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Scarlet Hollow
Your aunt’s dead, your cousin hates you, and you’re stuck in the dead-end town of Scarlet Hollow. Choose your path through a branching narrative so dense that you'll see less than 1/5 of the game on a single playthrough. You won't be able to save everyone. Good luck, and welcome home.
In short, Steam reviewers most often praise “Branching horror mystery writing” (74 of 103 reviews) and “Meaningful choices and trait systems” (47); the most common complaint is “Unfinished final chapters” (6). What reviewers agree on ↓
What players say
Steam review score and the most-helpful voices, which may include critical ones. Score via Steam as of 2026-09-29 · quoted reviews as of 2026-05-13.
What reviewers agree on
74 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“There isn't a result I like that doesn't conflict with another. The game is good, but I cannot get over how much I did not like chapters 4 & 5. I felt like I had no actual autonomy in these chapters and that some of the…”
“If you love Visual Novels and the medium, if you love horror, if you love mysteries and trying to solve them alongside the characters, if you love multiple choices and decisions in games, if you love roleplaying, if…”
“genuinely the most insanely well written story driven game I have ever had the pleasure of playing.”
47 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“If you love Visual Novels and the medium, if you love horror, if you love mysteries and trying to solve them alongside the characters, if you love multiple choices and decisions in games, if you love roleplaying, if…”
“not even 3 hours in and im hooooooooooooked bro the characters the story the mechanics and first and foremost THE ATMOSPHERE IS CRAZY it feels like you really are in a gritty bleak sort of situation this thang is…”
“10/10 game, always offer people boiled peanuts to befriend them. Edit: Was going to attempt a meme run where I was mute the entire time, attempt ended in Chapter 1, due to mandatory dialogue choices, my hopes and memes…”
24 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“I'm sure I'm gonna put well over 50h into this game. It's the first visual novel that I play with that many choices and they really feels like it impact the story. Also, the art is stunning, the music is superbe as…”
“Scarlet Hollow is all I've been able to think about since I bought it. I'm a regular visual novel/dating sim enjoyer and I haven't seen such dynamic storytelling and complex branching narrative since 'I Was A Teenage…”
“I'd be hard-pressed to find a game with better replay value than Scarlet Hollow. Being that this is still technically in early access and unfinished, the mystery keeps tugging at me, causing me to play for hours on end.…”
23 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“There isn't a result I like that doesn't conflict with another. The game is good, but I cannot get over how much I did not like chapters 4 & 5. I felt like I had no actual autonomy in these chapters and that some of the…”
“If you love Visual Novels and the medium, if you love horror, if you love mysteries and trying to solve them alongside the characters, if you love multiple choices and decisions in games, if you love roleplaying, if…”
“Scarlet Hollow is a really great visual novel. I wasn’t expecting to like it much since I’m not a big fan of Slay the Princess, but I tried the demo and ended up enjoying it a lot. I’ve seen people say Chapter 5 is bad,…”
14 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“If you love Visual Novels and the medium, if you love horror, if you love mysteries and trying to solve them alongside the characters, if you love multiple choices and decisions in games, if you love roleplaying, if…”
“Scarlet Hollow is a really great visual novel. I wasn’t expecting to like it much since I’m not a big fan of Slay the Princess, but I tried the demo and ended up enjoying it a lot. I’ve seen people say Chapter 5 is bad,…”
“I'm sure I'm gonna put well over 50h into this game. It's the first visual novel that I play with that many choices and they really feels like it impact the story. Also, the art is stunning, the music is superbe as…”
6 of the 103 reviews raise this · 6 of them still recommend the game.
“When do we get the final chapters?”
“Secretly a monster man dating simulator. The developers are insane people who laugh in the face of scope creep. Not a finished game as of writing and still one of the best VNs you can play.”
“This game is an underrated masterpiece. I can only think of two gripes I may have with this game which is keen eye and there not being more. Jokes aside this game is one of a kind, truly.”
