. FRIST_008
    Jan 2, 2022
    7
    Такой игре позарез нужна или карта, или что-то, что хотя бы говорило в какой области вы что-то не завершили, потому что я банально пропустил вторую головоломку и дошёл до самой последней и так и не понял почему у меня нет концовки, пока не вернулся хрен знает куда обратно... так делать нельзя. История меня вообще никак не зацепила, потому к игре один большой вопрос, где конечный вауТакой игре позарез нужна или карта, или что-то, что хотя бы говорило в какой области вы что-то не завершили, потому что я банально пропустил вторую головоломку и дошёл до самой последней и так и не понял почему у меня нет концовки, пока не вернулся хрен знает куда обратно... так делать нельзя. История меня вообще никак не зацепила, потому к игре один большой вопрос, где конечный вау эффект? Почему такой скучный и банальный сюжет?… Expand
  11. Mehrshad_MB
    Jul 14, 2021
    6
    From the very first moment of the game it's impossible not to admire the stunning environment and mesmerizing spooky atmosphere. Red Creek Valley is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful in-game worlds. However, I think that's the first and last positive point of the game.
    You're alone in a large map with lots of sideways and detours, not knowing what to do, where to head. Confusion in    From the very first moment of the game it's impossible not to admire the stunning environment and mesmerizing spooky atmosphere. Red Creek Valley is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful in-game worlds. However, I think that's the first and last positive point of the game.
    You're alone in a large map with lots of sideways and detours, not knowing what to do, where to head. Confusion in finding mission makes the game a perfect "walking simulator". (At least give a damn compass!) Sometimes finding what to do next was like finding a needle in a haystack. Thus I managed to finish the game with the help of walkthroughs on YouTube. (I'm in wonder how can one finish the game without getting help.)
    The story was unique, but this doesn't necessarily mean that it was great. It was a fine emotional story and nothing more than that.
    The game however reminds me of The Murdered Soul Suspect. Both has similar concept and great ideas but in the end, an average game.
    I'm trying to find some positive things to say but I can't find much. Music was good.
    In general I would recommend it for patient people who have free time.
    (July 2021)    … Expand
  12. tufekciero
    Mar 12, 2021
    5
    BRONZ zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
  13. penebullone
    Oct 14, 2020
    7
    Приятная игруха на 4-5 часов, супер графон, неплохой супер мистический сюжет, я ощутил флэшбеки по великолепному Алану Уэйку, плюс этот прекрасный лес сделан просто нереально. Музыка ну просто очень красивая.

    Из минусов – игра настолько "не ведёт тебя за руку" (с), что в двух местах нужно было смотреть прохождение, и то, поиск нужного "триггера" по скриншоту леса занял минут 20. В этот    Приятная игруха на 4-5 часов, супер графон, неплохой супер мистический сюжет, я ощутил флэшбеки по великолепному Алану Уэйку, плюс этот прекрасный лес сделан просто нереально. Музыка ну просто очень красивая.

    Из минусов – игра настолько "не ведёт тебя за руку" (с), что в двух местах нужно было смотреть прохождение, и то, поиск нужного "триггера" по скриншоту леса занял минут 20. В этот момент я почувствовал себя в симуляторе поиска закладок. Не представляю, как кто-то проходил её без руководства.    … Expand
  14. Crimert
    Aug 21, 2020
    7
    The story of The Vanishing of Ethan Carter was good. The atmosphere was really cool. It made me feel like a private detective. Actually, it's more like a "paranormal" detective game. If you like these kinds of games, you must give it a try. 3hrs on record.
  15. HSuke
    Sep 30, 2019
    7
    TVoEC is more of a wallpaper simulator than a game.

    I wouldn't rate TVoEC very high on gameplay. The puzzles are quite simplistic and too few. This game doesn't hand-hold you, so you'll probably get lost many times ... not that it's a bad thing. After all, it's an incredibly gorgeous and atmospheric game. Screenshots posted online simply do not do it enough justice. The visuals alone    TVoEC is more of a wallpaper simulator than a game.

