{{Short description|2017 survival horror video game}} {{About|the video game|the David Darling album|Dark Wood|the 2003 horror movie|Dark Woods}} {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2024}} {{Infobox video game | title = Darkwood | image = Darkwood cover.jpg | developer = Acid Wizard Studio | publisher = Acid Wizard Studio{{efn|The publishing rights were transferred to Hooded Horse in December 2025.}}<small> (PC)</small><br />Crunching Koalas<br />Hooded Horse<small> (PC)</small> | engine = Unity | programmer = Gustaw Stachaszewski | artist = Artur Kordas<br>Jakub Kuć | composer = Artur Kordas | platforms = Linux<br />macOS<br />Windows<br />PlayStation 4<br />Nintendo Switch<br />Xbox One<br />Google Stadia<br/>PlayStation 5<br/>Xbox Series X/S | released = '''Linux, macOS, Windows'''<br/>August 17, 2017<br/> '''PlayStation 4'''<br/>May 14, 2019<br/>'''Nintendo Switch'''<br/>May 16, 2019<br/>'''Xbox One'''<br/>May 17, 2019<br/>'''Google Stadia'''<br/>September 17, 2021<br/>'''PlayStation 5'''<br/>October 28, 2022<br/>'''Xbox Series X/S'''<br/>December 23, 2022 | genre = Survival horror | modes = Single-player }}
'''''Darkwood''''' is a 2017 survival horror video game developed and published by Acid Wizard Studio. The game was first released through Steam Early Access on July 24, 2014, eventually becoming a full game release on August 17, 2017<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.acidwizardstudio.com/?p=723|title=Darkwood is out of Early Access!|website=Acid Wizard Studio|language=en-US|access-date=2019-05-20}}</ref> for Linux, macOS, and Windows.<ref name=":1"/> The game was also ported to consoles by Crunching Koalas and was released for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Xbox One in May 2019, for Google Stadia on September 17, 2021 and for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S on October 28 and December 23, 2022. In 2025, Hooded Horse acquired the publishing rights for the PC version of the game.
The game takes place in a mysterious dark forest "somewhere in the territory of the Soviet Bloc",<ref name="faq" /> wherein the main characters have been trapped. It is played from a top down perspective. During the daytime the player can explore the world and prepare for the night where they have to survive in a hideout against encroaching enemies.
A sequel, ''Darkwood 2'', is being developed by Ice-Pick Lodge and published by Hooded Horse under supervision by the original developers of Acid Wizard Studio.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CR99LP_nays |title=Darkwood 2 - Announcement Trailer {{!}} Survival Horror Game |date=2025-10-28 |last=Hooded Horse |access-date=2025-10-28 |via=YouTube}}</ref>
== Gameplay == The game is played from a top down perspective. It features a semi-open world, with the player unlocking new areas as the storyline progresses. It also features a crafting system, a day/night cycle, trading and non-player character (NPC) interaction, a skill system, stealth and combat, as well as multiple storyline branches which alter several aspects of the world.
During daytime, the player can explore the world and scavenge for supplies at several locations scattered around each biome as well as spend this time repairing doors or barricades around the hideout and crafting new items and upgrades at the workbench. During the day, the player can also "cook" Hallucinogens at his stove to gain access to various skills, any beneficial skill that the player chooses requires a detrimental skill to also be chosen. During the night, the player cannot leave the hideout and must defend against possible intruders until morning. Planning a defensive strategy is key and players have the opportunity to lay traps and barricade doors or windows to slow down any intruders.
Should the player survive the night, they will gain reputation with the trader which can be used to trade for more expensive items. If the player dies during the night, they will wake up in the next morning without receiving any reputation. Should the player die while out scavenging, they will suffer a loss of half their inventory which is then marked on the map for later collection. Higher difficulties have higher penalties for death such as the loss of lives or permanent death.
