I spent more time than I care to share with Black Tabby Games’ Slay the Princess, one of the best horror games of 2023. It took a common trope—save the princess in the tower—and turned it on its head. The result was brilliant. The writers at Black Tabby Games are amazing.
I knew about their first game, Scarlet Hollow, but heard it was incomplete. After playing Slay the Princess: The Pristine Cut (2024), I longed for more content from this incredibly creative team. This desire aligned perfectly with Black Tabby’s “The Roads Untraveled” update, which expanded the first two 2021 episodes of Scarlet Hollow before the promised release of episode five later this year.
The first four episodes of Scarlet Hollow didn’t disappoint. They kept me captivated—not once, but twice. Long story short: Scarlet Hollow is a masterclass visual novel that is equal parts horrific and charming.
Welcome to the Club
Scarlet Hollow begins tragically enough: The protagonist travels to the titular town in North Carolina to attend her aunt’s funeral. Their aunt owned the local mining company keeping the entire town economically afloat, a task that has now fallen onto the protagonist’s cousin Tabitha.
Things quickly get strange between the previously estranged cousins. Tabitha makes cryptic remarks about the family’s past that the protagonist knows nothing about, and the family estate’s vibes are off. Meanwhile, the town locals—including cryptozoologist Stella, General Store Manager Kaneeka, librarian (and heartthrob) Oscar, and a pug named Gretchen—immediately adopt our protagonist into the best group in gaming this side of Mass Effect 2.
The weirdness of Scarlet Hollow, NC, extends to animal-abducting creatures and haunted spaces. I don’t want to spoil too much of this carefully crafted tapestry. Each of the four episodes revolves around a single day in Scarlet Hollow (i.e., Episode 1 is day one, Episode 2 is day two, etc.). Black Tabby Games has structured and paced each episode so amazingly well that the narrative and writing never let up.
Black Tabby Games has structured and paced each episode so amazingly well that the narrative and writing never let up.
Further, the developer hasn’t just structured one series of events brilliantly: Every branching narrative feels so perfectly orchestrated. I decided to play a very different version of the protagonist during my second playthrough (each single playthrough of the four episodes took me about three to four hours). I made different choices, visited different places, and gave my time to different people. The result: I grew much more empathetic to folks who had left a bad taste in my mouth during my first playthrough.
Each moment holds the potential to surprise, terrorize, or delight the player. How the protagonist responds is ultimately up to the player. Scarlet Hollow tells you early on that you can’t save everyone. Reader, it isn’t lying, but let me assure you: After two playthroughs with very different perspectives on the town, they are all worth trying to save.
Traits Make the Town Move ‘Round
A lot of enjoyment and choice derives from the early choice of traits. From go, Scarlet Hollow provides the option to select two of the following traits for your protagonist per playthrough: Book Smart, Street Smart, Talks to Animals, Hot, Keen Eye, Powerful, and/or Mystical. Mixing and matching these creates a range of possibilities and interactions that the protagonist may (or may not) experience, depending on your exact choices.
For instance, are you curious what Tabitha’s cat Frou-Frou thinks about the mysteries of the house, town, or that drawer possum upstairs (his name is Dustin, by the way)? Talks to Animals opens up additional dialogue possibilities at the expense of having to explain this strange “gift” to your fellow bipedal beings.
New Game Plus also takes the form of Hardcore Mode. The positive: You can select three traits! The negative: Some of the content tied to these traits is no longer guaranteed. For instance, using one of your almost supernatural powers to make things a little less bad for those new friends in town might be a possible story branch in a normal playthrough but won’t open up in Hardcore Mode. It is a challenge, but you get to be Hot, converse with critters, and engage with otherworldly magic all at the same time. What else could a boy ask for?
I was surprised how significantly these traits transformed my opinions of characters and situations. For my first playthrough, I selected Book Smart and Keen Eye. These choices empowered me to really embrace the detective-minded curiosity of the cryptozoologist comrades, but in hindsight, this playthrough felt cold toward Tabitha and some of the more logical or religious characters. Alternatively, I chose Talk to Animals, Hot, and Mystical for my second, NG+ playthrough. I felt my empathy expand for all of the characters involved.
Final Thoughts
Scarlet Hollow is currently an incomplete masterpiece. I devoured the existing episodes twice, and I hope to play through them one more time with a different combination of traits before Episode 5’s release.
Scarlet Hollow is currently an incomplete masterpiece.
I would be remiss not to mention that Scarlet Hollow scratches my current Twin Peaks itch. Like KARMA: The Dark World and Alan Wake 2, this visual novel also seems to be more than a little inspired by David Lynch’s seminal series: a small town where every corner inspires and unveils. Each episode can be read as a little memorialization of Lynch’s masterpiece and how his inspiration can still be felt throughout the industry.
As I said, the game told me early on that I can’t save everyone, but damn it if I didn’t want to try. I love this little town and the characters that reside in it so much. Episode 4 ends with a series of emotional punches, and I truly cannot wait to play the fifth episode of Scarlet Hollow and return to town.
Score: 9.2/10
Scarlet Hollow, developed and published by Black Tabby Games, is available in early access on PC and Mac via Steam. Episodes 1–4 are available now, with the final episode expected to arrive later in 2025. MSRP: $24.99 for the entire collection (including episode 5 when it releases).
Disclaimer: A review code was provided by the developer.
Clint is a writer and educator based out of Columbus, OH. You can often find him writing about Middle English poetry, medieval games, or video games. He just finished a PhD in English at the Ohio State University. You can find his academic and public work at clintmorrisonjr.com.