    I wouldn't rate TVoEC very high on gameplay. The puzzles are quite simplistic and too few. This game doesn't hand-hold you, so you'll probably get lost many times ... not that it's a bad thing.

    After all, it's an incredibly gorgeous and atmospheric game. Screenshots posted online simply do not do it enough justice. The visuals alone were worth purchasing the game.

    Honestly, I spent over 50% of my time wandering around playing photographer and taking screenshots via FRAPs. (Turn off subtitles for the best results)

    I'd definitely like to see these devs produce a similar game in the future with more focus on better puzzles & gameplay.    … Expand
  16. CoreGamer1408
    Apr 28, 2019
    5
    Another walking simulator with a few easy puzzles thrown in with a lot of time consuming padding going from A to B to stretch out this game. Wow I went through all that initially interesting weird drama for the crappiest of crappy trope and cliché ending.
  17. WhiskeyStories
    Oct 16, 2018
    7
    A pleasant and atmospheric walking simulator that's beautiful to look at (at least the redux version) and which offers some inventive (though rather simple) puzzles that are mostly pretty fun to piece together and a n enjoyable little mystery plot. With a completion time around 4-5 hours it's the ideal length to immerse yourself in the beautiful scenery and cute story, without it startingA pleasant and atmospheric walking simulator that's beautiful to look at (at least the redux version) and which offers some inventive (though rather simple) puzzles that are mostly pretty fun to piece together and a n enjoyable little mystery plot. With a completion time around 4-5 hours it's the ideal length to immerse yourself in the beautiful scenery and cute story, without it starting to feel too contrived. I did not like the conclusion tthat much, but overall had a lovely time with The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. It's perfect for early October.… Expand
  18. Archound
    Oct 3, 2018
    7
    For me Ethan is a big disappointment. I didn't enjoy repetitive "chronology" puzzles and the story is quite dull. Mediocre title in it's genre.
  19. LetMePickThat
    Aug 7, 2018
    7
    This game is interesting to say the least. It features stunning visuals, a good enough story and a very nice soundtrack. The main weaknesses I see from TVOER is the lack of interaction with the world. Also, while I know very well that this game is advertised as a narrative experience, I find the lack of any form of help playing against the fluidity of the narration itself. I enjoyed theThis game is interesting to say the least. It features stunning visuals, a good enough story and a very nice soundtrack. The main weaknesses I see from TVOER is the lack of interaction with the world. Also, while I know very well that this game is advertised as a narrative experience, I find the lack of any form of help playing against the fluidity of the narration itself. I enjoyed the game much more on my second playthough, when I actually knew where were the points of interest and was able to follow the story in the right order.… Expand
  20. Panica3643D
    Jun 17, 2018
    6
    Игра совершенно не впечатлила. Некоторые головоломки напрочь лишены смысла.
  21. Budget_Security
    May 20, 2018
    7
    A puzzle walking sim with beautiful environments and a subtle dark atmosphere. The visuals are amazing - the extensive use of photogrammetry produces very realistic models and textures. In my opinion this game represents the largest advance in graphics since 2007's “Crysis”. The story is lean but well written and narrated. The puzzles are fairly simple, but use neat mechanics, and are veryA puzzle walking sim with beautiful environments and a subtle dark atmosphere. The visuals are amazing - the extensive use of photogrammetry produces very realistic models and textures. In my opinion this game represents the largest advance in graphics since 2007's “Crysis”. The story is lean but well written and narrated. The puzzles are fairly simple, but use neat mechanics, and are very well presented. A minor complaint is that there is no manual save system - only checkpoints, and they are quite far apart at times. This game runs well on old hardware, but stutters a bit.

