NOTE: Skeler Boy is full of swearing and screenshots from the game are representative of gameplay and contain swearing. Horror gaming is a funny genre. You really never know what to expect going into a game and occasionally, an indie game totally catches you off guard. Outlast did that when it was first released. So did the P.T. demo. But there are an infinite number of approaches to the genre and even knowing that, a game can be completely different than what you might expect.
Today we’re looking at Skeler Boy, an indie release from one man developer Maniac Boy Studio and published by Ratalaika Games. Skeler Boy is a bargain-priced pixel horror game that will run you the princely sum of $8. It features Skeler, a uniquely named character looking for his lost girlfriend. Keep in mind that this is a very short game (maybe an hour or two tops if you figure out what to do) and as such, we can’t give away too much of the plot.
As Skeler, you’ll be searching an open-world town for hints to your girlfriend’s whereabouts. You have a convenient radio communicator with which you can communicate with Sven, a doctor who is assisting in the search. Skeler Boy cribs from quite a few classic games, most notably the Metal Gear franchise, so expect to see some familiarity throughout the town. You’ll also see get some clear Silent Hill vibes and a bit of classic horror to boot.
Things aren’t looking good for Skeler either, as no one really wants to help him out aside from Sven who you can contact on the radio’s emergency channel. Finding your way around the town and environs is as much a matter of luck as anything else. That’s partially because the game doesn’t really give you wonderful clues. Let’s get right into the mechanics and you’ll understand what we mean by that.
There are several main areas in Skeler Boy, but they’re not all accessible at any given time. This isn’t an open-world experience but you can wander freely. There are no enemies to fight either, so don’t worry about that. Instead, you’ll have to figure out where to go next to find your girlfriend using the clues provided by the environment. Sadly for you, the town is full of death traps and you’ll have to navigate them to progress, but don’t sweat it as there isn’t anything particularly difficult in the game.
Instead, the primary concern is the English translation of Skeler Boy. Not only are a few things still left in Spanish for no discernible reason (this is a Spanish game btw), but the translations in the game are atrocious. Most of the time, the character dialogue makes sense but about ¼ of the time, expect some spectacular Engrish and a lingering confusion as to what exactly to do next or what’s going on. Unfortunately, as this is a psychological horror game, that confusion heavily blunts any impact the story might have on players, leaving you wondering if you’re even supposed to be scared at all.
Major translation issues tend to kill games and Skeler Boy is no exception. But gameplay is also key and this is another area where Skeler Boy fails. There are a number of small problems with the game which slowly mount up to create an overall lackluster experience. Every time you transition screens, you have to confirm with a button press and no visual context clues. It’s difficult to tell where exits to areas are. The lighting levels are incredibly low, making the game challenging to play in brighter environments or portably. Heavy swearing throughout the game comes off as ridiculous rather than realistic. Sound levels are too low in some areas, resulting in needless deaths when players are required to listen for events. The list goes on and on.
Perhaps the most egregious problem is the lack of actual horror. This is supposed to be a psychological horror game with jump scares that should have some sort of impact on the player. Instead, jump scares are so rapid that there’s no tension involved, you die, and you’re brought back to a save point. There’s really nothing to be afraid of and no building of tension to accompany it. Some red texts and flickering lights just don’t seem to cut it and even the tensest scenes are just kind of silly and/or pointless. With cut scenes that are barely intelligible due to translation issues, there’s really no emotional impact at all from the game and that leaves Skeler Boy in a tough spot as a horror game.
That’s a weird position to be in as all the hallmark potential is there. Supernatural occurrences blood and gore, darkened rooms that lock mysteriously, the whole nine yards. Everything about the design of Skeler Boy simply oozes horror and yet it entirely fails to stick the landing in any meaningful way. The entirety of the plot is surprisingly transparent and predictable and the ending is a variation on a theme that’s been done so many times it’s simply cliché at this point.
Most of the mechanics in Skeler Boy are quite straightforward. Walk around, talk to people, jump over things, interact with them. There’s really not much more to gameplay than that, other than the endearing rat that you’ll encounter. Even enemies which appear are simplistic at best with no actual combat. It’s mostly just you trying to figure out what is being said and whether or not it’s supposed to evoke some sort of reaction. This is a very two-dimensional horror game and any of the additional aspects such as buying a map, talking to NPCs, and even exploring areas seem fairly flat.
Visually however, Skeler Boy looks absolutely fantastic. There’s some excellent design work here that far surpasses the script and gameplay with moody designs, interesting text effects, clever design choices and more. It’s a shame that two thirds of it is hidden behind incredibly low lighting conditions to be honest. If you’re playing Skeler Boy on the Switch portably for example, there’s almost no way to play it during the day. The game is simply too dim to manage. Rapid monster and NPC movement are delightful and the pixel art is just fun. Aside from all other concerns, there’s no question that Skeler Boy is a beautiful game for vintage pixel style and the tricks really make the background come alive throughout your short playthrough.
Sound on the other hand is a bit more intermittent. All the dialogue is in Spanish, which is fine except for the bad translation. It sounds like decent voicework though. But the music for Skeler Boy is weak and intermittent, only dropping in for key moments while other parts of your explorations have almost no sound at all. That makes sense for a horror game but for one as simplistic in design as this, it just feels empty without a corresponding creeping dread to make it make more sense. The soundtrack should be doing some heavy lifting here and it just isn’t. Sound effects are terrible too. In one area, there’s a minefield and you’re supposed to listen for the beeping from a metal detector. Only problem? The metal detector doesn’t beep, so expect some kablooey! The same goes for one of the monster scenes where you must hide in a cabinet and can’t leave until the music dies down. Unfortunately, that means it must die down entirely and the very faint sound of drums is enough to fully summon a monster that has disappeared. Solution? Leave the controller, walk away, get a drink, come back. Monsters can’t open cabinets. That’s just poor design overall and the game’s sound work suffers intermittently from it throughout Skeler Boy.
Normally , this is the point we’d break down any negatives with the game, but as you’ve probably figured out by now, the entirety of Skeler Boy is a mixed bag. For English speakers, it’s not the best experience and some of the mechanics leave a lot to be desired. Flaws are inevitable in indie games and sometimes they manage to be fun despite themselves (see Rainswept, which we reviewed here). But Skeler Boy simply has too many issues to provide a consistently entertaining experience, especially for its short duration. While it’s not as bad as the worst game we’ve ever reviewed, Skeler Boy has enough issues that it’s difficult to recommend it, despite the excellent visual design and clear genuine attempt to reach audiences emotionally. If you want a quick, short indie horror game and don’t mind the flaws, Skeler Boy isn’t bad, and chance are it’s much better if you play it in Spanish, but as it stands, it’s a fairly weak horror game that doesn’t capitalize on its potential.
This review is based on a digital copy of Skeler Boy provided by the publisher. It was played on a Nintendo Switch in both docked and undocked modes. Skeler Boy is also available on PS4/PS5, Xbox, and PC on Steam and Itch.
Nate Van Lindt has been a gamer since the days of yore (aka Commodore 64), and has played a bit of virtually everything out there. He's also an avid comic book collector, both vintage and current, and reads a fair amount of sci-fi and fantasy. On top of that, he watches a fair number of movies and TV shows as well. Oh, and he has a family, a full-time job, and lives somewhere in the urban wilds of Southwestern Ontario, Canada, foraging for old video cables and forgotten game soundtracks.
