Skip to content
Where you playEvery store and platformChoose
Show only games on

One choice opens that part of the site: its own pages for every kind of horror. Pick several to see the games on any of them.

The House In The Woods screenshot: a pale house glimpsed between dark tree trunks in thick fog

PS1 horrorShort horrorPsychological horrorHorror walking simulators

The House In The Woods

Rate it

Your friend vanished from the campsite. Now you are lost in the woods too.

Platforms
PC
Stores
itch.io
Price
Pay what you want
Rated
4.5 of 5 from 434 ratings on itch.io
Length
about 30 minutes
Players
1
Controls
WASD or left stick to move, Shift or click the left stick to run, left click, E or A to interact, right mouse button or left trigger to focus; Xbox controller supported
Made by
Mini Goliath
Released
2020
Get it on itch.io

What frightens On a camping trip your friend vanishes in the night, and when you step away from camp to look for them you are lost as well, in a dark, fog-filled forest that seems to go on forever.

The House In The Woods is a short first-person horror game in the PSX style by Mini Goliath, inspired by The Blair Witch Project. Your friend vanishes from your campsite in the night, and when you go looking you are lost in an endless, foggy forest, following cries for help. It takes about half an hour, and the price is yours to name on itch.io.

About The House In The Woods

The House In The Woods was made by the two-person studio Mini Goliath in around 48 hours for Haunted PS1's first Wretched Weekend jam, and released on itch.io for Windows in 2020. It is built in Unreal Engine with a deliberately crunchy, low-resolution look.

You are on a camping trip in the forest when your friend disappears in the night. You step away from the tent and the dying fire to find them, and soon realise you have no idea where you are either. The makers took The Blair Witch Project as their model: dark trees in thick fog, a compass at the top of the screen that does not help much, odd symbols, candles at a roadside cross, and somewhere ahead a house.

Play is walking and looking. You move through the woods, run when you need to, zoom in to focus on what you think you saw, and follow the cries for help. There are no weapons and no fights; the fear comes from being lost in the dark and from what the forest shows you as you go deeper. The makers suggest playing in the dark with headphones.

It suits players who want a short, sharp walk into the woods in the PS1 style, and fans of Blair Witch-style horror who would like something to finish in one sitting. The makers once announced a longer version with new areas and a fuller story, and a Steam page for it still reads coming soon, but they have since said they now work on other projects and may not finish it.

How to play The House In The Woods

  1. Download The House In The Woods from its itch.io page for Windows; you can name your own price.
  2. Play in the dark with headphones, as the makers suggest.
  3. Walk away from the campsite into the forest with WASD or the left stick, holding Shift to run.
  4. Follow the cries for help, and right-click or pull the left trigger to focus on things in the distance.
  5. Interact with left click, E or A on the pad when you find something, and keep going until you reach the house.

Screenshots

The House In The Woods screenshot: a stairway down into a basement, with candles on a ledge and red symbols scrawled on the walls
The House In The Woods screenshot: a tent and a dying campfire in a dark, foggy forest
The House In The Woods screenshot: a dark standing shape in the fog marked with a glowing red symbol
The House In The Woods screenshot: a wooden cross with candles at its foot in a clearing at night
The House In The Woods screenshot: a dark hallway inside the house, with a door and stairs at the end
The House In The Woods title art: the name in red scratched letters over a dark house

Tips

  • Listen carefully: the cries for help tell you which way to go.
  • Use the focus zoom on anything you glimpse between the trees.
  • If you feel you are going in circles, the compass at the top of the screen helps you keep one direction.

Questions

Is The House In The Woods free?

Yes. On itch.io you can download it for free or pay what you want.

How long is The House In The Woods?

About half an hour, by itch.io's average session; the makers put it at 30 to 60 minutes.

Is The House In The Woods on Steam?

A Steam page for an expanded version says coming soon, but it cannot be bought there, and the makers have said they may not get round to finishing it. The original is on itch.io.

Is it like The Blair Witch Project?

The makers say it was inspired by the film: a missing friend, a night in the forest and a house among the trees.

  • first person
  • low poly
  • psx
  • forest
  • night
  • blair witch inspired
  • camping
  • missing friend
  • game jam
  • haunted ps1
  • walking simulator
  • unreal engine

Ratings and reviews

No ratings yet. Be the first to rate The House In The Woods.

Your rating of The House In The Woods

No account needed. Reviews show once they have been checked. Privacy

If The House In The Woods frightened you

More ps1 horror games

All ps1 horror games

Guides with The House In The Woods

The House In The Woods is played on minigoliath.itch.io and its makers' stores; this page links to them and is not part of it. Pictures are from the game's own pages and remain its owner's. Terms and pictures.

Sources: minigoliath.itch.io, store.steampowered.com