Bleakstead
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux
You wake up on a bus at it's last stop, a small desert town called Bleakstead.
Explore, talk to the residents, perform magical rituals, read ancient runes, to discover the secrets hidden in this strange town.
Tips: Explore a bit, start the story by talking with the person at the bus stop. For the ritual, get the candle first from the gas station, talk to the clerk beforehand. Photos are used to indicate the area that the pictures are to be taken. Holding up your camera allows the markers to appear. There's notes scattered about the town that give you some backstory as well as runes at some of the temples.
Please refer to the readme included for controls and credits
Download
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Development log
- More Bleakstead Updates 10-17-2019Oct 18, 2019
- Update 10-09Oct 09, 2019
Comments
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welcome home
amazing style
too much stuff to find, got bored
Great atmosphere - I never found the whispering face and plenty of people seemed to get into the ritual without doing more than I did, so wasn't able to proceed. I think the pixelation is fine, but maybe limit the launcher a little more; just don't let people launch it at the higher resolution, because it makes things very hard to make out. And I'd suggest taking another look at the boundary behind the buildings - unlike the one across the road, it often appears just as a big black blank with some pixelated wire (?) at the top. I love the path through the game though, and the soundscape is top tier.
Beautiful game, I loved the sparkling effects of the pixel graphics, gave it the cosmic vibe. Both eerie and compelling, it was enjoyable to unravel what was happening and still getting few answers. Thanks for creating!
This game is creepy as fuck. The only thing that disappointed me is that there was no ritual cut scene and the ending is sort of bland,I thought that the dagger could be used in some way on the rock but alas, nah.
Thank you for trying Bleakstead out. I'm working on a follow up that's more expansive.
Good job! Reminded me a lot of Twin Peaks and the uneasy ambiance of David Lynch's movies. I really enjoyed my experience.
Here's my playthrough without any commentary :
Absolutely marvellous. Well done!
Creepy atmosphere. I really liked it.
Hey really strange atmosphere. very enjoyable.
Lovely little game.
Slight room for improvement:
Show inventory icons on-screen, or check off items on the list.
It’s not always clear what things are interactable, or doors will be blocked invisibly, and then they’ll suddenly pop up an interaction which goes by too fast. Can’t re-view the photos, which can make things difficult.
Was there stuff in Room 6, or the trailer park doors I couldn’t re-enter? Music box played very slowly, not sure if there’s anything to it?
Love the ending, it looks threatening but isn’t.
Thank you for trying my game! I'm hoping to come back to it soon and give it a little more polish. The music box is just a neat little thing, does nothing but atmosphere. Room 6 is locked up but you can peek through the planks. The items are def something I want to fix.
Very charming game. I really like the art direction it took, and it had an unsettling vibe to it, but also at the same time eerily welcoming. Nice surrealist work here.
Really cool game with an amazing aesthetic. I actually think about it often. Looking forward to the next game!
a very beautiful and atmospheric game, i spent a lot of time just staring at the sky
my only wish is that you make the stars twinkle and maybe put some more variations in their color
One of my favourite horror games of all time! So atmospheric and strange! Amazing work here
Really cool! Peaceful yet foreboding.
I liked very much:
Thank you for this experience, Valerie Dusk!Loved the art and sound design, and was definitely getting creeped out by the end. Altogether quite enjoyable, thanks!
Hi, I downloaded the mac version of the game but when I try to open it say it can be opened. Do you know how can I solve this problem? Thanks in advance.
This was pretty good! Overall creepy environment, and a great unfolding short back story. I had trouble figuring out what to do many times which kinda dragged the game along, but other than that, I really enjoyed this! Here's my playthrough:
I actually didn't notice the mini-walkthrough on this page until after recording. I was able to check out most of the town, but didn't progress very far in the story. Just talked to a few people and looked at some things. I dig the setting, desertscapes are more rare and underappreciated in horror. Anyways, I still had some fun checking out all the oddities on display. Looking forward to more in the future!
seems like what could be a really good atmospheric game, but i cannot get on with the controls :/. maybe its cus i dont play a lot of video games or because my computer lags but moving around / locking on to interact with an object is really annoying. im walking through this trailer park (faar too slowly) like a crab because moving the mouse makes it even slower, checking every damn oven to see if theres something in, and there isnt even anything in any of them. cant tell what im supposed to do next. need to find something to break into one of the doors of the motel? i gave up after an hour of wandering around aimlessly :'(
really wish i could enjoy this but navigating is jus too frustrating
Talking to the NPCs will give you an idea of where to go. Start at the guy at the bus stop or talk to the man in the diner. If you have the camera, the pictures on the ground are indicators of the general location, if you hold your camera up, you can see the "spots" to take pictures of. I'm sorry you're having problems with it but, thanks for giving it a shot.
(spanish lets play) i really like the game :D the mystery to it was really cool, there was a minor glitch where i got stuck but the game was really good :D keep up the good work!
I figured everything out! That's a lie. I found some stuff. Not even sure I found all of them.
Cool game. May want to tone down the pixelation just a tad.
Dope ass game!!!
While the game's interesting, I found the game a bit quiet (horror wise). Beyond that, I made a few suggestions in the video.
Here's my channel for other games I have played. http://www.youtube.com/c/Levont
what's wrong with quiet horror? that seems more a matter of personal taste than a fault of the game itself. Silent Hill 2 is more uncomfortably melancholy than loudly scary.
Played this for a 3 free indie horrors and thought it was pretty alright. I give a full honest review at the end of my video and pretty good time playing the game overall. Here's my video if you're interested.