The Town of Light is an intense and dramatic experience. Try it if you want to better understand the human mind and how the asylums work.

The Town of Light is a thoughtfully written, painstakingly designed walking simulator set in an early 20th century asylum. Though load times and sections that are less than intuitive cause frustration, they do not dissuade my recommendation. You’ll quickly become caught up in the story of Renee, a young girl whose circumstances were depressingly real for many women during that time.

The Town of Light is a heavy, emotionally-tough game, and it's definitely not for the faint-hearted. There are no monsters or jump scares, but a story so intense and cruel that is much more frightening. If you feel that videogames can be something more than simple entertainment, this is a journey you might want to engage in.

It has a strong narrative which I enjoyed, and there is lots to explore in terms of notes. The graphics look really good, and overall it was an interesting experience.

I urge you, please, to play The Town of Light and uncover Renee’s story, and a greater understanding of the cause for it, for yourself.

The Town of Light is a powerful experience and you’ll certainly be affected by its story. There are a few issues with music breaks and some of the things you’ll see may provide too upsetting, but overall you’ll never forget your time in Volterra.

The Town of Light is a very interesting narrative and exploration focused game that will envelop the player in a seriously depressing and unsettling atmosphere. A very intense trip that will leave heavy traces even when long finished.

Brutal, uncompromising and deeply unsettling in it’s portrayal of the scariest monster of them all: “Good People” doing what they deem best for “society’s progress”. Feels like an interactive VR art installation depicting a horror that must not be forgotten. Cannot be rightly called a “game” and is impossible to forget once experienced.

Some games serve only to be fun. On the other hand, some games are experiences that aren't suited for everyone, art houses that are as disturbing as they are intriguing. The Town of Light is one of them.

Uneven, bleak and unflinching. You won't enjoy it, but it's one of a kind.

One could argue the mystery of the story is enough of a draw but in this gaming age, players expect certain things like being able to save at any point to be a standard option to them. As a first effort game from an indie studio, LKA is to be applauded for tackling such an ambitious project and telling a story that goes beyond the stock ones regularly used by games with far greater resources available to them.

If you’re looking for a jump-out action packed horror game, The Town of Light is not for you. But I urge you to open your mind and consider it a separate learning experience.

For all its faults, there's every chance The Town of Light could end up getting under your[ skin]. [April 2016, p.112]

It weaves a miserable tale of loneliness, dehumanisation and sexual and emotional abuse. It will exhaust and upset, leaving you bereft for Renee and the thousands of women like her. Contrary to the title, there is no light here, only darkness. But that doesn’t mean it is not worth a look.

Despite the very quick playthrough (around 3 hrs), he plot looses momentum halfway through, and the pace slows down the progression. The idea is sound, but the execution deserved more care.

Genuine creative potential, but lacks polish. [Issue#172, p.96]

Even though the game touches upon very insightful ideas with a very critical eye, it's not engaging enough to actually make you have fun. The gorgeous landscape and the abandoned hospital are great settings, but this game's ambitions are too serious, and it often doesn't come across as such.

So while the research and attention to detail that went into Town of Light is good, and they're addressing a very important issue, the developers have failed to adapt it into a game format. I'd go as far to say you'd be better off watching a documentary or show about it. Actually, the game even makes an attempt at this. When you finish the game, you see this little video play button at the bottom of the title menu. It was actually a live-action video of the institute in its current 2017 state, which makes you understand how they've tried to recreate the exact place in-game, and there are also scenes with an actress playing the role of Renee and recreating events from the game. It actually makes for a better viewing experience than the game itself.

LKA.it tackles a very serious matter with professionalism. Its story shows the atrocities that happened in many asylums in all its awful “glory”. It’s too bad that bad acting and pacing problems drags the experience down, not to mention the high asking price.

Tackling such a difficult subject matter is laudable, but as a video game documentary this only really succeeds in terms of its good intentions.

Depicting the horrors of an asylum with animated pictures was a tender touch to sensitive imagery. Even the 3D animations conveyed moments with care. But the story is confusing and painfully disappointing and the translation errors make matters worse. So I can commend LKA’s efforts, but I can’t recommend The Town of Light.

The Town of Light reminded me of similarly short and unpleasant Neverending Nightmares. Both games tried to tackle the subject of mental illnesses and both failed utterly. [07/2016, p.51]