A downloadable game

Download NowName your own price

There's something out there...

Eliza and her mother lead a quiet, simple life on their homestead at the edge of the forest. They live off the land, farming, foraging, and hunting.  But when Mama fails to return home one night, Eliza must venture out into the darkness to find her. But old secrets and forgotten sins lie buried among the trees. To save Mama, Eliza will have to uncover the mysteries of the deep, dark woods...

The Deep Dark Woods is a survival horror shooter inspired by games like Silent Hill and Doom 3. This is a pre-alpha demo produced for the Haunted PS1 Summer of Screams jam. Eliza's journey is far from over, so stay tuned!

NOTE: We received some concerns about playing this game on YouTube due to nudity, so you can now toggle the nudity in the Options menu.

Download

Download NowName your own price

Click download now to get access to the following files:

TheDeepDarkWoodsPreAlpha.zip 251 MB

Development log

Comments

Log in with itch.io to leave a comment.

fun game, but would probably be more fun if i wasn't so bad at puzzle games XD

I played this demo when it came out, and I love it!

How is the project going?

loved this game. reminded me of another game i played on here called the whitetail incident. keep up the good work. great scares

hi, big thx for the disturbings game. crazy. greetings from rosti 😘👍

man that was awesome. i loved the metronome puzzle. was really hoping there was more to it. 

Your game was a little too scary for me XD Incredibly creative, fun, and terrifying! Gotta play more of your stuff!

My video on The Deep Dark Woods.

😊👍

jesus that was scary

Very Amazing Game! I got spooked out a lot!, and I play doom3 at 2am with headphones. The whispers, the atmosphere...It´s a big thing I guess that you play a 13y old girl that looks for her mom instead a mighty adult warrior. The animal sounds got me spooked out so much too. And the way you shoot! Just awesome, exactly what you would imagine a top Indie game should be!!

(+1)

This game is great! Can't wait for more development. I really stuck through the game for a good while, exploring everything I can, before I realized it was a demo and there probably isn't an ending yet. I liked the gameplay, the aesthetic and the whole concept of a secret town cult sort of thing. I did have some issues with frames though, it ran in 15-16 fps when I was outside, I'm guessing it's because the game loads the entire map all at once? Anyway, I really enjoyed the game, looking forward for the full game!

Please check out my video (Game starts at 11:49) and my channel: VladMan. Thank you!

I just want to say, there are moments in this playthrough where I let my frustrations get the better of me and say things a bit more aggressively than I should have lol. Please don't take these at face value. I give a more level headed and comprehensive review at the end of the video. This is a GREAT game! But definitely a lot more challenging than I expected. 

(+2)

Thanks so much for playing, I'm glad you were able to enjoy the game despite periodic frustration! Your criticisms are very astute and balance and pacing are going to be priorities as this game moves forward. Additionally, there will be more variety in enemy encounters in the finished product. Ultimately, your review will help us refine the experience as we continue development. Thanks again for taking the time to play and make the video!

Thanks for understanding haha. I felt really bad as I was editing because I really liked the game by the time I finished it, and didn't want my criticisms to come across as too harsh. I have a tendency to say things I don't necessarily mean in the heat of the moment that I regret later, so I'm glad it wasn't offensive! This is a great start for the game, and I felt like the frustration I felt actually worked well upon reflecting on my experience. It added a level of tension to the game that made trying to figure out the puzzle a lot more intense and frightening. Even in moments where I felt like I should've been left alone, more and more enemies kept approaching and packing on the pressure. That adds an element to the game that helps it stand out from others, I would just love to see other types of enemies to make those moments of bombardment feel more unique and interesting! Much luck on the finished product, I'll definitely be keeping my eyes open for it!

He plans to play for a while and in the end I have been more than expected. That there are puzzles makes it interesting and the enemies make it have the necessary tension to never be calm. I miss perhaps more elements in the middle of the forest to be able to orient myself. I leave my gameplay in that I have not managed to get where I wanted.

That's great. Is your mother alive?
(2 edits)

Had a great time with this game! The story and era is original, it’s both scary and mysterious and has some seriously engaging gameplay. I love the mix of music and silence; it’s a perfect fit for what you’re going for, and night time wildlife effects brings the world to life. I’m looking forward to seeing what a full release will look like. I do hope the heart and soul of the game remains in the woods. I’m a big fan of varied environments, but it largely depends how interesting the scenery is. The woods with sporadic landmarks and buildings works for me because the dark forest brings that feeling of isolation and claustrophobia without getting boring. Either way, you made a fan out of me! Well done! 

P.S. Quick suggestion: It’d be nice to be able to toggle your sprint when using a controller. I was fine when using a keys & mouse, but holding the left stick down on a controller for long battles gets painful on the hands.

(+1)

Thanks so much for the thoughtful feedback! I'm so glad you enjoyed playing, and I can assure you that the woods will remain absolutely central to the game. Excellent point about the run input as well, we'll resolve that in the next update. Thanks again!

Cool game with great and smooth game mechanics. The audio is really good too, and the whispering of the enemies is such a cool touch! The Haunted PS1 game jam delivers once again! Good work!

-BH

How do I equip the gun?

Once you've picked up the shotgun, pressing "F" (or "K" for left-handed controls) will put down the lantern and equip the shotgun. To pick the lantern up again, just interact with it.

Weapon animations were made in which program?

(+1)

Thanks for the kind words! The weapon animations were actually made right in Unreal using actor sequences.

I love this game, these whispers are great, I hope you have the reach you deserve

Show post...

good retro

Great game! The feeling is crazy! I think you guys should put GIFs on the page to show the real vibe of the game

(+1)

Thank you so much! And very good advice, we'll throw some GIFs up for sure

(+1)

You're welcome to use any of the GIFS here if you like. :)

https://alpha-beta-gamer.tumblr.com/post/628895680117784576/the-deep-dark-woods-...