Info about The Scourge | Tai Ương:

Official game description:
"The Scourge" is a first person horror puzzle game, immersing you in the heart of Saigon (Vietnam) through urban legends from the 1990s. You will follow the tragic fate of a family and the main character, who made mistakes in the past and is now haunted by a sinister supernatural force.
The protagonist, a person overwhelmed by delusions due to past tragedies and life's despair, frequently finds himself in nightmares. In these dreams, the line between reality and illusion becomes blurred. To rediscover his inner light and escape from the shadows of his past, he must confront his sorrows, make amends for his mistakes, and defeat the most formidable enemy that exists not only in his mind but also in the real world.
Starting in a rundown apartment during an era of an unnamed epidemic, where mysteries and supernatural phenomena occur incessantly, you'll need to use your intellect to solve intricate puzzles, explore new areas, and prepare for the ultimate showdown. Every decision, every action, will determine his fate and future. Stay alert and be ready to face all challenges.

Release date: Mar 28, 2026

Categories: First-Person Perspective, Puzzle Solving, Atmospheric Horror, Exploration, Narrative Adventure, Choice-based Narrative, Environmental Storytelling, Stealth Gameplay

Feature scans:
- Proton/Linux: score 20; verdict: Works Well; summary: The game is generally playable on Proton and Steam Deck with some minor graphical bugs reported. The overall performance on Steam Deck is praised for its optimization.
- Steam Deck: score 50; verdict: Tinkering Required; summary: The game on Steam Deck faces notable stability issues, including persistent bugs and frame drops. Additionally, while the game is playable with Proton, it encounters several bugs that affect the user experience, such as graphical glitches. These issues suggest that the game requires significant tinkering to achieve a smoother experience.

- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics:
  - Game completion: 3.5h
  - Story completion: 3.0h
  - Session length: N/A
  - Endgame: N/A
  - Reasoning: The evidence provides multiple direct references to the playtime for completing the game. Several reviews mention finishing the game in around 3 hours, which strongly supports the typical total time to finish the game. One review mentions a playtime of 4 hours to reach 60% completion, which aligns with the overall game completion time when considering the game is reported to be 60% complete in its current state. The evidence consistently points to a game completion time of around 3-4 hours.
- Time-to-fun:
  - Summary: The game initially presents friction through repetitive tasks but becomes more enjoyable in the second half after overcoming these early blockers.
  - Stance: Fun then drops
  - Anchor: Completion of repetitive tasks and progression to the second half of the game.
  - Time to anchor: 1h 30m
  - Friction: Repetitive stealth sections; Tedious collection of hidden items; Repetitive tasks as core progression mechanics
  - Unlock drivers: Story progression; Narrative development
  - Conditions: Listening to extra radio logs; Engaging with the story and narrative
- Player Archetypes:
  - Artistic Narrative Enthusiast (buy)
    - Motivation: Engaging storytelling and visual artistry
    - Playstyle: Explores and appreciates the game's artistic and narrative elements.
    - Experience: mixed
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: horror fan; art enthusiast
    - Reference games: What Remains of Edith Finch; Gone Home
  - Polish-Conscious Gamer (deep sale)
    - Motivation: Seeking a polished and complete gaming experience
    - Playstyle: Prefers games that are technically sound and complete.
    - Experience: veteran
    - Purchase stance: deep sale
    - Labels: quality-conscious gamer; bug-averse player
    - Reference games: The Last of Us Part II; Red Dead Redemption 2
  - Cultural Realism Seeker (buy)
    - Motivation: Authentic cultural experiences and realism
    - Playstyle: Seeks out and appreciates culturally rich and realistic games.
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: culture enthusiast; realism seeker
    - Reference games: Ghost of Tsushima; Assassin's Creed Origins


