The Sinking City

Amazing but flawed.
While it starts with an unpleasant first impression, with a janky camera, animations and unimpressive combat, it develops into a well-made, unique detective mystery game based on Lovecraftian lore.
The writing is excellent and is probably the main reason to pick this game up. I like how the morality of every choice is always called into question, and how there is no 'correct' choice — every decision you make has its own shade of grey.
Also the way you solve cases by adding evidence into your "Mind Palace" is really unique and well done.
One thing I especially want to mention is the empty, useless open world, which unfortunately detracts from the overall experience.
As for the remastered version of the game, it runs exceptionally badly for a game that doesn't even look particularly good and, if you enable ray-traced reflections, enjoy stuttering every two seconds. Plus, for some reason, there is no motion blur toggle, which is completely insane for a remaster of a video game released in 2025.
If you enjoy good Lovecraftian stories, this game is definitely for you and I would recommend it.

TLDR
The Sinking City feels like a game created by authors and artists, then coded by monkeys. If you’re looking for a Lovecraftian detective experience, it’s absolutely worth playing. The atmosphere, story, character dialogue, and voice acting are all phenomenal. The moral choices are genuine dilemmas rather than simple good/evil prompts. If Lovecraft is what you’re here for, buy it.
That said, the positives end there. The game objectively feels terrible to play. Your character controls like a tank on ice skates. Combat is easily the worst part: the moment you engage an “enemy,” your sanity drops and you’re hit with a disorienting fisheye lens effect. As someone who does not get motion sickness, the effect is extremely nauseating and cannot be disabled.
The resource management system makes no sense and feels like a chore. Rather than make crafting resources scarce, they are abundant, as chests refill when you walk away. You just have an extremely limited inventory, making it a minor inconvenience in between fights rather than something you actually have to manage.
Environments also suffer from repetition. There are basically three interior layout templates, all some variation of a three-story building; but the interior design team does impressive work disguising the sameness and making each space feel distinct.
All of these negatives only highlight how well the game nails its story and atmosphere. The Sinking City is clunky, jank, and at times outright annoying to play… yet its narrative and world-building are so good that it’s still worth it for fans of cosmic horror.

What happens when Lovecraft's works collide into one comprehensive universe, then mix with further occult myths like the Golem of Prague and undead Mayan? The Sinking City is exactly that, a rough but charming melting pot of cosmic horror and esotericism by the underfunded AA Ukrainian studio Frogwares.
There are so many problems with its gameplay, especially repetitive combat against the same 4 types of enemy, the over-reliance on the crafting system and the overused repetitive level layouts. Yet despite all that, the city of Oakmont and its eerie but memorable stories carry such a great atmosphere that I'd recommend this game to anyone who loves the weird fiction genre. There's something truly special about being thrown into a bizarre, decaying but fully believable world and stumbling upon its strange characters and moments that make you pause and question things. And that's why The Sinking City is one of the most authentic Lovecraft games for me, an imperfect but truly unforgettable experience.

I almost got put off from the start by slightly wonky combat, but decided to power through and see what this game is really about - because killing things clearly isn't the main attraction here. I'm very glad I did, because it turned out to be one of the most atmospheric, chilling horrors/thrillers I've had the pleasure to play.

There's an omnipresent sense of dread in it, which is why I find the name so fitting - it's a "sinking feeling" of things going from bad to increasingly harrowing levels of "WORSE". Fear of the Unknown is the strongest of them all, according to Lovecraft - and this game capitalizes on that pretty damn well. It doesn't shock you with predictable gore or jump-scares. Instead - it seeps into your being as something you can't quite identify, yet find delightfully terrifying.

Unraveling the threads of its story while playing detective is the core gameplay thing here, and is quite gripping, just because of how original and unpredictable the writing is.

This was an entirely random find which turned out as a hidden gem !

Yeah, I get it *sigh*
Yes , the game sure is not a technical masterpiece.
Yes , the 2019 version (still playable) is more stable than the remastered version.
Yes , the 2019 version's graphics on default look better than the remastered version's.
Yes , the remastered version missed the opporunity to get rid of some bugs.
BUT
I still love this game. Let me explain why. Lets start with the technical perspective.
You can decide whether you play the 2019 or remastered version.
With some easy tweaks in the .ini file(s) both versions can become quite goodlooking.
On my last playthrough the remastered version only crashed once.
The autosave feature is pretty usefull. Never experienced a true setback when the game crashed.
Now it does not sound that bad anymore, does it?
But what is far more important (to me): the story & setting!
I am pretty sure the story will appeal to anyone who at least has a somewhat positiv affiliation to HP Lovecraft's universe. Even if you don't and are just looking for a detective shooter in an eerie and weird setting, you wont be disappointed by it's lore. It fits right in. Sometimes gives you the chills. Sometimes makes your brain go "WTF?!". Sometimes makes you shiver. Ans sometimes even lets you make some (not so easy) choices. For game developers Lovecraft and his works still seem to be pretty niche. Thus it is hard for us Lovecraft fans to get supplied with videogames that fit his mind (and ours). When it comes to egoperspective we have Dagon, Still Wakes The Deep, Sherlock Holmes: The Awakend, Darkness Within that are pretty damn close to be considered authentic and immersive. And it is right this authenticity and immersion that makes me come back to it from time to time. As for now I just have started another playthrough again.
Sure, the game definitely is NOT free of flaws. It has it's bugs and quirks. But it sure is far away from an unplayable state. Further it is not like there is a truckload of great Lovecraft games that catch the vibe and give it back to the player. I dont need (and dont want!) a AAA game to get sucked into Lovecraft's world. With that in mind, my oh my, The Sinking City truely is a great game to love(craft)!

