An indie single-player horror experience

Don’t Die Alone is a solo developed project. It is a light horror game that is framed as a hand-drawn story with interactive elements. It is like a first-person point-and-click adventure. The game is played from a third-person perspective.

After receiving a chain mail saying that you have to send fifteen spam messages or die, you have to pick the correct buttons to progress the story and avoid death. In terms of format, it has similarities to Five Nights At Freddy’s. Some of the non-computer-screen story elements are like Doki Doki Literature Club.

A point-and-click puzzle adventure

You have to choose your next move or response, but you only have limited choices when playing, which turns the game into more of a horror puzzle where the outcomes of your actions are difficult to predict. Figure out which page elements can be clicked, and then pick your choice to progress or fail.

Not a jumpscare game

This interactive horror game is menacing because of the threat of death and bullying. There are creatures roaming the supposed area you are located in, but there is no jumpscare when you die or when the game ends. The game is hand drawn, but the final monster is 3D modeled for a more disturbing appearance.

A donations-only solo indie game

The art style and overall aesthetic of this game are very good when you consider that it’s a solo-developed visual novel with interactive elements. It only costs a donation of your choice. It seems to end very abruptly on what could have been a jumpscare (but wasn’t).

Multiple paths to the same end

The developer claims there are twelve routes to the end, though there are only three overly obvious routes. The ending is always the same. The understated sound design was a very good design choice. It offers an easily digestible short story.