Kholat

 Xbox One
Metascore
54

Mixed or average reviews - based on 7 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 7
  3. Negative: 2 out of 7
  1. TrueAchievements
    Jun 22, 2017
    40
    The Dyatlov Pass Incident is one of the most fascinating real life horror stories of the last century. It's a topic built to be adapted to different forms of media, arguably video games more than any other. Somehow Kholat is given this head start and trips all over itself. The story fails to take off while the gameplay only serves to annoy. It's never scary, save for a theme song that even then is played so often that it loses its effect. Horror and walking sims are my two favorite genres in the medium, but Kholat serves as another unfortunate reminder that they don't belong together.
  2. MondoXbox
    Jun 19, 2017
    40
    Kholat fails to keep us involved due to a too predictable plot, while a badly designed map system makes the overall experience more frustrating than thrilling. Too bad: an intriguing mystery as the Dyatlov Pass incident deserved a better treatment.

User Reviews

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User Score
5.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 6 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 6
  3. Negative: 2 out of 6
  1. RevanJJ
    Jul 27, 2019
    7
    This has great atmospherics, great sound, is based on a TRUE & truly horrifying story. Sean Bean makes for a great narrator. It is a gameThis has great atmospherics, great sound, is based on a TRUE & truly horrifying story. Sean Bean makes for a great narrator. It is a game about discovery, you are one person seeking to discover what really happened in the Dyatlov Pass Incident where 9 hikers, over 60 years ago, died both tragically and under extremely creepy circumstances. Even the official Soviet Union report says they were killed by a “Compelling Unnatural Force.” So that adds a lot to the fear factor of the game.

    That said the negatives are pretty rough. You use a real compass and notes to find your way, which is cool. Make sure harder and more realistic. However the compass does not always work. You will also get many cheap and unexplainable deaths. Not from glitches. It really does a good job of getting your pulse pounding. However, it does get into walking simulator issues. It would have been nice to climb, to jump. For a game in the mountains, using Unreal Engine 4, you should be able to climb and jump over 2 ft fences. It’s a great game if you get it free or low price. The atmosphere and true story alone are worth it. Obviously they add their fictional parts to make it a game, but there are so many theories on what happened; why not? It’s the kind of game to play to kill some time, when you are bored of the usual, then play this. However, remember it’s basically an adventure/investigation game with excellent sound and graphics but the story and the gameplay are extremely nonlinear. It’s a great experience yet it also has many failings. If gotten for free to $5, it’s a great value and worth it! I honestly wouldn’t pay more despite the obvious money, Care, and history put into this game. The reason being, it is very frustrating. It’s not that it’s too hard or anything like that. It’s just that after an hour of random deaths, weird poetry, and an investigation that seems to never really go anywhere...idk. I give it a 7 though because it is worth playing and I support the independent studio that made it and did so w love. If you expect Doom style action from your games or prefer to just experience an easy game, this game is not for you. If you enjoy amazing sound, graphics, and creepiness based on a truly creepy and horrifying event and like investigative games, then you’ll love this. Plus there’s Boromir/Ned Stark aka Sean Bean.
    It is usually free or $1.49-$4.99 for a few days every month so that definitely adds a point to my review.    … Full Review »
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