Stares Back
A downloadable game for Windows
Looking for relief, signs point her towards a mysterious nebula. Now she needs a closer look.
Note: This game uses a lot of sound effects. Some gameplay sections are much easier with sound. I recommend headphones!
This game features:
49 CGs (93 counting variations!),
An immersive short story with cinematic presentation,
Real life eldritch horrors brought to the cosmos,
Explorable telescope segments showcasing the terrifying darkness of space,
And more!
Content Warnings
- Depictions of depression and other mental illness
- Violence and death
- Swearing
- Spiders
Credits
Writing, artwork, some music, and programming done by StephenW313
Jupiter, Saturn, and Andromeda images from rawpixel.com
With sound effects from:
pixabay.com
fesliyanstudios.com
Grocery Store music by GeoffreyBurch
First guitar track by Oleksii Kaplunskyi
Cafe music by Genx Beats
Second guitar track by orangery
Download
Click download now to get access to the following files:
Comments
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The visuals are great, I really liked the visual displays of Vivian's general well being along side of the narrative signs of her worsening mentality.
You did a really great job on this game!
Interesting Visual Novel! The mood was great and the slow spiraling of Vivians mental state was conveyed really well.
i generally don't care too much about eldritch horror, but this game really got me to play it through to the end..i love just how empty it feels, vivian slowly going mad about a random spot in the sky
the art was great and it all being a different aspect ratio from your average monitor just made it feel more special in a way
the sound effects during the binocular segment were great and i wish i had like..a creepy ambient ost from it
i will say though, i was very confused by the ending
Stares Back had a really unique vibe, good pacing and storytelling. I did maybe spend too much time "looking around" but that was suspenseful.
Her face really conveyed what was going on in her mind.
I actually really enjoyed this and the ending was really creepy well done
I'm a big fan of eldritch horror, and this hit perfect. Her obsession slowly turning manic feels so tangible, and visually it's really good. Do you have a gallery of your artwork by any chance?
Pretty creepy.
Very dark and interesting plot.
really love this game, love the stargazing part and the way it's presented was really awesome, it feels like. I'm watching a movie.
Really enjoyed the writing for this game so much!! Love how it really builds up the unsettling aspects of the story! And the art added so much to that aspect too! <3
Hey! I was wondering if you’d like your game to be localised to Portuguese. If so, let me know!
cries this game jumpscared me twice
how could you be so cruel???
Really, though, this was a great experience! The story is tight and well-paced, the interactive segments really add to it (and are pretty disturbing; especially the segment w/ the binoculars), and the sound effects are very unsettling. The vibes of this story are immaculate.
Oh, and I thought the art style was familiar... I checked your page, and you did Don't Die Alone, which was one of my fav entries in last year's Spooktober. I think this one might shape up to be a fav too; it's very atmospheric!
You're so good at telling unsettling stories! I think you did a great job!