Unmourned
Jen's Review
Unmourned was a game that had me excited long before it was released, and thankfully... it actually lived up to the hype.
From the first trailer, I had a feeling this one was going to be something special. It had a creepy atmosphere, an interesting premise, and honestly gave me Ramona vibes. Now, is it quite on the same level as Ramona? I don't think it quite reaches those heights, but that's a pretty high bar to clear. Even so, Unmourned is a fantastic horror game in its own right.
You play as Jason, who moves into a new house only to find himself haunted by increasingly disturbing paranormal events. As things spiral out of control, you're forced to uncover the truth behind the disappearance of the home's previous owners.
And let me tell you... it's a pretty dark story.
The atmosphere is one of the game's biggest strengths. From the moment you step into the house, there's this constant feeling that something is watching you. Every hallway, every room, and every strange sound had me wondering what was waiting around the next corner.
The sound design deserves a lot of credit as well. It does a fantastic job of building tension without relying solely on jumpscares. When the scares do happen, they're well-timed and caught me off guard more than once.
I also really enjoyed the puzzles. They make you stop and think without ever becoming frustrating. I never felt completely lost, but I also wasn't just handed the answers. It struck a really nice balance that kept the game moving while still making progression feel rewarding.
From a technical standpoint, everything ran smoothly. I didn't run into any bugs or glitches during my playthrough, which made it easy to stay immersed in the experience from beginning to end.
One thing worth mentioning is the length. Steam says I have almost 8 hours in the game... but don't let that fool you. I streamed the entire thing, and if you've ever watched one of my streams, you already know I'm a professional procrastinator. I'll stop to talk with chat, get distracted by literally everything, and somehow turn a four-hour game into an all-day adventure.
Realistically, I'd say Unmourned is about a 3–4 hour experience, and I think that's the perfect length for the story it tells.
Overall, I had a great time with Unmourned. It has a creepy atmosphere, a dark and engaging story, solid puzzles, great sound design, and enough well-placed scares to keep you on edge without becoming overwhelming. If you're a fan of paranormal horror games, this is one I think just about anyone would enjoy playing.
It's a well-rounded horror experience, and one I'd happily recommend.
Kayla's Review
When I first saw the trailer for Unmourned and played the demo, I was all in. The demo wasn't particularly long, but somehow it managed to pack in an incredible amount of dread. It absolutely terrified me. The sound design, the atmosphere of the house, the entity lurking around... it all worked so well. And if you played the demo, you already know the moment...when you turn the lights off and that photo of HER suddenly becomes her actual face staring back at you. Yeah... if you know, you know.
Then the full game released.
Unfortunately, it wasn't exactly being showered with praise. Review after review complained that it was overpriced, dragged on for too long, was buggy, and just wasn't worth the asking price. Jen played it shortly after launch, and when I was looking for something to stream, I asked her if it was worth picking up. Her answer? "Wait for a sale." She felt the price was a little steep for what the game offered, so I shelved it for a while. Fast forward a few months...
Chat had brought up Unmourned several times asking if I'd ever play it, so I checked Steam again. The reviews had improved dramatically... the price, however, hadn't changed much. But curiosity finally won, I bit the bullet, and honestly?
I'm really glad I did.
You play as Jason, who purchases a house that's hiding far more than he ever bargained for. As you explore, you slowly uncover what happened to the previous family that lived there. The deeper you dig, the stranger everything becomes. The house shifts around you, paranormal activity escalates, reality starts to blur, and before long you're piecing together an incredibly dark and unsettling story.
And that's where Unmourned really surprised me. It delivered pretty much everything I was hoping it would.
The story is genuinely twisted, touching on some incredibly heavy subject matter, but it never felt like shock value for the sake of it. It was emotional, disturbing, and gave me a reason to keep pushing forward to see how everything fit together.
Atmospherically, this game absolutely shines and the sound design is phenomenal. I constantly felt like something was watching me, following just out of sight, waiting for me to let my guard down. Every hallway, every room, every corner had me questioning if I was about to get chased, jump-scared, or thrown into another nightmare sequence. The game builds tension incredibly well without relying on nonstop cheap scares, and that's something I always appreciate.
Gameplay-wise, everything felt smooth. The puzzles struck a nice balance between making me think without making me question my life choices for forty-five minutes. They kept the pacing moving, broke up exploration nicely, and were honestly just fun to solve.
One point that Jen almost mentioned... Steam estimated around an eight-hour playthrough, but I finished it over three streams totaling roughly seven and a half hours and that's with me getting distracted by chat every five minutes because apparently staying focused is not one of my strengths. But, I think that's one thing that maybe needs adjusted in the description because it wasn't necessarily true unless I was just insanely great at the game and moved that quickly.
Looking back, I'm actually disappointed that I waited as long as I did to play this one.
Unmourned ended up being one of my favorite horror experiences I've played this year. If you're looking for a horror game that leans heavily into tension, environmental storytelling, and psychological horror rather than just throwing jump scares at you every thirty seconds, I'd absolutely recommend giving this one a chance.
Maybe wait for a sale if you're still hesitant about the price... but don't make the mistake I did by waiting too long.
