History VideoGame / TheLastDoor

The Last Door is a horror/PuzzleGame hybrid set in 1890s Great Britain that puts in the player in the shoes of Jeremiah Devitt, a man who's just received a strange and urgent letter from his old school pal, Anthony. When he reaches his friend's house, he finds everything in a very weird way: the house is seemingly deserted, spooky notes are scattered on the floor, and there's a murder of crows devouring... something in a very enthusiastically bloody way in the backyard. Obviously, Jeremiah has some questions and sets out to get to the bottom of this mystery. Using a traditional PointAndClickGame layout very much akin to any given LucasArts AdventureGame, you'll guide Jeremiah as he unravels the mystery of what's occurred and why.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: There's a few, primarily in Chapter 3, which have no apparent connection to the overarching plot and appear to be there just to make the player question Jeremiah's sanity. The One More Song sequence in the Old Nichol manor house and the apparent fate of Daphne are standouts.

* RavensAndCrows: Crows, particularly aggressive ones at that, are a recurring presence.

* MalevolentMaskedMen: [[spoiler: As-yet-unidentified people in yellow robes and white masks appear at the end of Chapter 3. They're apparently part of some cabal that worships the Bird/Eye of the Bird/King of Birds.]]

* [[spoiler:DrivenToSuicide: Anthony at the start of Chapter One, Monsignor Father Ernest at the end of chapter two.]]

* [[spoiler:StartsWithASuicide: The opening of Chapter 1 has the player guiding Anthony to pick up a rope, sling it over a rafter, climb up onto a chair...]]

* SurrealHorror: There are numerous scenes that don't seem related to the main plot and feel like something out of a David Lynch film[[spoiler: Particularly the Rabbit Scene]]. This and the fact that they don't have any explanation makes them even more haunting and disturbing.

* SoundtrackDissonance: While the music generally on-tone with lots of dramatic strings and eerie laments, there are three instances of dissonance that deserve mention:

* SoundtrackDissonance: While the music generally on-tone with lots of dramatic strings and eerie laments, there are two instances of dissonance that deserve mention:

** Alluded to again in Chapter 3 [[spoiler: four statues stand over the entry to the manor/theater. They appear to be of you, Anthony, Alexandre, and Father Earnest. The head of Anthony's statue has fallen off.]]

* MalevolentMaskedMen: [[spoiler: As-yet-unidentified people in yellow robes and white masks appear at the end of Chapter 3. They're apparently part of some cabal that worships the Bird/Eye of the Bird/King of Birds

* MalevolentMaskedMen/SecretCircleOfSecrets: Shows up [[spoiler:at the end of chapter 3]], but there's hints of it in chapter 4[[spoiler: And may be related to the bunny scene in chapter 2]]. It doesn't help that this overlaps with the MindScrew stuff that's going on.

* SurrealHorror: There are numerous scenes that don't seem related to the main plot and feel like something out of a David Lynch film[[spoiler: Particularly the Rabbit Scene]]. This and the fact that they don't have any explanation makes them even more haunting and disturbing.

* [[spoiler:StartsWithASuicide: The opening of Chapter 1 has the player guiding Anthony to pick up a rope, sling it over a rafter, climb up onto a chair...]]

* MindScrew: Plenty. Particularly near the end of chapter 3. [[spoiler: Made worse by the fact it still hasn't been explained yet now that chapter 4 is out]]

Can be played [[http://thelastdoor.com/index.php/menu here.]] Two chapters are available to play for free, while the third will require a donation until the fourth chapter is released.

* CatScare: Just once, so far.

** There's also the recurring allusions to the Eye of the Bird in both Devitt's nightmares and in Father Ernest's ravings.

* JumpScare: The game's usual M.O. These are particularly effective when punctuating the eerie, spooky atmosphere that the games very effectively cultivate.

--> ''Malum in se''[[note]]A Latin phrase meaning "evil in itself." [[/note]]

--> ''Malum in se''[[note]]A Latin phrase meaning "evil in itself."[[/note]]

* Retraux: In two ways, primarily:

** The first, and most memorable so far, is when [[spoiler: Devitt breaks open a weak wall of fresh concrete in Anthony's basement and discovers a live cat trapped behind it. It's eyes have been torn out, presumably by one of the crows.]]

Can be played [[http://thelastdoor.com/index.php/menu here.]]

The game is played in chapters and takes Jeremiah from Anthony's estate to their old school and deep into the frightening past they shared. A great deal of attention is paid to the thoroughly unsettling atmosphere of the game, particularly in regards to the music and the basic quality of the graphics. The game's developer, TheGameKitchen, has indicated that two of their leading inspirations were HPLovecraft and EdgarAllenPoe. It shows.