    Overall, this is one of the best indie games of recent years.    … Expand
  22. KARF4GEN
    May 10, 2018
    7
    Сложно назвать Исчезновение игрой, это скорее интерактивное кино, но не на Playstation.
    Довольно атмосферный квест с небезинтересным наполнением, весьма нелогичные задания сильно не напрягали, а отсутствие кровищи и прочего привычного нынче в индустрии шок-контента делают ее пригодной и для детей младшего школьного возраста.
    Не без минусов, но такие инди проекты просто утирают нос многим    Сложно назвать Исчезновение игрой, это скорее интерактивное кино, но не на Playstation.
    Довольно атмосферный квест с небезинтересным наполнением, весьма нелогичные задания сильно не напрягали, а отсутствие кровищи и прочего привычного нынче в индустрии шок-контента делают ее пригодной и для детей младшего школьного возраста.
    Не без минусов, но такие инди проекты просто утирают нос многим ААА-тайтлам.

    Переиздание на UE4 отвратительно оптимизировано и сделано скорее для релиза на консолях.    … Expand
  23. singlungchan
    May 1, 2018
    5
    Very beautiful game. Nice atmosphere. But.. the problem is: some puzzles might lead to confusion of the location of the puzzle. And you might get easily stuck, which is a big failure of such a game in my opinion. The lack of clarity makes you wonder too much if you are even on the right track instead of focusing on the puzzle. Another minus is that the story is far from engaging or wellVery beautiful game. Nice atmosphere. But.. the problem is: some puzzles might lead to confusion of the location of the puzzle. And you might get easily stuck, which is a big failure of such a game in my opinion. The lack of clarity makes you wonder too much if you are even on the right track instead of focusing on the puzzle. Another minus is that the story is far from engaging or well packed. I didn't have the patience to finish this game and I feel that it is far from what it could be. Ultimately, it left me feeling like I was playing some tech-demo instead of a finished game.… Expand
  24. neO_o_
    Mar 25, 2018
    5
    The is little more than a glorified tech demo. Firstly I played at the redux version at 4k, everything on max on a gtx 1080ti and let me tell you this game is probably the most graphically impressive game ever made so far. It is literally photo realistic and runs like a dream on the latest high end hardware. Truly impressive visuals. It's a shame then that there's next to no actualThe is little more than a glorified tech demo. Firstly I played at the redux version at 4k, everything on max on a gtx 1080ti and let me tell you this game is probably the most graphically impressive game ever made so far. It is literally photo realistic and runs like a dream on the latest high end hardware. Truly impressive visuals. It's a shame then that there's next to no actual game play in this 'game'. Yes, you do walk around and solve puzzles to piece together the sinister goings on from the past but the puzzles are so ridiculously easy once you figure out the very basic mechanics of them that they just feel completely tacked on and because of this I got bored very quickly indeed. I would say it's worth picking up for a few quid just to experience the visuals but apart from that it's just not worth it.… Expand
  25. sarahlee123
    Feb 25, 2018
    7
    The Vanishing of Ethan Carter offers a compelling story, as well as plenty of atmosphere and a stunningly beautiful world that I thoroughly enjoyed exploring, stopping multiple times just to take in the view.

    While you aren't given much in the way of backstory, the game slowly reveals clues that allow you to piece the events of its Lovecraftian mystery together. The brilliant story is    The Vanishing of Ethan Carter offers a compelling story, as well as plenty of atmosphere and a stunningly beautiful world that I thoroughly enjoyed exploring, stopping multiple times just to take in the view.

    While you aren't given much in the way of backstory, the game slowly reveals clues that allow you to piece the events of its Lovecraftian mystery together. The brilliant story is constructed from several smaller stories, and once you collect all of the clues, the game rewards you with a conclusion that is as moving as it is unexpected.

    One of the biggest reasons to play The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is its gorgeous and highly detailed world. Inspired by the Polish Karkonosze mountains, the developers have taken picturesque scenes from the real world and somehow made them look even better in game. I found myself stopping frequently to admire sweeping views of the game's scenery or examine small details like the bark on the trees or the leaf litter underfoot.

    The Vanishing of Ethan Carter warns you before the game even begins that it "does not hold your hand" and this aspect of the game may prove frustrating for some players. Unsure of where to go or what to do, I personally ended up getting lost and quickly resorting to a walkthrough for some much needed guidance. More patient players may be able to figure things out for themselves, but I needed a little more direction myself.

