MASCOT-HORROR AT ITS BEST (at least for a newbie)
Series Overall Score of 9/10 based on: 1.) Gameplay/Puzzle Mechanics 2.) Horror/Suspense 3.) Worldbuilding/Story/Lore!
ABOUT ME (if it matters to you): 32 y.o. Male HS teacher and Army Reserve Officer. Normally, I don't play or watch horror genre-type things. I just don't like the end result of being scared even if it's a fun ride. However, this series is special (despite the nightmares it gave me lol). Played all 3 Chapters between FEB-APR24 which means I avoided (most) early release glitches.
I GOT PULLED IN BECAUSE: The franchise has such a passionate fanbase. I was Youtube algorithm leapfrogging from video to video after one of my wrestlers showed me a FNAF song (and it was a bop; "Join us for a Bite"). From there I ended up on the rapidly growing-in-popularity and content Poppy Playtime series. It has such intriguing mascot-horror atmosphere to it! CG5 and other Youtubers fan-made songs were so catchy & captivating (similar to the many massively popular FNAF songs that exist).
THE GAMEPLAY & STORY: (for reference, I find anything that's at least 6/10 servicable/acceptable):
CHAPTER 1 - Gameplay 9/10! - Story 8/10! - Horror/Suspense: 8/10! = Overall 8.5/10!
It was free to download on Steam FEB24. The game was short; I finished it in about an hour. I definitely like to explore for easter eggs and the game rewards you for this via its worldbuilding: Tapes, notes, posters etc. The atmosphere does a great job at building unease. The puzzles are simple, but effective in their unique mechanics. Despite what some people may say there are arguably a couple jump scares present. But it is done very well and is appropriately timed to where you experience them in the game. The final chase scene was intense and exciting!
CHAPTER 2 - Gameplay 8/10! - Story 9/10! - Horror/Suspense: 7/10! = Overall 8/10!
More puzzles! A memorable antagonist, more lore-building. The chase scene was still well done (and the unearthly moaning was so creepy!) and in some ways better than the original even if the character was naturally not as terrifying as Huggy was. And that's fine, she was still plenty unnerving and naturally will lose some mystery to her since she is providing some backstory via her dialogue with the character. Unfortunately, this Chapter is where I learned of some disappointing things the company had allegedly involved themselves in: NFT bs, a company workplace allegation. No idea if this is true but the general consensus online seemed to hurt the franchise's reputation a little. Lastly, I'll mention that the audio design is ON POINT! It is helpful for some of the mini-games, and downright intrinsic to all 3 Chapter's ability to elevate the creep factor.
CHAPTER 3 - Gameplay 7/10! - Story 9/10! - Horror/Suspense: 9.5/10! = Overall 8.5/10!
HOLY COW! This Chapter gave me more nightmares than the last two combined lol! And for a sequel that is no easy feat. Kudos Mob Entertainment They KNOW that YOU KNOW something scary is coming. And they do a masterful job building that unease and tension. This is never more apparent than in the first major Playcare building, Home Sweet Home. I was on the edge of my seat as my HR continued to build. They even manage to weave in plenty of new lore! The end boss was the first that wasn't a chase. While I applaud their creativity in trying to branch out this time it somewhat missed the mark for me. This is true for many of the puzzles in Chapter 3. It also breaks the Suspension Of Disbelief in how many puzzles were overly complicated. Like, many of these are (In-game universe) expected to just be how the regular workers just move around and do their jobs... BOSS: "Why did it take you 2 hours to come back from the bathroom?" THEM: "Bcuz I had to redo the damn puzzle thru the breakroom 9 freaking times!" Outside of that it was a solid game lasting approx. 3 hours. This includes a glitch I ran into where I had to restart the game (DogDay chase glitched me into a win but then the rest of the world didn't react properly and I couldn't restart the mission). But I am excited for Chapter 4!
PROTIP (After the Game): Have an active imagination like me? Did you make the mistake of playing the game before bed?
Fight off nightmares by watching fun Youtubers play through the game (JackScepticEye, Markiplier, CoryxKenshin, MatPat from Game Theory etc). Youtube's Horrorscope also shows you the game mechanics by utilizing into the game data itself detailing how the game/world is designed. And for a shorter post-PP wind-down I recommend the 3 short videos by the hilarious Asian Youtuber/animator Somac.
