Game review
The Cursed Forest
5.4 / 10
- Developer
- KPy3O / Noostyche
- Publisher
- Grable Team
- Released
- 26 February 2019
- Platforms
- Windows
- Genre
- Adventure
- Monetisation
- One-time purchase, no DLC or in-app purchases.
- Players
- Single-player only
The short version
The Cursed Forest is an atmospheric horror walking simulator following a man who takes a shortcut through a mysterious autumnal forest and uncovers its dark history through notes and exploration. Steam's aggregate reads Very Positive at 89% of 344 English-language reviews, and this review read all 38 negative reviews plus a sample of the positive side.
The visuals draw near-universal praise across this sample, positive and negative alike — reviewers consistently call the forest genuinely beautiful and the atmosphere well-crafted, built on the CryEngine. What holds back a meaningful share of reviewers is a specific, repeated complaint that the game leans too heavily on cheap jump scares, undermining the slow-burn dread its visuals and sound design otherwise earn. A second, persistent complaint concerns technical stability: crash and freeze reports recur across reviews spanning nearly a decade, and the game's own store page reportedly lists known compatibility issues, including with some Intel CPUs, that were never fully resolved. One isolated reviewer separately reports antivirus software flagging adware in the installer, a claim this review could not verify or corroborate elsewhere in the sample.
Biggest strengths
- Genuinely beautiful, well-crafted visuals and atmosphere, praised consistently across both positive and negative reviews, built on CryEngine
- Strong, well-liked sound design that several reviewers credit alongside the visuals for the game's best moments of dread
- A well-received story for players who engage with its note-based lore, with several reviewers calling it genuinely interesting despite a familiar horror premise
Biggest weaknesses
- A specific, repeated complaint that the game leans too heavily on cheap jump scares, which multiple reviewers say actively undermines the slow-burn atmosphere its visuals and sound design otherwise earn
- Persistent crash and freeze reports spanning reviews from 2015 through as recently as 2022, with the game's own store page reportedly listing known, unresolved compatibility issues
- A slow, walking-simulator pace with heavy reliance on long text notes that several reviewers say makes the game feel more like reading than playing
Who it's for: Atmospheric horror and walking-sim fans who prioritise visuals and slow-burn dread over tight, well-paced scares, prepared to accept a real chance of crashes.
Our recommendation: Worth it for the visuals and atmosphere alone if you can tolerate cheap jump scares breaking the mood — just be aware of the persistent, long-running crash reports first.
5.4 / 10
Introduction
The Cursed Forest is an atmospheric horror walking simulator following a man who takes a shortcut through a mysterious autumnal forest and uncovers its dark history through notes and exploration. Developed by KPy3O and Noostyche and published by Grable Team, it exited Early Access on 26 February 2019 at NZ$12.99. Its 344 English-language reviews sit at 89% positive, Very Positive. This review read all 38 negative reviews in that sample alongside a range of the positive side.
Near-universal visual praise
The forest itself draws consistent admiration from both sides of this sample. "A beautiful piece of visual art that sets a great horror tone," reads the sample's most-upvoted negative review, opening with real credit before pivoting to its actual complaint. On the positive side, one detailed review calls it simply: "The forest itself is gorgeous and the atmosphere is amazingly crafted too." Another reviewer, comparing it favourably to competitors, writes: "This game has amazing atmosphere and really pretty graphics, thanks to CryEngine."
Jump scares undermining the atmosphere
Set against that shared praise, this review's negative sample converges on a specific tonal complaint. "Too bad there is a heavy focus on jumpscares that ruins that tone at key moments," continues that top review, describing enemies shown "a lot with a blaring jumpscare noise" that breaks immersion rather than building it. Another, independently: "Jump Scare after Jump scare with little [buildup]," arguing the game substitutes cheap shocks for the sustained dread its visuals promise. A third reviewer draws the genre distinction plainly: "you will not be running, hiding, or fighting for your life" — this is a walking simulator wearing horror-game trappings, for better or worse depending on what a given player wants from it.
Persistent stability problems
A separate, more practical complaint concerns crashes. "Crashes and freezes. During 30 minutes of gameplay game crashed 3 times," reads one review from the Early Access period, and the same category of complaint recurs years later: "Super buggy. Game would freeze up all the time. Graphics are great, but if you have an intel cpu it wont work well at all. To be fair they did mention this up front," reads a 2022 review, referencing known compatibility warnings the developers themselves posted. A separate, isolated reviewer raises a different concern this review could not verify or find corroborated elsewhere: antivirus software flagging adware files traced back to the installer.
Verdict
The Cursed Forest is a genuinely beautiful atmospheric horror experience, and this review's full sample confirms that visual and atmospheric strength holds up even for critical reviewers. But a specific, repeated complaint about over-reliance on cheap jump scares, combined with persistent crash reports spanning nearly a decade and openly acknowledged compatibility issues, are real reasons for caution. Worth it for horror-atmosphere fans prepared to tolerate both.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Genuinely beautiful, well-crafted visuals and atmosphere, praised consistently across both positive and negative reviews, built on CryEngine
- Strong, well-liked sound design that several reviewers credit alongside the visuals for the game's best moments of dread
- A well-received story for players who engage with its note-based lore, with several reviewers calling it genuinely interesting despite a familiar horror premise
- A distinct, non-combat exploration focus that several reviewers appreciate as a break from more conventional survival-horror formulas
Cons
- A specific, repeated complaint that the game leans too heavily on cheap jump scares, which multiple reviewers say actively undermines the slow-burn atmosphere its visuals and sound design otherwise earn
- Persistent crash and freeze reports spanning reviews from 2015 through as recently as 2022, with the game's own store page reportedly listing known, unresolved compatibility issues
- A slow, walking-simulator pace with heavy reliance on long text notes that several reviewers say makes the game feel more like reading than playing
- One isolated reviewer reports antivirus software flagging adware in the game's installer, a claim this review could not verify or find corroborated elsewhere in the sample
- A troubled, multi-year Early Access history that several older reviews describe as slow and uncertain, though later reviews suggest the full release resolved much of that specific concern
Screenshots
-
The Cursed ForestImage: Grable Team via Steam -
The Cursed ForestImage: Grable Team via Steam -
The Cursed ForestImage: Grable Team via Steam -
How the review scores each part of the gameWanderer Editorial -
The essentials at a glanceWanderer Editorial -
The short versionWanderer Editorial