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Improved and beautiful graphics (weight 0.79): The graphics in the game are noted for their detail and beauty. Players appreciate the improved and smoother gameplay experience.
- Effective horror atmosphere (weight 0.7): The game's horror and atmosphere are well-received, with players noting the dark and haunting environment. The immersive horror atmosphere is highlighted as a strong point.
- Compelling storytelling (weight 0.68): The game's storytelling is appreciated for its depth and engagement. Players find the narrative to be well-crafted and promising.
- High-quality Vietnamese horror game (weight 0.65): The game is recognized as a high-quality Vietnamese horror game, with players praising its unique atmosphere and eerie religious rituals. It is considered a gem in the Vietnamese horror game scene.
- Authentic Vietnamese cultural setting (weight 0.62): The game is praised for its detailed and authentic representation of Vietnamese culture, customs, and folklore, set in the 1990s. Players appreciate the unique atmosphere and the inclusion of Vietnamese cultural elements.
- Well-executed scares (weight 0.54): The game features well-placed scares and jump scares that are not considered cheap. Players appreciate the effective horror elements and psychological horror aspects.
- Engaging and appropriate puzzles (weight 0.51): The puzzles in the game are described as interesting, clever, and challenging, yet not overly difficult. Players find them simple yet effective, adding to the overall enjoyment.
- Worth playing and fun (weight 0.49): Players find the game worth playing and enjoyable. The gameplay is described as intriguing and simple to play, providing good value for the money.
- Creative and atmospheric design (weight 0.28): The game's design is highlighted for its creativity and atmosphere. Players appreciate the excellent art design and the breathtaking visuals.
- Immersive environment (weight 0.27): The game is praised for its immersive and moody environment. Players find the atmospheric and haunting setting to be very engaging.
- Solid and unique game concept (weight 0.22): The game is praised for its solid and neat concept. Players find it to be a great and spooky game with a unique setting.
- Superb voice-over and music (weight 0.21): The game features superb voice-over work and very good music. Players appreciate the sound effects and the overall audio experience.

Common complaints:
- Game is unfinished (weight 0.66): The game is currently incomplete with only two chapters available, and many players feel it is overpriced for the content provided. The game remains about 40% unfinished as of December 2, 2024.
- Poor optimization (weight 0.52): The game suffers from bad optimization, leading to issues like lag, crashes, and significant FPS drops during certain actions or in specific areas.
- Difficult chase sequences (weight 0.37): Chase sequences in the game are noted to be extremely difficult and can become repetitive and time-consuming, which some players find frustrating.
- Confusing plot (weight 0.36): The plot of the game is confusing and slightly weak, with unclear mechanics and storytelling that can be difficult to follow.
- Translation issues (weight 0.3): The game has translation errors, with some parts being machine-translated, leading to inaccurate translations.
- Bugs affecting gameplay (weight 0.27): There are bugs present in the game, some of which prevent progress and cause issues with game progression.
- Repetitive gameplay (weight 0.25): The gameplay mechanics and stealth sections can become repetitive, leading to a tedious experience for some players.
- Game is short (weight 0.13): The game is considered to be a bit short, with the process being too brief for some players.
- Picture-in-picture issues (weight 0.12): The game uses picture-in-picture for many dream transition cutscenes, but the integration between the scene view and the picture-in-picture is not seamless.

Gameplay feedback:
- Puzzle-solving and exploration mechanics (weight 0.54): The gameplay focuses on puzzle-solving and exploration. Players need to solve puzzles and explore the environment to progress.
- Horror elements and atmosphere (weight 0.48): The game incorporates various horror elements to create a creepy and impressive horror atmosphere. It includes jump scares and environmental sound effects.
- Character-driven narrative (weight 0.46): The game features a deep and structured narrative that is driven by its characters. The story is a central element of the gameplay experience.
- Storytelling through radio broadcasts (weight 0.43): The game uses radios extensively to convey story elements and enhance the atmosphere. Plot unfolds through radio broadcasts and features radio programs that tell horror stories.
- Authentic Vietnamese cultural elements (weight 0.42): The game is set in an authentic urban Vietnamese environment and incorporates various Vietnamese cultural elements. It includes cultural details in architecture, objects, and uses the Vietnamese language.
- Mini-games and chase segments (weight 0.36): The game includes various mini-games and chase segments. Players engage in hide-and-seek aspects and chase scenes.
- Multiple endings and dream sequences (weight 0.3): The game offers multiple endings and includes dream sequences. Players experience spiritual events triggered by scene changes and waking up after dreams to complete tasks.
- Inventory and item collection (weight 0.25): The game features an inventory system where players need to collect items to progress. This includes finding objects and using them appropriately.
- Stealth and avoidance mechanics (weight 0.25): Gameplay involves stealth sections where players must avoid enemies and not be seen. This includes hiding and avoiding detection.
- Use of incense and spiritual culture (weight 0.14): The game incorporates the use of incense to ward off ghosts and is based on Vietnamese spiritual culture.
- Boss fights and mechanics issues (weight 0.13): The game includes boss fights, but some players have reported issues with game mechanics.
- Chapter-based gameplay (weight 0.13): The game features chapter-based gameplay, where players follow rules to enter lucid dreams and complete tasks.

Performance notes:
- Frame rate drops (weight 0.54): Players frequently encounter FPS drops during gameplay and cutscenes, which affect the overall gaming experience.
- Performance optimization issues (weight 0.39): The game has various performance optimization issues, with some players reporting good optimization while others experience problems.
- Game crashing (weight 0.22): Some players report that the game crashes on certain computers, impacting playability.
- Steam Deck optimization (weight 0.21): The game is well optimized for Steam Deck, but there are also reports of performance issues specific to this hardware.
- High GPU usage (weight 0.09): The game has high GPU usage, which can lead to performance issues on some systems.
- Hardware-specific performance issues (weight 0.09): There are performance issues reported on specific hardware configurations, affecting the game's playability.
- Lingering bugs (weight 0.09): Many players have reported lingering bugs in the game, which can impact the overall gaming experience.

