The Moon Sliver

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An empty island, a story told in fragments, and something hunting you as night falls.

Platforms: PC
Stores: Steam
Price: Paid
Rated: Mostly Positive on Steam (76% of about 1,200 reviews)
Length: about an hour
Players: 1
Made by: David Szymanski
Released: 2014

What frightens Alone on a cold, windy island where fires and candles still burn, you piece together fragments of narration that appear as you touch things and move around, while night falls, your flashlight needs charging and it grows clear that something is hunting you.

The Moon Sliver is a short first-person exploration game with horror, by David Szymanski, the maker of Iron Lung and DUSK. You roam a bleak island that seems empty, piecing together a story of guilt, loneliness and faith, while it becomes clear that something is hunting you.

About The Moon Sliver

The Moon Sliver is a short, narrative-focused exploration game with elements of horror, released on Steam in October 2014 by David Szymanski. It came a year before his A Wolf in Autumn and well before DUSK and Iron Lung.

You find yourself on a bleak, cold, windy island. You seem to be alone, but fires and candles are still burning. The island is open to explore in any order, and the story comes in fragments of narration: touching objects, and sometimes just walking somewhere, reveals another piece. The maker calls it an experiment that blurs the line between novelette and game, and says it rewards players who ask questions and work things out for themselves.

The horror arrives slowly. As the fragments add up to a story of guilt, loneliness and faith, it becomes more and more obvious that something is hunting you. The store's advice is to explore the island, keep your flashlight charged and wait for night to fall. Gaming Nexus described the dread as honest but understated, building as day turns to night.

It takes about an hour and, according to reviewers, has no save button, so it is meant for one sitting. It suits players who like poetic, story-first horror and slow-burning unease more than chases and scares.

How to play The Moon Sliver

Buy it on Steam for Windows.
Set aside about an hour to play it in one sitting.
Explore the island in any order, touching objects and walking into new places to reveal pieces of the story.
Keep your flashlight charged as night falls.
Put the fragments together to work out what happened on the island.

Screenshots

Leaning telegraph poles and low ruins on a grassy island under a white, misty sky

A dark stone room lit by a fire burning in the hearth behind an overturned chair

Lines of a poem appear as narration over a candlelit bookshelf with a handwritten page

Tips

Take your time and go everywhere; simply moving to new spots can reveal narration.
Watch your flashlight charge before heading into dark places.
Think about the order of the fragments; the store says the game rewards players who try to figure it out themselves.

Questions

How long is The Moon Sliver?

About an hour. Reviewers note there is no save button and that it is meant to be played in one sitting.

Who made The Moon Sliver?

David Szymanski, who also made Fingerbones, A Wolf in Autumn, DUSK and Iron Lung.

Is The Moon Sliver scary?

It is a story-led exploration game with elements of horror: the dread builds slowly as night falls and it becomes clear that something is hunting you.

Is The Moon Sliver on consoles?

No console or phone version was found; it is sold on Steam for Windows.