Psychological horror Analog horror Horror

Blair Witch

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Lose yourself in the Black Hills Forest, with only your dog to trust.

Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
Stores: Steam, GOG
Price: Paid
Rated: Mostly Positive on Steam (79% of 8,315 reviews); Metacritic 69 on PC; 4.09 of 5 on the PlayStation Store (3,127 ratings)
Length: about 5 to 6 hours
Players: 1
Made by: Bloober Team
Released: 2019

Get it on Steam Official site PlayStation Store Xbox Nintendo eShop GOG

What frightens You search the Black Hills Forest at night for a missing boy, with a flashlight, a camcorder, an old phone and your dog. The woods loop and change, time slips, stick figures hang in the trees, and shadowy creatures come at you out of the dark.
Content: violence, blood, injuries and death, strong language, jumpscares, mental illness themes.

Blair Witch is a first-person psychological horror game from Bloober Team set in the world of The Blair Witch Project. In 1996, former police officer Ellis joins the search for a missing boy in the Black Hills Forest with his dog Bullet, and the woods begin to twist time, memory and his own mind.

About Blair Witch

Blair Witch was made by Bloober Team, the studio behind Layers of Fear, in partnership with Lionsgate. It came out on PC and Xbox One on August 30, 2019, on PlayStation 4 on December 3, 2019 (the PS4 version also plays on PS5) and on Nintendo Switch on June 25, 2020. Separate VR editions came later for Oculus Quest and Rift, PlayStation VR and Steam, sold on their own. It tells a new story set in 1996 in the Black Hills Forest near Burkittsville, Maryland, two years after the events of the 1999 film.

You play Ellis, a former police officer and veteran who joins the search for a missing nine-year-old boy, Peter Shannon. Your companion is Bullet, a police dog. From a command menu you can tell him to stay, stay close or seek, pet him, reprimand him or feed him treats. Give him an item to sniff and he tracks the scent or the way forward, and he squeezes into gaps you cannot reach. Keeping him near matters: time apart wears on Ellis's state of mind.

You carry a flashlight, a cell phone, a walkie-talkie and a camcorder. The camcorder is the game's best idea. Red tapes found in the woods can be played back and paused at the right moment to rewind time and move things in the world, such as a fallen log across the path. Blue tapes tell more of the story. Calls come in on the phone and you choose whether to answer, and those choices count toward the ending. The phone also holds two small games, Snake and Astro Blaster.

The forest is the antagonist. It is semi-open: paths loop, the same clearing comes round again, and you come on campsites, abandoned buildings, wooden dolls, photos of missing people and dog tags. Shadowy creatures attack in the dark; Bullet barks when they are close, and you drive them back by shining your flashlight at them. Ellis's own past seeps into the woods as the night goes on. There are four endings and a secret one, shaped by how you treat Bullet and the calls you take.

It is a slow, oppressive game more than a frantic one. It suits players who liked the film's sense of being lost and watched, and those who like story-led horror with a companion to look after. It is single-player, in English with full audio and with subtitles in nine more languages on Steam.

How to play Blair Witch

Follow the trail into the forest and use Bullet: give him an item to sniff, tell him to seek, and follow him to clues and the way forward.
Use the flashlight to see, and point it at the creatures when they come out of the dark to drive them back.
Play the red tapes on the camcorder and pause them at the right moment to change the forest around you; the blue tapes tell more of the story.
Answer or reject the calls on your phone, and read the messages that come in; your choices count toward the ending.
Treat Bullet well and keep him close: pet him and give him treats; how you treat him affects the ending.

Screenshots

Blair Witch screenshot: a first-person hand holds an old camcorder showing the forest on its flip screen, before a gnarled tree and an abandoned tent

Blair Witch screenshot: a wooden shack on stilts under lamp posts in a dark blue forest at night, with thin humanoid creatures crawling out of the trees

Blair Witch screenshot: a flashlight beam picks out stick figures and twig symbols hanging from branches in the forest at night

Blair Witch screenshot: a dirt path through tall trees in the forest by daylight, sun breaking through the leaves

Blair Witch screenshot: a hand holds an old mobile phone reading NO SIGNAL beside rail tracks that lead to a lit wooden shed in the forest at night

Blair Witch screenshot: a two-storey house with boarded windows on a hill in the dark forest, lightning in the sky

Tips

When you are lost, ask Bullet to seek; he usually knows where to go.
In a fight, watch where Bullet is barking and point your light there.
When a path is blocked, look for a red tape; the way through is often on a recording.
Do not leave Bullet behind for long; being apart from him wears on Ellis.

Questions

Do you need to know the films to play Blair Witch?

No. It tells its own story, set in 1996, two years after the events of the 1999 film, though fans will recognise the stick figures and the legend.

Can the dog die in Blair Witch?

Bullet's fate depends on how you treat him through the game. Being kind to him and keeping him close leads to the better endings.

How long is Blair Witch?

Five to six hours for one playthrough, by the developer's own figure.

How many endings does Blair Witch have?

Four, plus a secret ending. Which you see depends on how you treat Bullet and whether you answer the calls on your phone.

Is Blair Witch in VR?

Yes, as separate VR editions for Oculus Quest and Rift, PlayStation VR and Steam. This page covers the standard game on PC, PlayStation, Xbox and Switch.