Editor’s note: The developers at Black Tabby Games recently made the decision to break Scarlet Hollow Episode 5 into two parts. As of publication, press have only been granted access to the first part of Episode 5. We’ll update this review with final thoughts (and a score) once part two is made available.
I often feel at a bit of a loss in choice-based video games, especially horror ones. Choices often feel so binary: “good” or “bad,” “saintly” or “evil.” Or the most meaningful choices make the smaller ones irrelevant, setting aside character development for narrative trajectory.
It may be too early to tell if Black Tabby Games’ Scarlet Hollow breaks this trend entirely with one or two world-defining choices in the game’s final episodes, but if Episode 5 is any indication, the studio understands that some of the most memorable and meaningful choices happen aside or apart from the beaten narrative path. I not only feel like every choice that I made in the first four episodes mattered, but I feel responsible for how they will impact the residents of the town of Scarlet Hollow.
I have not kept my love for Black Tabby Games a secret. Slay the Princess is the best game of its genre, and my review of the first four episodes of Scarlet Hollow made clear that it was “equal parts horrific and charming.” Episode 5 continues this positive trajectory by carefully pacing its reveals and never letting go of the heart at its center.
A Cup of Family Trauma in the Morning
To briefly recap: Scarlet Hollow begins with abstract tragedy. Our protagonist goes to Scarlet Hollow for her aunt’s funeral, catching up with her emotionally distant cousin Tabitha and making friends with some locals. Strange occurrences start happening immediately, from cryptids to transformations, with the aunt’s (now cousin’s) local mining company at the center of both the town economy and supernatural intrigue.
Each of my playthroughs of Episode 4 ended a bit chaotically. (I am not sure if everyone’s playthrough ends chaotically, and I recognize that this might be a Clint problem.) I won’t spoil the closing revelations of Episode 4, but folks can die or be severely injured. Previous choices become consequential as the dynamics between the locals and the supernatural come to a head.
Episode 5 picks up the next morning, but my protagonist didn’t wake up in their own bed in any of my playthroughs. In my favorite playthrough, my possum friend Dustin and his mother (simply named “Dustin Mom”) woke my character up and expressed their concern (I love the “Talks to Animals” trait).
Waking up in this different area of the family’s mansion proved disorienting. The narrative pushes the protagonist through a series of abandoned rooms to find a missing door handle; these rooms would fit nicely in the Bakers’ house in Resident Evil 7. Each space feels previously lived in and haunted by its previous resident. Exploration becomes a choice — the protagonist can make a beeline through hallways and scary rooms without stopping to investigate anything. Alternatively, exploring every nook and cranny opens up conversation branches later in the episode that feel like they will have lasting consequences long after the credits roll.
Who Do You Believe In?
Scarlet Hollow has asked me to believe in the people of its titular town across four episodes now; it did not prepare me for who I might need to trust in Episode 5. The developers at Black Tabby Games know how to layer personal relationships, both emotionally and physically. At one point in my playthrough, I found myself surprised by one particularly intimate (and incredibly satisfying) experience with a character I hadn’t previously considered a romantic interest.
The game’s most impressive feat is how it makes the player feel connected to everyone that they encounter. There is an intimacy to friendship that the developers have captured so beautifully in the dialogue options that have evolved over the course of five episodes now. That isn’t to say that every relationship is rosy or perfect, but the game navigates the messiness of life, family, and friendships in such intelligent ways.
The development of some of these relationships both surprised and hurt me a little during Episode 5. While I saw how these connections differed across playthroughs, my initial run contained a deeply uncomfortable confrontation with a family member who I believed I had grown closer to and who I considered a friend. I wouldn’t necessarily call their choices a betrayal, but I mourn the words they said and their response to the world around them.
I came into Episode 5 hoping for the best in all of Scarlet Hollow’s characters; I left this latest chapter worried that I misread or misunderstood some of these friendships.
At least I will always have Dustin the possum on my side.
Final Thoughts
Scarlet Hollow continues to provide the best branching narrative experience that I’ve had in a game. Each episode brings to life the experience of the choose-your-own-adventure books that I cherished as a child… if each of those choose-your-own-adventure books also connected to each other.
Episode 5 feels like a pivotal moment in the overarching arc of Scarlet Hollow. I don’t want to use The Empire Strikes Back or The Two Towers as comparison points, but just as those middle stories concretize that there is no going back, Episode 5 solidifies that the previous choices mattered and, more importantly, will matter in the chapters to come.
Score: TBD
Scarlet Hollow, developed and published by Black Tabby Games, is available now on PC, Mac, and Linux, with Episode 5 releasing as a free update. Episode 5 is broken up into two parts, with part one releasing today, February 13, 2026, and part two set to release on February 20, 2026. Two more episodes are planned for the future.
MSRP: $24.99 (for all five episodes, plus all future episodes). Version reviewed: PC.
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.