The storyline is shaped based on how the player reacts to the requests and actions of NPCs. Aiding different ones will lead to different endings, and sometimes influences sub-plots relating to several other NPCs. The game switches to a different map in its second chapter, with the previous regions becoming locked and several new gameplay elements and NPCs being introduced. Different characters from the first chapter may appear too, depending on the player's actions. The game features two different main endings, with each character's subplot being defined by other, smaller actions as well as which of these endings the player has achieved.
The game is advertised as "being scary without having jump scares".<ref>{{cite web |title=Darkwood for Nintendo Switch – Nintendo Game Details |url=https://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/darkwood-switch/ |access-date=2019-06-12 |website=www.nintendo.com |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Synopsis == ===Setting and characters=== ''Darkwood'' is set somewhere in Poland<ref name="faq"/> in the late 1980s where a mysterious forest has engulfed a large amount of land and is continuing to expand. Many people have been left trapped by the forest and a strange plague is ravaging the survivors, killing and causing victims to transform into monsters and abominations. A group named "The Outsiders" consisting mostly of government officials and soldiers were sent to investigate the woods, setting up hideouts and a tunnel system to get in and out of the forest. By the time the game takes place most of the Outsiders are dead or evacuated from the zone.
In the prologue, the player takes control of an apparent doctor as he searches for supplies. The Doctor seems to be disillusioned with his job of helping locals and is hellbent on escaping the forest. After the prologue, the player takes control of "The Stranger", a man who is searching for the stolen key that will lead him through an underground passageway out of the forest. Other characters include a trader who helps the protagonist in the prologue, a half-man half-wolf hybrid known only as "The Wolfman", a drunk cyclist known as the "Bike Man" and Piotrek, who is mesmerised by space travel and Yuri Gagarin, and wishes to build a rocket.
===Plot=== ====Prologue==== The game begins with The Doctor rambling about the forest and how it has consumed all exits and trapped its inhabitants, his inability to treat the plague and his devotion to escaping the woods before he perishes. While scavenging for gasoline, The Doctor comes across the Stranger, injured and unconscious after an unknown accident. After looting a large key from his body, the Doctor theorizes that the Stranger possesses knowledge on how to escape the forest. The Stranger is then captured, sedated and eventually beaten as the Doctor interrogates him regarding an escape route. The story focus and controls switch to the Stranger as he engineers an escape from the Doctor's house. After some exploration, the cottage is broken into by several monsters and the Stranger blacks out.
====Chapter 1==== It is implied in a cutscene that the Trader stumbled across the Doctor's cottage and rescued the Stranger, bringing him back to a hideout in the Dry Meadow. The Stranger first explores the underground entrance to make sure the Doctor has not gone through with the key, but finds that the door has not been opened in a while. The player may then side with the Wolfman or the Musician to find the Doctor, or accomplish this by their own devices.
Once finding the Doctor in the train wreck (either by exploring his house from the prologue, or getting an appointment from the Musician), he will attempt to resist the Stranger. Several outcomes are available, including killing the Doctor for his key or allowing him to accompany the player through the underground passage. One way or another, progressing through the armoured door leads to the end of Chapter 1.
====Chapter 2==== As the Stranger leaves the tunnel he finds that it no longer leads out of the forest and instead leads to a swamp. The Stranger will also find the beheaded corpse of the Trader, and will instead be visited by three masked figures in the mornings. Chapter 2 is where many choices in Chapter 1 affect the outcomes of certain characters, for example, if players did not aid the Wolfman then he will steal items from the player and lure them into a trap, and if players followed the Wolfman's path, the Musician will appear in the Stranger's hideout.
The Stranger finds a large talking tree blocking the exit of the forest in a flooded village, which indirectly asks the Stranger to explore a radio tower. A cripple residing in this village requests that the Stranger burns this tree. Both pathways offer ways of leaving the forest and of reaching the Epilogue.
====Epilogue==== The Stranger pushes through the forest until reaching a town and their old apartment, where he settles in for a long sleep. However, careful exploration reveals this ending to be an illusion which the player can uncover, if they spot the odd things in the apartment block. The Stranger eventually finds roots growing under the floorboards and a hole under his bed. Crawling through will have the Stranger wake up naked, with his clothes discarded nearby, in a passage overgrown with roots.
