Short horror Analog horror Psychological horror

The Exit 8

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Walk an endless subway passage and turn back the moment something is wrong.

Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, iPhone, Android
Price: Paid
Rated: Very Positive on Steam (93% of 11,684 reviews); over 1.4 million copies sold before its mobile release
Length: 15 to 60 minutes
Players: 1
Made by: KOTAKE CREATE
Released: 2023

Get it on Steam PlayStation Store Xbox Nintendo eShop (Switch 2 Edition)App Store Google Play

What frightens You loop through the same white-tiled Japanese subway passage, and each time something may be wrong: a changed poster, a man who stares, a door that should not be there. Miss an anomaly and you are sent back to the start, so dread builds as you study every detail, and some anomalies turn openly hostile.
Content: jumpscares, mild blood.

The Exit 8 traps you in a looping underground passage in a Japanese station. Spot an anomaly and turn back; see none and keep walking. Get eight right in a row to reach the exit, while the changes slide from odd to frightening.

About The Exit 8

The Exit 8 is a short first-person game by the solo Japanese studio KOTAKE CREATE, released on Steam in November 2023 and published on consoles and phones by PLAYISM. It became one of the most talked-about small horror games of its year and has since come to PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, Switch 2, iPhone and Android, with a separate VR version and a live-action film.

The rules are posted on the wall: if you see an anomaly, turn back immediately; if you see none, do not turn back. Each pass through the corridor is the same tiled walkway, the same advertisements, the same man in a suit walking toward you, and the sign above tells you which exit number you have reached. Choose right and the number goes up; choose wrong and it drops back to zero.

The horror comes from attention. Most anomalies are small, a poster with the wrong eyes or a light that flickers, so you learn the corridor by heart and start to distrust it. Others are loud and direct, and the calm between them makes them land harder. There are no weapons, no menus to manage and no story to follow, only the hallway and your own doubt.

It suits players who like Backrooms-style liminal spaces, observation games such as I'm on Observation Duty, and anyone wanting a complete horror experience in under an hour. It was followed by Platform 8 from the same studio.

How to play The Exit 8

Walk forward down the passage from the starting point and read the rules on the wall.
Study the corridor as you walk: posters, doors, lights, vents and the man walking toward you.
If anything differs from the normal corridor, turn around and walk back the way you came.
If nothing has changed, carry on to the end and take the stairs.
Check the exit sign each time: a right choice raises the number, a wrong one sends you back to Exit 0.
Reach Exit 8 to finish; then keep playing to find the anomalies you missed.

Screenshots

The Exit 8 screenshot: a man in a white shirt with a briefcase walks toward you down the tiled passage lined with posters

The Exit 8 screenshot: looking up at the yellow Exit 8 sign and the long row of ceiling lights in the passage

Tips

Spend your first loop learning the normal corridor closely; every later choice is measured against it.
Count the posters and look at the ceiling and floor, not only eye level.
Watch the man in the suit: how he walks and where he looks matters.
If you are unsure, finish the walk slowly; some anomalies only show themselves near the end.
Turn camera shake to 0 in the options if the walking makes you feel unwell.