Room 817: Director's Cut
Genres: Puzzle, Escape Room, Horror, Mystery, Story Rich, Thriller
Release Date: 21-4-2024
Developer: Bormak Studio
Our verdict
7/10
- Difficulty: Hard
- Players: 1
- Playtime: 2–4 h
Room 817: Director's Cut is an old-school survival horror game set in a cursed apartment on Lane Street. In 1998 journalist Alan Parker goes looking for two police officers who vanished there the year before, and you explore with a camera and flashlight while solving puzzles, dodging traps and hiding from monsters. It suits solo horror fans who want a punishing, 90s-style challenge.
The design is deliberately unforgiving: no map, no hints, no tutorial, and no checkpoints or saves, so a single death ends the run. The store says puzzles depend on memory and close observation rather than logic. Its small player base rates it Positive, with about 81 percent of 27 reviews recommending it. The one detailed review praises its tension and how it leaves you to work out every room yourself, without objective markers.
Written feedback is thin, so the main caveats are the ones built into the design. With no saves, repeated deaths mean replaying the same ground, and the long median playtime of about 12 hours likely reflects those retries more than content. At under two dollars it is cheap to try if you want hardcore horror, but players who hate losing progress should skip it.
Pros
- Tense 1990s cursed-apartment investigation with flashlight and camera
- No maps, hints or markers, so every discovery is your own
- Very low price
Cons
- No saves or checkpoints; one death restarts the run
- Puzzles lean on memorisation over logic
- Traps and pits make trial and error costly
About
Welcome to the Room 817 at 6 Lane Street, the scariest place in the United States. Rumors say that Evil himself resides there. Residents throughout the neighborhood consider this creepy apartment to be cursed, but fear always attracts adventurers, and secrets are only revealed to the brave. In August 1997, two police officers disappeared in this place and their bodies were never found.
Almost a year after those terrified events, journalist Alan Parker decides to conduct his own investigation and find out what happened to the missing police officers. On his behalf, you will have to solve interesting puzzles, avoid traps, and come face to face with the terrible monsters that inhabit the place.
Will you have the courage to find out the scariest secrets of The Room 817 and survive?GAME FEATURES
A true old-school horror experience. There are no maps, hints, or tutorials here. No one will hold your hand and tell you how to breathe. Remember what
it means to survive.
Gameplay that doesn't forgive mistakes. Death is awaiting around every corner. Watch where you step! Traps and bottomless pits abound!
One life, one try. This game isn't for those who like to save their progress every 10 seconds. There are no checkpoints or save points here. Either you survive or you die.
Run or hide. You're not the predator, you're the prey. The Ancient Evil lurking here awaits its encounter with you.
Listen to what's happening around you. The faint creak of the floorboards or the heavy tread of the monster can help you understand where not to go.
Look around and remember. There's no logic in this place, only your memory and attention to detail will help you solve all the puzzles and find a way out.
An atmosphere of primal terror. Explore the cursed apartment with your camera and flashlight. Uncover all the secrets of this place and find out what happened here.