    The game's puzzles, too, while not particularly complicated, are another potential source of frustration, as it is often unclear at first what the object of the puzzle is. Most players probably won't have any problem solving the puzzles, but if, like me, you're not a huge puzzle fan, you might find them somewhat bothersome.

    Overall, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is worth playing if only for its beautiful environments and rich story. I personally did not enjoy the puzzles and found the lack of guidance vexing at times, but others may enjoy having the freedom to explore the game's world at their own pace and complete the puzzles in whatever order they like.

    While you may not like everything about The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, if you think you may enjoy even some aspects of the game, it's probably worth picking up, as there's nothing else quite like it.    … Expand
  26. Krzych
    Dec 27, 2016
    7
    The game is amazingly beautiful and doesn't require much power to run, definitely one of the best games in terms of graphics/performance ratio, voice acting is also great, but gameplay and story itself didn't really got me that much. It was very promising at the beginning but was falling short with time. It felt like all of this is around nothing and the game is about nothing, literally.The game is amazingly beautiful and doesn't require much power to run, definitely one of the best games in terms of graphics/performance ratio, voice acting is also great, but gameplay and story itself didn't really got me that much. It was very promising at the beginning but was falling short with time. It felt like all of this is around nothing and the game is about nothing, literally. Still very interesting game and definitely worth trying out, maybe it will get to you more than it did to me, but I have mixed feelings about it.… Expand
  27. TitaniumDragon
    Nov 10, 2016
    5
    The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a very pretty three-to-four hour long supernatural horror game. You play as Paul Prospero, a detective with a penchant for the supernatural who has been receiving letters for a long time from one of his fans, Ethan Carter. Gradually, however, it becomes increasingly clear to him that Ethan is in terrible danger, and so he sets off to go rescue him from theThe Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a very pretty three-to-four hour long supernatural horror game. You play as Paul Prospero, a detective with a penchant for the supernatural who has been receiving letters for a long time from one of his fans, Ethan Carter. Gradually, however, it becomes increasingly clear to him that Ethan is in terrible danger, and so he sets off to go rescue him from the supernatural dangers around him, on what he says he is certain will be his final case.

    The gameplay itself is very much that of a walking simulator, though unlike pure walking simulators, there are some (pretty simple) puzzles present in this game. The core gameplay consists of going to a new area, finding various environmental elements in the area, and then putting them together until you’ve gained enough to unlock a cutscene. Sometimes, you have to solve crimes – the deaths of various people – and to do so, you must put the elements of each scene in chronological order. Other puzzles simply unlock when you collect all the elements, while others require some other puzzle to solve them.

    This is, perhaps, the game’s greatest weakness – while the game has a nice aesthetic to it, a lot of the puzzles fundamentally consist of wandering around trying to find things in the environment you can interact with. At its best, this feels like a detective wandering aroun searching for clues. At its worst, it feels like “find the hidden object”. The very first puzzle in the game, somewhat obnoxiously, occurs before you know about how these puzzle elements work, and it is very easy to overlook some of them.

    The core story is decent, but kind of standard – Ethan Carter has woken up “the Sleeper”, some sort of eldritch entity which infects the minds of his family members who start trying to kill him on the Sleeper’s order. The story is presented slightly out of order – one of the very first puzzles in the game actually comes very late chronologically – but otherwise, it is mostly in order, as Ethan and his family members struggle against the Sleeper and each other as they are each possessed in turn. It is presented decently enough, and through the story we get some idea of the personality of each of Ethan’s family members, as well as his feelings towards them.

    That being said, the game has a very standard twist ending which, while I saw it coming towards the end, wasn’t really something that I appreciated very much – it wasn’t terribly interesting as a twist, though the game did a decent enough job of setting up clues about it along the way. And ultimately, the core plot is all very by-the-numbers, while the side-stories, while a bit more eclectic, sometimes feel like they’re outliers just so they can be outliers.