The Sinking City Remastered is a moody, atmospheric revival of Frogwares’ ambitious Lovecraftian detective game, delivering both visual and technical improvements that reframe the entire experience in a more modern light. Built in Unreal Engine 5, the remastered edition doesn’t simply upscale textures or improve resolution—it completely overhauls the aesthetic quality of Oakmont, the game’s decaying, rain-soaked city at the heart of its cosmic horror narrative. Buildings rot with more texture, alleyways drip with more menace, and shadows dance eerily under ray-traced lighting. These enhancements create a significantly more immersive environment where every corner feels oppressive and alive with mystery, amplifying the emotional weight and dread that defines the game’s tone.
The improvements go far beyond the surface. Frogwares has taken the opportunity to polish many of the technical shortcomings that plagued the original release. The addition of DLSS, FSR, and TSR upscaling support allows for smoother performance across a variety of hardware configurations, making the remaster more accessible and stable. Quality-of-life changes are subtle but impactful: revamped controls, smarter enemy AI, rebalanced combat sequences, and a more intuitive interface for navigating investigation mechanics make the game feel more coherent. The inclusion of a Photo Mode is a welcome bonus, especially for players who want to linger in Oakmont’s unsettling vistas, capturing the grotesque beauty of their surroundings without the pressure of incoming horrors.
The narrative foundation remains largely untouched, which for many is a good thing. Players once again step into the worn shoes of private investigator Charles Reed, a man tormented by otherworldly visions who arrives in the isolated city of Oakmont seeking answers. The storytelling leans heavily into psychological horror, exploring themes of madness, identity, and unknowable cosmic forces. Reed’s descent into insanity is mirrored in the city itself—its partially submerged streets, its unnerving citizens, and its constant sense of decay. Clues are scattered in the form of documents, spoken conversations, crime scenes, and hallucinations, and players must piece them together using a deduction-based system that rewards observation over handholding. It’s a refreshingly cerebral approach that invites players to think like a detective, although it may prove too obtuse for those looking for a more guided experience.
Combat remains the weakest aspect of the game, even in this remastered version. While slightly improved in responsiveness and pacing, it still lacks the finesse and intensity expected from a modern action-horror title. The weapons feel clunky, aiming can be inconsistent, and enemy encounters sometimes interrupt the rhythm of the investigative flow. Thankfully, combat is never the primary focus; it’s treated more as a necessary evil, something to survive rather than relish. The psychological tension built through exploration, case-solving, and creeping dread remains the primary draw.
What makes the remaster especially noteworthy is the context of its release. The original version suffered not only from bugs and performance issues but also from a messy legal battle that prevented Frogwares from updating or even supporting the game properly for a time. With the remastered edition, the developers have regained full control over their work and offer this new version free to existing owners, a rare move that speaks volumes about their commitment to the player base. It’s not just a visual upgrade; it’s a redemption arc for a game that was once full of potential but held back by external issues and internal imperfections.
Even with all the improvements, The Sinking City Remastered won’t be for everyone. The pacing is slow, the tone relentlessly bleak, and the investigation-heavy gameplay can feel overwhelming or opaque to those unaccustomed to piecing together narratives from subtle environmental clues. Yet, for fans of Lovecraftian horror, detective stories, and immersive world-building, this remaster represents the most complete and haunting version of the game to date. It’s not just about what the game shows you, but how it makes you feel: isolated, insignificant, and desperate to understand a reality that’s slipping through your fingers. In that regard, the remaster fulfills the promise the original only hinted at—it pulls you deeper into the madness, and dares you to look away.
Rating: 8/10

