Layers of Fear

Layers of Fear is a single-player psychological horror adventure game played from a first-person perspective. The story follows a troubled painter in the late 19th century who has returned to his Victorian mansion to complete what he considers his magnum opus. As he works, his fragile mental state deteriorates. Rooms twist and reshape around him, corridors loop into impossible spaces, and the line between memory and hallucination blurs. The player’s objective is to explore the mansion, uncover the painter’s past, and collect the materials needed to finish the painting, all while descending into his fractured mind.

Gameplay emphasizes exploration and environmental storytelling over combat. The mansion can be freely navigated, but spaces change dynamically, often closing off old paths and opening new ones in response to progress. The environment itself functions as a puzzle, with shifting architecture, locked doors, and interactive objects leading to new discoveries. Clues are scattered across letters, photographs, newspaper clippings, and household items, gradually revealing the protagonist’s family history and artistic obsession.

Puzzle-solving is light but integral, requiring the player to manipulate objects, locate keys, or interpret visual cues in the environment. Many sequences employ surreal imagery or illusions that obscure exits, creating disorientation. The game directs progress through scripted events and triggered scenes, but the pacing remains under the player’s control as they search for optional documents and items.

There is no combat or direct failure state, but the player must endure disturbing imagery, jump scares, and encounters that suggest the painter’s madness embodied in physical form. Progression involves gathering key items, such as pieces of canvas or jars of paint, that mark chapters in the narrative. Each chapter adds new sections of the painting, advancing both the artwork and the protagonist’s decline.