Recommendations:
- Appeals to horror fans (weight 0.16): The game is considered a must-play for horror fans, particularly those interested in Vietnamese culture and folklore horror.
- Recommended by players (weight 0.09): Several players have recommended the game, indicating a positive reception.
- Wait for full release (weight 0.08): Some players suggest waiting until the game is fully released before purchasing or trying it out.
- Anticipation for future releases (weight 0.08): Players are looking forward to future releases or sequels, showing interest and expectation.

Other player notes:
No miscpoints

Emotions:
- Frustration (weight 0.21): Players are frustrated primarily due to persistent bugs and performance issues that hinder gameplay, including lagging, FPS drops, and motion sickness problems. Additionally, the difficulty of chase sequences, boss mechanics, and convoluted gameplay elements such as forced stealth sections and unpredictable AI contribute to this frustration.
- Appreciation (weight 0.15): Players appreciate the game's unique cultural context and storytelling, which includes interesting folklore and good voice acting. The engaging storyline, beautiful graphics, and high-quality music also contribute to this positive sentiment.
- Excited (weight 0.14): Players are excited about the game's atmosphere, story, and immersion, which provide a fun and spooky gameplay experience. Anticipation for future updates and the growth of Vietnamese games also contribute to this excitement.
- Excitement (weight 0.11): Players are excited about the engaging storyline, unique cultural elements, and the overall quality of the game. The anticipation for the full launch of new chapters and seeing YouTubers play the game also adds to this excitement.
- Impressed (weight 0.09): Players are impressed by the game's deep and rich narrative, detailed graphics, and excellent art design. The straightforward plot, easy progression, and clever puzzle design also contribute to this impression.
- Admiration (weight 0.07): Players admire the game's unique style, depth, and atmosphere, which are enhanced by its plot, graphics, and mission puzzles. The game's theme, quality, and favorable comparison to other games like Devotion also contribute to this admiration.
- Fear (weight 0.07): Players feel fear due to the game's oppressive horror atmosphere, jump scares, and childhood fears. Specific elements like the dad character and chanting, as well as the overall scary story, contribute to this emotion.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.06): Players enjoy the game's scary setting, mix of horror and comedy in the dialogue, and the Vietnamese cultural backdrop. The plot, horror elements, and cultural elements also contribute to their enjoyment.
- Disappointment (weight 0.06): Players are disappointed with the game's unnecessary jump scares, repetitive gameplay, and incomplete story. The lower quality graphics in the full release compared to the demo, along with the abrupt ending and pricing, also contribute to this disappointment.
- Frustrated (weight 0.05): Players are frustrated with character control and movement issues, as well as gameplay and performance issues. The challenging gameplay and unoptimized performance also add to this frustration.
- Engaged (weight 0.05): Players are engaged by the game's detailed story and gameplay elements. The comprehensive analysis and structured breakdown of various aspects of the game also contribute to this engagement.
- Anticipation (weight 0.03): Players are looking forward to new parts from the studio and expecting more chapters and updates. This anticipation is driven by the positive experiences and the desire for more content.
- Disappointed (weight 0.03): Players are disappointed with the unclear and rushed ending of the story, as well as some parts being machine translated. The incomplete game and the feeling that it is not worth the money also contribute to this disappointment.
- Pride (weight 0.02): Players express pride in the game being the best Vietnamese horror game and a significant step for the Vietnamese game industry. Supporting Vietnamese products also adds to this sense of pride.
- Sadness (weight 0.02): Players feel a quiet sadness for the character's fate and story. The emotional impact of the story, especially for those who can relate to having a sister, contributes to this sadness.
- Intrigued (weight 0.02): Players are intrigued by the detailed plot summary and analysis of the game's features. The depth and complexity of the story and gameplay elements spark this intrigue.
- Happy (weight 0.02): Players are happy with the overall positive experience the game provides. The enjoyable atmosphere, story, and gameplay contribute to this happiness.
- Satisfied (weight 0.02): Players are satisfied with the game's high rating, good atmosphere, and music. The overall positive experience and high quality of the game contribute to this satisfaction.
- Love (weight 0.02): Players love the game's atmosphere, story, and gameplay. Specific mechanics, such as checking clocks, add to the overall enjoyment and love for the game.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.01): Players are satisfied with the game's quality and voice acting. The three chapters and puzzle-solving aspects also contribute to this satisfaction.}