The player awakens in a chamber filled with thousands of people curled up around a strange being, dead or sleeping and muttering in bliss. If the Stranger aided the Doctor, he will find him resting next to the being. The being attempts to entice the Stranger by making him feel warm and tired, if the player does not resist then they will fall unconscious and be back in the apartment with only one course of action available: bliss and ignorance. If the Player resists, then the Stranger will find a flamethrower among the sleepers and burn the being and all those around it to death. The fire spreads so rapidly that the Stranger is unable to escape; and the flames quickly consume most of the forest and its inhabitants. The death of the strange being and the Stranger's sacrifice allow the military to deploy to the forest safely to save the remaining inhabitants and restore order. In both endings, text blocks detailing each character's fate appear, which can be influenced by the player's actions during the game.
== Development == According to the developers, Darkwood was inspired by:<blockquote>"The works of David Lynch, Strugacki brothers, Stanisław Lem. Games like ''Fallout'', ''Dark Souls'', ''Project Zomboid'', ''Teleglitch''. Slavic folklore. And, well, life."<ref name="faq">{{cite web|url=http://www.darkwoodgame.com/faq/|title=Darkwood FAQ|website=Darkwood|publisher=Acid Wizard Studio|access-date=July 20, 2016 |quote="What is Darkwood?<br>Darkwood is a game about survival, exploration and fear, set in mysterious woods somewhere in the territory of the Soviet Bloc.<br>What were your inspirations?<br>The works of David Lynch, Strugacki brothers, Stanisław Lem. Games like Fallout, Dark Souls, Project Zomboid, Teleglitch. Slavic folklore. And, well, life."}}</ref></blockquote>
They also said:<blockquote>"A lot people said there are similarities between Lovecraft and Darkwood, and turned out that none of us read any Lovecraft before making Darkwood."<ref>{{cite interview |last1=Stachaszewski|first1=Gustaw |last2=Kuć|first2=Jakub |interviewer=Artism Speaks |title=Artism Speaks Episode 40: Lord Mandalore and The Darkwood Developers |work=ARTISM PODCAST |date=9 Jun 2018}}</ref></blockquote>
The game was revealed with the release of a pre-alpha gameplay trailer on YouTube, on March 5, 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://steamcommunity.com/app/274520/discussions/0/359543951710760776/#c359543951713148648|title=Darkwood|website=Darkwood General Discussions|access-date=July 28, 2016}}</ref> A page for the game was created on Steam Greenlight on March 11, 2013, with the following months seeing the release of a campaign on the popular crowdfunding website Indiegogo which funded the game's initial developing. The campaign collected over US$57,000, totalizing 143% of the established goal (US$40,000).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/darkwood#/|title=Darkwood on Indiegogo|website=Indiegogo|access-date=July 20, 2016}}</ref> On July 24, 2014, the game was released to the public in an alpha stage, with updates being released ever since. Support for 32-bit Linux systems, although present at first, was dropped mid-development, as a survey done by the developers showed no players currently using such a system. On June 6, 2017, the game was pushed out of alpha, and into version beta 1.