Firstly, I played the remastered version and have not experienced any of the stuttering or FPS drops I've read about from others. Maybe my rig is just that herculean example of a NASA envied standard, but I don't think that's the case.
Bottom line first, I've had fun thus far. The setting and story is interesting and I genuinely want to know more about the world and the Lovecraftian themes.
The music isn't anything I'd carry over by burning a CD and blasting it in my car to impress a date, but it's atmospheric enough for the game. Could I see it played as ambient noise for a TTRPG? Sure.
Graphics? Yeah, they're there and they do the trick overall. I'm not a stickler for graphics considering some of the greatest games I've ever played have been 16 bit. This isn't teasing Unreal 6 and the protagonist's stubble looks like he fell into a crate of sharpened #2 pencils decided to keep all the lead cores embedded. Seriously, his stubble is just bad and it sticks out because the subtle scarring on his face actually looks pretty good. Also, there's so much crap strewn around the messy and clumsy environment that I often don't know if the clump on the ground is entrails and viscera, seaweed, grime, sludge, or just an overabundance of pixels from a kid who found quick color change options and the spraypaint tool on MS Paint. Makes things a little more difficult to find lootables, but that's kind of a good thing that I'll explain later. This may seem like a lot of graphical issues, but from afar, it's really all fine; just the first things I recalled after setting the controller down for a few hours.
Ok, the lootable items: they're spaced out in the world map pretty heavily. It's not a bad thing. It makes the world feel more realistic, even when you have ape and fish-faced people wandering around. It'd be too easy and boring if every trash can had something of value. Leaves the question of how do you know which ones are worth snooping into, but it's not a bad thing to have the majority of the world not freely give out items to fill your backpack up with.
Speaking of the world and the map, it's big and it's a mystery. You get a map with several neighborhoods and a couple key points of interest, but then the fun shows itself, and I don't mean that disingenuously: dead ends and mission locations that you have to manually input. I'm not kidding, the fact that I plan out a route, only to be thwarted by an unknown roadblock means I have to amend my map like a real stranger to the town and PI would. I place markers on the map to indicate that there's an impassable barrier or a point of interest or dangerous aura. It makes the world feel more alive and it's great.
The PI deductions are ok, you can take any triangle peg clue and slam it into any shaped clue hole until a deduction comes about with no penalty, but I was impressed more by the fact that there's an archive for both the newspaper and the police reports that you have to select key details to narrow down your searches for additional information. This both pads game time (boo) and adds to realism as a PI would have to do the same (yay). It's a bit disappointing that there's no fluff text or reports through these moments and it plays more like an overly complicated combination lock based on the game Clue, but the immersion adds to the story, which as I previously stated, is the standout.
The most laughable part of the game thus far for me is the combat. To give you a brief recap of my only combat experiences so far:
-During the introductory quest, a vagina with arms and legs hisses and kicks a door between us before charging. I shoot, it falls, that's the ballgame.
-A guy appears in an entry-less corner of the room I had been looking at moments before an opens fire. I take a few hits, aim, and one tap him to the dome. He folds backwards not unlike a cardboard cutout. It genuinely felt hollow, like there was no force behind my mighty handcannon and that was kind of a disappointment. Bullets are both a form of currency and survival, yet I am unable to loot or commandeer the revolver or the bullets he very distinctly possessed (<-- Get it?).
-Fast forward a bit later and I find myself looking for a book or something in a rundown apartment. I've been playing video games long enough to know this is a combat room, though no one is here. I tread the perimeter walls and loot some items, no combatants. Confused, I've made my way around the entire ground floor and haven't found anything to bludgeon or bang at. I touch a floorboard I'm sure I had initially caressed during my entry and screeches and growls orchestrate from all around me. Awesome. I scan the area and find a combination of 3 of the aforementioned limbed vaginas and at least 2 tall and squishy mounds of expired taffy with long necks. Shovel in hand, I pound the triplets and start whacking away at the taffy necks who, in turn, begin vomiting perfect spheres in my direction. One down, I back up from the survivor, who falls back behind a wall with a swinging door, 2x4 studs, and early 1900's insulation and wallpaper. All these barriers are pertinent to note. My gladiatorial debut has been rough and I admittedly got my ass kicked a bit having not used the melee mechanic at all thus far. "No biggie, I'll heal up", I plan in my head and begin switching to my med kit. Suddenly, I see a spherical snot glob flung from my taffy neck arch-nemesis materialize through the wall (THROUGH THE ****ING WALL) and bean me in the forehead. Embarrassed, I stiffen up like a cartoon character and flop face down on the floor with another disappointing lack of impact before respawning about 15 minutes worth of progress and traversal earlier. "Hmmm", I think before doing it again.
Bottom line (again), I've had fun and none of the negative parts have been a dealbreaker. It's not polished to a mirror shine, but the story has character and, frankly, the jankiness of the combat makes the fights feel less like you're a honed killer with thousands of hours experience between COD and Battlefield. Your aim isn't pin point like a calm collected killer because it shouldn't be. You're fighting otherworldly horrors and that will distort your firearm's sight picture and smoothness of your aim. Intended for the game? Probably not, but it fits and I appreciate it. I'd probably wait for the game to go on sale (I did) but so far it's been a fun little getaway from the monotonous mainstream games and a trip into a Lovecraftian themed nightmare isn't something I've seen in many games. Give it a shot. I did and I don't regret it.