Horror escape Psychological horror Horror Horror puzzle RPG Maker horror 2D horror

Ib

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A girl alone in an art gallery whose paintings have come to life.

Platforms: PC, Switch, PlayStation
Stores: Steam
Price: Paid
Rated: Overwhelmingly Positive on Steam (99% of 5,357 reviews); 4.88 of 5 on PlayStation Store (422 ratings); Metacritic 82 on Switch (11 critics)
Length: about 2 to 3 hours for one ending; longer to see all seven
Players: 1
Controls: Movement and one interact button; full controller support on PC. On Switch, A interacts, B opens the inventory and Y talks to your companion.
Made by: kouri
Released: 2022

No. 1 of the horror games with traps · No. 2 of the horror games about children · No. 1 of the painting horror games · No. 1 of the power outage horror games · No. 1 of the museum horror games

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What frightens A nine-year-old girl is left alone in an art gallery after the lights flicker and the visitors vanish, and she is drawn into a world made of the paintings. Living artworks and painted ladies chase her, traps wait for a wrong step, and her life hangs on the petals of a rose.
Content: fantasy violence, mild blood, use of tobacco, chase sequences, sudden noises.

Ib is a 2D exploration adventure about a nine-year-old girl who visits an art gallery and finds herself alone in a world inside its paintings. You inspect rooms, find items, solve puzzles, disarm traps and run from living artworks, guarding the rose that holds your life. Your actions and choices lead to one of seven endings. This is the 2022 remake of the 2012 free RPG Maker game, published by PLAYISM.

About Ib

Ib was first released by kouri as a free game made in RPG Maker 2000 in 2012, and it became a cult classic. This remake, rebuilt in RPG Maker MV and published by PLAYISM, came to Steam in April 2022, to Nintendo Switch in March 2023 and to PlayStation 4 and 5 in March 2024. It adds new graphics, new and redrawn artwork, reworked and new puzzles, new music, a Zoom Mode and a conversation system in which your companions offer hints.

You play Ib, a nine-year-old girl visiting an exhibition of the work of the artist Guertena with her parents. During a power outage the lights flicker, the doors lock and the other visitors disappear, and a trail of paint leads her into a world made of the art. There she meets Garry, who can move heavy objects and read the long words she cannot, and later a girl named Mary.

The view is from above and there is no combat. You inspect each room, find keys and items, and work through puzzles such as codes hidden in paintings and a logic puzzle about who is lying, sometimes switching between characters. When an artwork comes after you, you escape into another part of the gallery. Your health is a red rose; each hurt costs a petal, and you can restore it in vases of water.

The fear is quiet and strange more than loud: long silences broken by sudden noises, painted ladies that chase you, and rooms where small mistakes hurt. Reviewers found one run takes about two to three hours. Seven endings depend on your actions and choices, and finishing the game opens the True Guertena exhibit and an extra dungeon. Replaying for other endings means repeating the same puzzles, and some puzzles come down to trial and error, though save points are frequent.

It is rated Teen by the ESRB for fantasy violence, mild blood and use of tobacco. On Steam it costs $12.99, and on Switch and PlayStation $14.99.

How to play Ib

Walk Ib through the gallery and inspect paintings, notes and objects with the interact button.
Find keys and items to open the next part of the gallery, and look for clues hidden in the paintings.
Watch for traps, and when an artwork starts to chase you, run into another section.
Keep your rose healthy by putting it in the vases of water you find.
Talk to your companion for hints, and make the choices that decide which of the seven endings you see.

Screenshots

Ib artwork: framed pixel paintings on a grey gallery wall above exhibits, including three headless dresses, a red rose in a pot, a dripping blue woman and a bare tree

Ib screenshot: visitors stand around a large roped-off painting of a fanged deep-sea fish in a white gallery room, with a caption about a world where man can never stand

Ib screenshot: Ib in her red skirt walks a dark blue gallery corridor between two glowing framed paintings

Ib screenshot: Ib in a dark red room with two small statues and a blue painting, while a lavender-haired companion asks whether they should move on

Ib screenshot: Ib in a green room lined with three small framed pictures beside a green door, her red rose shown in the corner

Ib screenshot: Ib in a dim brown room beside a row of shell sculptures and two framed paintings, while a blonde girl in green says it looks like a big lollipop

Ib screenshot: Ib stands in a dark world drawn in crayon, with coloured flowers, a pink path and blue scribbles holding green fish

Tips

Save at every save point you pass; some puzzles come down to trial and error.
If you are stuck, talk to your companion for a hint.
Use separate save slots so you can go back for other endings without replaying from the start.

Questions

Is Ib a scary game?

It is eerie and tense rather than gory: living paintings, chases, silence and sudden noises. The ESRB rates it Teen for fantasy violence, mild blood and use of tobacco.

How long is Ib?

Reviewers put one run at about two to three hours. Seeing all seven endings takes longer, since you repeat the same puzzles.

How many endings does Ib have?

Seven, decided by your actions and choices. Finishing the game unlocks the True Guertena exhibit and an extra dungeon.

What platforms is the Ib remake on?

PC through Steam, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4 and 5.