A live action trailer produced by the Polish studio Film Fiction was released on July 19, and the full game was released on August 18, 2017.<ref name=":1">{{cite web|url=http://store.steampowered.com/app/274520/|title=Darkwood on Steam|website=Steam|access-date=July 20, 2016}}</ref>
On August 25, the developers released a blog post on image hosting website Imgur, telling the story of the game's development process and releasing a free torrent of it, asking the players to buy it if they enjoy it. This move was motivated by two reasons, they wanted some players who couldn't afford the game to be able to play it, and also received several e-mails related to theft of game keys. They stated that they preferred to give the game for free to some people than feed the leeching key-reselling websites.<ref name="Here's our story">{{cite web|url=https://imgur.com/gallery/xVhDz|title=We're afraid to play horror games, so we quit our jobs and made one, with no jump scares. It's called Darkwood, and it's our debut. Here's our story.|author=Acid Wizard Studio|date=August 25, 2017|website=Imgur|publisher=Acid Wizard Studio|access-date=November 22, 2017}}</ref>
On January 22, 2018, the developers released the 1.2 update, bringing Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese and German translations to the game.<ref name=":1" /> The translations were worked on with the help of the community. They also stated that more language localizations were in development. On August 7, 2019, the 1.3 version was released, containing a number of bugfixes, optimizations and localizations for Simplified Chinese, Italian, Turkish and Hungarian. A French localization was also confirmed to be in development.<ref>{{cite web |date=August 7, 2019 |title=Darkwood 1.3 – new languages! |url=https://steamcommunity.com/games/274520/announcements/detail/1591379507766218628 |access-date=2019-08-07 |website=steamcommunity.com |language=en}}</ref>
The game was ported to consoles by Crunching Koalas. A Nintendo Switch version was announced during the Nindies Nintendo Direct on March 20 and was released on May 16, 2019.<ref>{{cite web |date=May 23, 2020 |title=Darkwood |url=https://gaminglake.com/darkwood-review-switch-console.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200426103555/https://gaminglake.com/darkwood-review-switch-console.html |archive-date=April 26, 2020 |access-date=2020-05-23 |website=GamingLake}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Lanier |first=Liz |date=2019-05-14 |title=‘Darkwood’ Gets Eery New Trailer for Console Launch |url=https://variety.com/2019/gaming/news/darkwood-console-launch-trailer-1203214655/ |access-date=2024-10-25 |website=Variety}}</ref> It was also released for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on May 14 and May 16, 2019.<ref>{{cite web |last=Croft |first=Liam |date=May 2, 2019 |title=Darkwood Brings Top-Down Terror to PS4 on 14th May |url=http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2019/05/darkwood_brings_top-down_terror_to_ps4_on_14th_may |access-date=2019-05-09 |website=Push Square |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=May 17, 2019 |title=Darkwood Is Now Available For Xbox One |url=https://majornelson.com/2019/05/16/darkwood-is-now-available-for-xbox-one/ |access-date=2019-05-24 |website=Xbox Live's Major Nelson |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> It released for Google Stadia on September 17, 2021 and later for PlayStation 5 on October 28<ref name="gamingbolt2022">{{Cite web |last=Shunal Doke |date=October 29, 2022 |title=Darkwood is Out Now on PS5, Makes Use of DualSense Features |url=https://gamingbolt.com/darkwood-is-out-now-on-ps5-makes-use-of-dualsense-features/amp |access-date=2024-10-25 |website=gamingbolt}}</ref> and Xbox Series X/S on December 23, 2022. On December 2, 2025, American publisher Hooded Horse announced that it had acquired the publishing rights for the PC version of ''Darkwood'', although the deal would not affect the game's console versions.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hooded Horse picks up Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew to give Mimimi’s final game the support it deserves |website=Gamer Matters |first=Amirul |last=Ashraf |date=December 2, 2025 |url=https://gamermatters.com/battle-brothers-and-darkwood-now-published-under-hooded-horse-on-pc/ |access-date=December 19, 2025 }}</ref>
The PS5 version makes use of the adaptive triggers and haptic feedback functions of the DualSense controller.<ref name="gamingbolt2022" />
