Technical Information
Developer: Atelier Sento
Distributor: Atelier Sento
Release Date: October 29th, 2018
Link: https://ateliersento.itch.io/dollshop
The Doll Shop is a super creepy tale about a solitary man and his doll shop, located in a deserted village in Japan.
Final Thoughts – Analyzing the Game as a Whole
Graphics and UI
The entire game’s artwork was hand-colored with watercolor by students during a three-day workshop.
I loved the art style. It surprised me with its friendly touch, bright colors, and pastel tones, especially in a story where suspense is so prevalent.
What I liked most was the consistency of the art style during the exploration segments. It’s quite common in narrative-focused indie games for these sections to be done in pixel art, often reminiscent of 16-bit-era JRPGs.
The game features a very simple inventory system, which becomes available at specific moments.
You can save your progress, but the game only has a single save slot.
After completing the game for the first time, you’re able to choose which chapter you want to replay.
Soundtrack and Sound Effects
The music creates a strong sense of suspense and pairs well with the game’s snowy environment.
The characters do not have voice acting (unfortunately!), but despite that, the game still manages to feel quite immersive (at least for me).
Gameplay
The mechanics of this game is a mix of visual novel and point and click.
You’re free to walk around the environments and interact with objects scattered throughout the scenery.
There are some puzzles to solve, but they’re very intuitive. In my opinion, they serve more to immerse the player in the story rather than to provide a real challenge (something that reminds me of Florence).
The story is suspenseful, and gradually certain elements emerge that lead the player to question the protagonist’s actions.
Believe it or not, the narrative takes a strong psychological horror turn, which surprised me quite a bit. On the other hand, it also carries some deeply sad undertones.
In total, there are three endings. After completing all of them, an extra scene is unlocked.
When you finish your first ending, the game gives you a hint about where the branching point in the decision tree occurs. I didn’t particularly like this, as it reduced the sense of exploration. On the positive side, however, it saved me from having to look up a walkthrough to see the other endings.
Replayability and Game Retention
What keeps you engaged is the variation between each ending.
I really enjoyed the story, it’s much more gruesome than the summary and art style initially suggest.
Despite being a free game, it’s relatively long. It took me around two hours to complete all the endings. Free games are usually shorter, so I was pleasantly surprised (and happy!) with what The Doll Shop had to offer.
Without a doubt, it’s a game that should be experienced not only by fans of visual novels or point and click adventures, but also by fans of psychological horror in general.
It’s subtle, yet deeply disturbing.