5 of the 103 reviews raise this · 3 of them still recommend the game.
“There isn't a result I like that doesn't conflict with another. The game is good, but I cannot get over how much I did not like chapters 4 & 5. I felt like I had no actual autonomy in these chapters and that some of the…”
“I stopped playing Scarlet Hollow after a few episodes. The writing and choices pulls you in quickly, but the story leans heavily into occult themes like spirits, rituals, and other elements (especially when you're…”
“Scarlet Hollow is a really great visual novel. I wasn’t expecting to like it much since I’m not a big fan of Slay the Princess, but I tried the demo and ended up enjoying it a lot. I’ve seen people say Chapter 5 is bad,…”
Counted across 103 English reviews, sampled to match this game's 97.9% positive rating · as of 2026-05-13
“This has got me in a chokehold and it's not even finished yet, but at least there are so many secrets and possibilities to uncover until the end is here. Very reminiscent of The Magnus Archives which I'm still obsessed with. 100% recommend if you're looking for quite a similar…”
— a player, Steam review · 19 hrs played“I thought Slay the Princess was cool, but I did not particularly enjoy going through additional routes and permutations since I found that the game had already said what it wanted to say at that point. Scarlet Hollow is the opposite. Doing a single run, while fun on its own,…”
— a player, Steam review · 48 hrs played“What an amazing game. There are so many branching paths and SO MANY consequences to your actions, I love it. They've done a great job of making each playthrough really feel unique. The characters are really well written, the horror elements are done extremely well, and the humor…”
— a player, Steam review · 11 hrs playedPlayer activity
Monthly average concurrent players. Live data self-collected from the Steam API · history through 2026-06 via SteamCharts.
Achievement stats
Global completion rates across all Steam players — a data view of how far people actually get. Source: Steam official stats · as of 2026-10-24.
Price tracking
US-region pricing (USD), sampled twice daily by our own tracker since 2026-07-11. Steam prices vary by region — always confirm your local price on Steam.
Regional prices at last sample, in local currency — Steam sets each region's price independently.
Cheapest → most expensive, converted to USD at ECB reference rates (2026-10-23). Relative comparison only.
Latest official news
Developer announcements via the Steam news API — links go to the original posts. More across all games on the news hub.
Black Tabby in Concert and Developer Q&A
Heya folks! As the three year anniversary of Slay the Princess approaches, we wanted to put together a fun event for the whole Black Tabby Community! At 5:30pm Eastern Time this Friday, October 23rd,
October 12
Up to date on reported issues, including some edge cases that incorrectly toggled the larger textbox
Development Update! (October 2026)
Hey cousins! The summer's behind us (as is the Rumors Update ), and we're in full swing for Episode 6 of Scarlet Hollow. Most of what there is to say about our work on the chapter is full of spoilers,
Sept 12
Catching up on reported issues, including a handful of overflow issues w/ the larger textbox!
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Screenshots
Official Steam store screenshots — click any shot to enlarge.
Facts & details
From the Steam store record, snapshot 2026-05-13.
| Genres | Adventure, Casual, Indie, RPG, Early Access |
| Player tags | Early Access · Choices Matter · Visual Novel · Psychological Horror · Story Rich · Horror · Dating Sim · Multiple Endings · Well-Written · Dark Fantasy · Interactive Fiction · Mystery (SteamSpy community voting) |
| Features | Single-player · Steam Achievements · Full controller support · Adjustable Text Size · Color Alternatives · Custom Volume Controls · Keyboard Only Option · Mouse Only Option |
| Languages | English |
| Controller | Full support |
| Achievements | 219 |
| Official site | https://blacktabbygames.com/ |
Minimum system requirements (PC)
Minimum: OS *: Windows 7 Processor: 1.8 ghz dual core Memory: 2 GB RAM Graphics: Integrated Graphics Storage: 2 GB available space