Low-budget horror games have become incredibly popular in recent years. Games like Fears to Fathom, Iron Lung, or Mouthwashing prove that you don’t need crazy graphics or a million jump scares to be a good scary game. Detective: Rainy Night, developed by K148 Game Studio and published by JanduSoft, is the next one of these games hoping to leave its mark on the genre.

You play as Iker Carmona, a police officer investigating a series of disappearances in the area. In the middle of nowhere, he decides to stay the night at the only hotel around. When he wakes the next morning, every car has mysteriously stopped working, and all cell phones have lost signal. The hotel guests are quick to blame one another for the dilemma they face.

Before long, they realise that someone, or something, is hunting them. It’s then that the group learns of a local legend; every 100 years, a massive storm rolls in for five days, cutting this area off from the rest of civilisation. Scared of the looming threat that is picking off the group one day at a time. Iker takes it upon himself to devise a plan, with the help of another guest, Felicia.

The gameplay is fairly simple, functioning mostly as a walking simulator in which you interact with characters and objects, such as doors and items. One key tool is a notepad, which I initially assumed would require the player to manually record information discovered each day. Instead, it fills itself in automatically, undercutting the detective aspect I expected to be more central to the experience. Still, the game stresses the importance of paying attention to every detail, as everything ultimately comes down to making the right decisions.

Annoyingly, every time I pulled up the notepad, a glitch would mean I would have to open up my menu to allow my character to look around again, as it would lock up the mouse controls. A simple fix, but one that gets tedious every time you want to check your notes.

The cast holed up at the hotel with you is a mixed bag, each with a distinct personality. Some characters quickly grow on you, making you genuinely hope they survive. Others, well, let’s just say I wouldn’t mind if the monster got to them. Speaking with everyone each day reveals more about who they are, though the dialogue unfolds so slowly that the ability to speed it up with a right-click is a blessing. It saves significant time and makes the overall experience far more enjoyable.

The way the story jumps from one day to the next may be jarring for some, yet during tense moments when the monster is present, I found myself with full-body chills. Rather than relying on jump scares, the game builds tension, constantly keeping you on edge as you wonder when the creature will finally reveal itself. When it does, the payoff is genuinely effective.

Audio plays a significant role as well, with a constant backing track that shifts according to the moment’s seriousness. The sound effects are fairly simple but work, and the same goes for the visuals, which lean into a retro, PS2-era style. Though the use of AI at certain points was very off-putting and unnecessary.

Overall, Detective: Rainy Night isn’t a perfect game, with several noticeable flaws. However, when it leans into its characters and builds tension, it has a solid foundation. The developers have mentioned plans to continue expanding the story, and if they move away from AI, learn from these missteps, and build on what works, they could shape it into a strong, albeit small-scale, indie horror series.

Written by: Dylan Kocins