    If there is one thing this game does very well, though, it is the presentation – the Redux version of the game (which is what I played) is gorgeous, and the various side-stories look very pretty. Really, the game as a whole is very visually appealing and is a pleasure to be in, even if dark mine environment #762 is kind of… standard.

    That being said, I’m left feeling ambivalent about it. I don’t know if I can recommend buying it; the experience isn’t bad, and if you already own it, it might be worth three hours of your time, but it isn’t some amazingly above-average experience. The visuals are great but the story is ultimately only okay, and I’m not sure if you’ll walk away from this thinking “Man, that was great” so much as “Well, that was decent.”

    At $20, this game feels overpriced; I got it for $3.50, and I think that was about right considering. I don’t feel ripped off. But I don’t know that I can say “Go buy this.”    … Expand
  28. BLADELING
    Nov 7, 2016
    6
    Positive: graphics, voice acting, controls.
    Negative: everything else.
    This game is *really* short (3-4 hours) and the story, well... too short to talk about without spoilers: let's say the ending is a disappointment. The graphic is nice because the engine is great, there where were developers are supposed to make an effort (internal and characters) there are - immediately noticeable    Positive: graphics, voice acting, controls.
    Negative: everything else.

    This game is *really* short (3-4 hours) and the story, well... too short to talk about without spoilers: let's say the ending is a disappointment. The graphic is nice because the engine is great, there where were developers are supposed to make an effort (internal and characters) there are - immediately noticeable -deficiencies and approximations. Definitely not a 18,99€ game.    … Expand
  29. Hack
    Aug 27, 2016
    5
    I just didn't like it at all, there was absolutely no structure whatsoever and really no game, it's better described as a sandbox tech demo for Unreal Engine 4 and in that regards it's fantastic because it's a truly beautiful game with some of the best visuals I've ever seen, and the audio was great as well. This may seem like a harsh score but it just wasn't fun, and even though it was soI just didn't like it at all, there was absolutely no structure whatsoever and really no game, it's better described as a sandbox tech demo for Unreal Engine 4 and in that regards it's fantastic because it's a truly beautiful game with some of the best visuals I've ever seen, and the audio was great as well. This may seem like a harsh score but it just wasn't fun, and even though it was so short I was already sick of it by the end.… Expand
  30. crimsondoor
    Jul 14, 2016
    7
    First thing - I don't know why, but this is one of the few games that made me motion sick. I am prone to motion sickness on travel (I puke every single time on a long-distance bus), but playing FPS games seldom make me sick. This is the first game that made me dizzy within a minute and I had to stop playing it. I bet it's because of the motion blur and the lack of HUD. Anyway that's whyFirst thing - I don't know why, but this is one of the few games that made me motion sick. I am prone to motion sickness on travel (I puke every single time on a long-distance bus), but playing FPS games seldom make me sick. This is the first game that made me dizzy within a minute and I had to stop playing it. I bet it's because of the motion blur and the lack of HUD. Anyway that's why I've only watched a walkthrough and didn't play the game. No complains about the Unreal Engine 4 graphics, shame you cannot interact with the environment more. Little details like voice acting and animations need to be polished up. Still, I think we should support the indie developers. Idea of the game is quite interesting and I'd like to more games like this.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

43
#43 Best PC Game of 2014
32
#32 Most Discussed PC Game of 2014
40
#40 Most Shared PC Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 66 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 56 out of 66
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 66
  3. Negative: 0 out of 66
  1. SpazioGames
    Oct 28, 2015
    85
    The Vanishing of Ethan Carter it's a lovely experience that enchants the player with its narrative, and landscapes. Even the sound is fitting in this smart game whose only real problem is the duration.
    Read full review
  2. Games Master UK
    Dec 21, 2014
    78
    A gorgeously crafted experience that's cramped by the occasionally obtuse signposting. [Christmas 2014, p.68]
  3. CD-Action
    Dec 13, 2014
    80
    Some minor disappointments did not prevent me from soaking in the atmosphere worthy of Lovecraft’s horror stories. [Dec 2014, p.46]
See all critic reviews »