Series Overall Score of 9/10 based on: 1.) Gameplay/Puzzle Mechanics 2.) Horror/Suspense 3.) Worldbuilding/Story/Lore!
ABOUT ME (if it matters to you): 32 y.o. Male HS teacher and Army Reserve Officer. Normally, I don't play or watch horror genre-type things. I just don't like the end result of being scared even if it's a fun ride. However, this series is special (despite the nightmares it gave me lol). Played all 3 Chapters between FEB-APR24 which means I avoided (most) early release glitches.
I GOT PULLED IN BECAUSE: The franchise has such a passionate fanbase. I was Youtube algorithm leapfrogging from video to video after one of my wrestlers showed me a FNAF song (and it was a bop; "Join us for a Bite"). From there I ended up on the rapidly growing-in-popularity and content Poppy Playtime series. It has such intriguing mascot-horror atmosphere to it! CG5 and other Youtubers fan-made songs were so catchy & captivating (similar to the many massively popular FNAF songs that exist).
THE GAMEPLAY & STORY: (for reference, I find anything that's at least 6/10 servicable/acceptable):
CHAPTER 1 - Gameplay 9/10! - Story 8/10! - Horror/Suspense: 8/10! = Overall 8.5/10!
It was free to download on Steam FEB24. The game was short; I finished it in about an hour. I definitely like to explore for easter eggs and the game rewards you for this via its worldbuilding: Tapes, notes, posters etc. The atmosphere does a great job at building unease. The puzzles are simple, but effective in their unique mechanics. Despite what some people may say there are arguably a couple jump scares present. But it is done very well and is appropriately timed to where you experience them in the game. The final chase scene was intense and exciting!
CHAPTER 2 - Gameplay 8/10! - Story 9/10! - Horror/Suspense: 7/10! = Overall 8/10!
More puzzles! A memorable antagonist, more lore-building. The chase scene was still well done (and the unearthly moaning was so creepy!) and in some ways better than the original even if the character was naturally not as terrifying as Huggy was. And that's fine, she was still plenty unnerving and naturally will lose some mystery to her since she is providing some backstory via her dialogue with the character. Unfortunately, this Chapter is where I learned of some disappointing things the company had allegedly involved themselves in: NFT bs, a company workplace allegation. No idea if this is true but the general consensus online seemed to hurt the franchise's reputation a little. Lastly, I'll mention that the audio design is ON POINT! It is helpful for some of the mini-games, and downright intrinsic to all 3 Chapter's ability to elevate the creep factor.
CHAPTER 3 - Gameplay 7/10! - Story 9/10! - Horror/Suspense: 9.5/10! = Overall 8.5/10!
HOLY COW! This Chapter gave me more nightmares than the last two combined lol! And for a sequel that is no easy feat. Kudos Mob Entertainment They KNOW that YOU KNOW something scary is coming. And they do a masterful job building that unease and tension. This is never more apparent than in the first major Playcare building, Home Sweet Home. I was on the edge of my seat as my HR continued to build. They even manage to weave in plenty of new lore! The end boss was the first that wasn't a chase. While I applaud their creativity in trying to branch out this time it somewhat missed the mark for me. This is true for many of the puzzles in Chapter 3. It also breaks the Suspension Of Disbelief in how many puzzles were overly complicated. Like, many of these are (In-game universe) expected to just be how the regular workers just move around and do their jobs... BOSS: "Why did it take you 2 hours to come back from the bathroom?" THEM: "Bcuz I had to redo the damn puzzle thru the breakroom 9 freaking times!" Outside of that it was a solid game lasting approx. 3 hours. This includes a glitch I ran into where I had to restart the game (DogDay chase glitched me into a win but then the rest of the world didn't react properly and I couldn't restart the mission). But I am excited for Chapter 4!
PROTIP (After the Game): Have an active imagination like me? Did you make the mistake of playing the game before bed?
Fight off nightmares by watching fun Youtubers play through the game (JackScepticEye, Markiplier, CoryxKenshin, MatPat from Game Theory etc). Youtube's Horrorscope also shows you the game mechanics by utilizing into the game data itself detailing how the game/world is designed. And for a shorter post-PP wind-down I recommend the 3 short videos by the hilarious Asian Youtuber/animator Somac.