==Reception== {{Video game reviews | MC = PC: 80/100<ref name="MC">{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/darkwood/critic-reviews/?platform=pc |title=Darkwood for PC Reviews |website=Metacritic |access-date=2018-06-22}}</ref><br />NS: 74/100<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/darkwood/critic-reviews/?platform=nintendo-switch |title=Darkwood for Switch Reviews |website=Metacritic |access-date=2020-10-15}}</ref><br />PS4: 80/100<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/darkwood/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-4 |title=Darkwood for PlayStation 4 Reviews |website=Metacritic |access-date=2020-10-15}}</ref><br />XONE: 80/100<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/darkwood/critic-reviews/?platform=xbox-one |title=Darkwood for Xbox One Reviews |website=Metacritic |access-date=2020-10-15}}</ref> | OC = 77% recommend<ref name="opencritic">{{cite web|url=https://opencritic.com/game/4738/darkwood|title=''Darkwood''|publisher=OpenCritic|access-date=January 25, 2026}}</ref> }}
Critics wrote positive pieces regarding the game prior to and after its public release.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-03-09-darkwood-is-a-promising-top-down-horror-roguelike-that-has-cult-classic-written-all-over-it|title=Darkwood is a promising top-down horror roguelike that has cult classic written all over it|last=Matulef|first=Jeffrey|date=March 9, 2013|website=Eurogamer|access-date=July 20, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2013/03/07/fear-and-roaming-darkwood/|title=Fear And Roaming: Darkwood|last=Smith|first=Adam|date=March 7, 2013|website=Rock Paper Shotgun|access-date=July 20, 2016}}</ref> It has a score of 80/100 on Metacritic based on 16 reviews. Metacritic also included it in their "top 100 best videogames of 2017" list.<ref name="MC" /> Fellow review aggregator OpenCritic assessed that the game received strong approval, being recommended by 77% of critics.<ref name="opencritic"/>
Amy Josuweit, writing for ''The Mary Sue'', praised the game for not relying on jumpscares, creating what she calls a "PTSD-inclusive horror experience".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Josuweit |first=Amy |date=October 12, 2017 |title=How Darkwood became a horror game that is PTSD-inclusive |url=https://www.themarysue.com/darkwood/ |website=The Mary Sue}}</ref>
The game was nominated for "Most Fulfilling Community-Funded Game" at the 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://gaming.sxsw.com/news/2018/2018-sxsw-gaming-awards-finalists/|title=Here Are Your 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards Finalists!|last=McNeill|first=Andrew|date=January 31, 2018|website=SXSW|access-date=January 31, 2018|archive-date=February 1, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180201080759/https://gaming.sxsw.com/news/2018/2018-sxsw-gaming-awards-finalists/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2018/03/18/sxsw-gaming-awards-2018-winners-revealed|title=2018 SXSW Gaming Awards Winners Revealed|author=IGN Studios|date=March 17, 2018|website=IGN|access-date=March 18, 2018}}</ref>
The announcement of the Nintendo Switch version was followed by articles by ''Variety''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2019/gaming/news/darkwood-delivers-surreal-horror-to-nintendo-switch-1203166819/|title='Darkwood' Delivers Surreal Horror to Nintendo Switch|last=Crecente|first=Brian|date=March 26, 2019|website=Variety}}</ref> and ''IGN''. In the second one, Tom Marks (writing for ''IGN'') praised the game for "not taking cheap shots" and "playing surprisingly well with a Switch Pro Controller".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2019/03/21/6-awesome-games-from-nintendos-spring-showcase|title=6 AWESOME GAMES FROM NINTENDO'S SPRING SHOWCASE|last=Marks|first=Tom|date=March 21, 2019|website=IGN}}</ref>
== Notes == {{Notelist}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.darkwoodgame.com/ Official website] *[http://www.acidwizardstudio.com/ Developer's website]
{{Authority control}} {{Hooded Horse}}
Category:2010s horror video games Category:2017 video games Category:Crunching Koalas games Category:Early access video games Category:Folk horror Category:Hooded Horse games Category:Indiegogo projects Category:Linux games Category:MacOS games Category:Nintendo Switch games Category:PlayStation 4 games Category:Single-player video games Category:Stadia games Category:Survival horror video games Category:Top-down video games Category:Video games developed in Poland Category:Video games set in Europe Category:Video games set in forests Category:Video games set in Poland Category:Video games using procedural generation Category:Windows games Category:Xbox One games Category:Video games set in 1987