Don't Knock Twice

If the frame-rate was smooth and the game was more technically sound, I could see potential for a fun horror game. The atmosphere is nice, the audio is extremely well done, and the story seems pretty interesting as well. It’s just a shame that the frame-rate is so bad that you probably won’t make it til the end to see the conclusion.

On a platform that is destined to become almost overcrowded with colourful, vibrant, ‘happy’ games, having a burst of horror as an option is very welcome indeed. Unfortunately, this isn’t the game to showcase the genre, nor is it one to showcase games in general. Some promising early moments left us with high hopes for this title – there were times where we felt genuine, edge-of-your-seat fear – but it soon becomes clear that it cannot live up to the standards it is trying to achieve. If you’re looking for a horror fix, maybe wait until something else comes along.

The scariest thing about Don't Knock Twice is how poorly it plays on the Nintendo Switch. Constant stuttering, clipping, and lag shatter immersion before it can even happen. Without the novelty of virtual reality, the manor is just another haunted house with bland puzzles to pad a painfully short campaign. Gameplay boils down to interacting with as many objects as possible in order to find the right item to proceed over and over again. The design of the manor itself is thoughtless and just a series of lifeless rooms that are more focused on tossing out as many horror clichés as possible instead of offering actual variety. Even if everything worked as intended, it would still be held back by an awkward, immersion-breaking control scheme. Don't think twice: don't buy Don't Knock Twice.