RED

=)

☀️

it's basically little red riding hood except my grandmother killed my parents and I have severe dissociative identity disorder 8/10.

este ha sido el juego que mas me enamoro en su historia y hasta ahora me pregunto como es que es tan increible

RED, developed by storyk21674, STILILA, and 貓蛋 and published by Lemon Balm and RMAsia, is a small-scale indie action game that feels very much like a snapshot of early creative ambition. Built using RPG Maker and rooted in a student project background, it takes the familiar framework of Little Red Riding Hood and reshapes it into a short, combat-focused side-scrolling experience. While its scope is undeniably limited, there’s a sincerity in its design that makes it more than just a throwaway curiosity, especially for players who appreciate grassroots indie efforts. The premise is stripped down to essentials: Red receives a message from her grandmother and sets out into a dangerous forest filled with hostile creatures. The story doesn’t attempt to reinvent narrative conventions or deliver layered storytelling; instead, it functions as a simple backdrop to justify the action. That said, the darker tone and reinterpretation of a well-known fairy tale give the game a slightly eerie charm. It doesn’t linger long enough to explore its themes in depth, but it establishes a mood that complements the gameplay effectively, even if it ultimately leaves you wishing there was more narrative substance to uncover. Where the game puts most of its energy is in its combat. Presented as a 2D side-scroller, RED revolves around moving through linear stages and cutting down enemies with straightforward melee attacks. The controls are responsive and easy to grasp, which suits the game’s short runtime, and there’s a certain satisfaction in chaining attacks and clearing out waves of foes. However, the simplicity that makes it accessible also limits its longevity. Enemy types are few, patterns are predictable, and the mechanics don’t evolve significantly as you progress. Despite this, the pacing is tight enough that the repetition never becomes overly tedious, largely because the game concludes before its systems have time to wear thin. Visually, the game leans into a modest pixel-art style that reflects both its RPG Maker roots and its indie origins. Character sprites are clean and expressive, particularly the protagonist, whose anime-inspired design helps anchor the game’s identity. Environments are functional rather than detailed, but they manage to convey a consistent forest atmosphere that fits the tone. The audio design follows a similar trajectory—serviceable and occasionally atmospheric, though not especially memorable. Together, the visuals and sound create a cohesive presentation that, while not technically impressive, feels thoughtfully assembled within its constraints. One of the defining characteristics of RED is its brevity. A single playthrough can be completed in roughly twenty minutes, making it more akin to a playable vignette than a full-fledged game. This short length can be a double-edged sword. On one hand, it leaves players wanting more, particularly when the game hints at ideas that could have been expanded into deeper mechanics or narrative beats. On the other, it ensures that the experience remains focused and digestible, never overstaying its welcome. The inclusion of multiple endings adds a small incentive to replay, though it doesn’t drastically change the overall scope. What stands out most is the sense of untapped potential running through the entire experience. The developers demonstrate a solid grasp of basic game design principles, from responsive controls to coherent level progression, but the game feels like an early step rather than a finished destination. There are glimpses of creativity in its reinterpretation of a classic tale and in the structure of its combat, suggesting that with more time, resources, and refinement, the team could produce something far more substantial. At the same time, it’s important to acknowledge the game’s limitations. The lack of depth in both gameplay and storytelling, combined with its short duration, may leave some players underwhelmed. It doesn’t offer the complexity or polish found in more developed indie titles, and its systems are too simple to sustain long-term engagement. Yet, these shortcomings are tempered by the fact that the game is free and clearly positioned as a smaller experimental project rather than a major release. In the end, RED succeeds as a concise and earnest indie experience that showcases the early efforts of its creators. It’s not a game that will linger long in terms of content, but it leaves an impression through its straightforward design and hints of greater ambition. For those willing to approach it on its own terms—as a brief, action-oriented interpretation of a familiar story—it provides a worthwhile, if fleeting, experience. Rating: 7/10

lovely game in a chaos world

Имбо

"RED" is a student project from somewhere in China. One of the first things students should be taught in game development is that 3D graphics became mainstream in the mid 1990's with dedicated 3D cards like the Voodoo3 and the ATI Rage. But the students were deliberately mistaught that's it's okay to release obsolete 2D games in the 3D era of gaming... certainly any professional developer seeing a prospective new hire who doesn't even know about 3D gaming probably isn't going to give them a job. Needless to say if an educational institution taught me incorrectly on purpose, I'd ask for my money back. Anyway, the students made a really, really poor quality 2D side scrolling platformer/brawler with a very, very distorted intepretation of the "Little Red Riding Hood" fairy tale, where you take on the role of "Red" and go hack up some monsters on the way to visit your grandmother. The quality here is incredibly low... the students don't seem to even understand why making a game with RPG Maker and publishing it is acceptable (well, this is made with RPG Maker and Adobe Flash... yeah, that's even worse, I'm surprised they couldn't shove in a GameGuru FPS Creator asset flip segment in too, for the unholy trinity of "never do this" in game development). We also have to question what value there is for gamers on Steam when institutions flood the store with low quality 2D video game homework assignments... sure, it might make the students feel good about themselves, but this has no benefit for gamers who have to wade through this stuff to find professionally made 3D games. This game is fairly dated at 8 years old... and even back then it looked old and busted compared to contemporary, professionally made 3D games of the same period. It looked bad then, it looks worse now. Now on to pricing and value for gamers. It would be unethical for students to try charge money for their homework assignments, so you don't have to pay any money for this. But you'd still have to spend your time downloading this, and "time is money", as they say. There's the other problem, too... as a student project, this wasn't made for gamers. There's no requirement for them to polish and balance the game properly, all they need is something to show the faculty so they can get their grade and move on. Let's once more ask... why is that good for gamers? It's obviously not delivering a solid product. Yet here it is, on the store page, and here you are, reading my review for a student demo that's going to waste your time. While genuine amateur developers who made real products get ignored because they have to compete with this stuff. In some ways, this deluge of student projects on Steam is harmful to everyone. In terms of public reception, this failed. There's over 130 million unique gamers visiting Steam every month. SteamDB showed the game peaked at [b]only 13 concurrent players[/b]... this is a dismal public reception. This was so bad they couldn't even give it away. Since this is more of a student tech demo than a full, genuinely made game for gamers, and offers no Steam features, like a +1 to your game count, I can't recommend downloading this over a full, professionally made game, of which there are thousands here on Steam.