[WIP] THE ROOMS (Horror, Thriller) [40k words]

[HUMANMEAT]

THE ROOMS

Hello everyone, I’m happy to present THE ROOMS, my first game (although not my first project). I hope you’ll enjoy it, and if not, or even if you do, don’t hesitate to leave your feedback.

Here you will find all the information related to my game. Feel free to ask questions and give your opinion in the discussion thread below!

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THE ROOMS is a horror-thriller choice game in which you will have to navigate through situations that are beyond your understanding.

In the midst of a seemingly ordinary day, you find yourself trapped in something far greater than you.

The more you try to make sense of it, the less stable everything becomes .

Will you truly grasp what is happening? Or will you mistake what matters for what merely appears to ?

Nothing is as simple as it seems.
Time will not wait.

The Game :

CLICK HERE TO PLAY THE FIRST CHAPTER OF THE DEMO : https://cogdemos.ink/go/6 811

THE ROOMS is designed as a loop system where each previous iteration influences what you see and what you can do in the next one, until you go far enough to get out of the loop. (is that even possible ?)

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Content warning:
This game contains mature themes, including depictions of violence and more.

TAGS: Horror, Psychological, Loop, Thriller, Multiple endings, exploration

Notes:
This is an early version of the game. Structure and systems may evolve significantly.

UPDATES :

As of 30/04/2026, THE ROOMS is about 35K words.
Updates are done on monthly basis.

(I will try to keep track of the updates and their dates here)

30/04 update :

• APPARTMENT scenes added for loop1
• Title changed THE ROOM → THE ROOMS
• Small changes in startup & ROOM1 files. (additional flavors)

WIP :

• outside scenes

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AI Disclosure:

The use of AI is strictly limited to assisting with translation and the phrasing of certain sentences. No AI has been used to generate text. Agent-based tools may have been used to help rephrase ideas and better organize my code and scenes.

No — This project does not contain the output of Generative AI
Yes — This project contains the output of Generative AI

[will]

The Room is the name of a very popular series of mobile games about escaping from an intricate puzzle box room. I think there might be some overlap!

“How many rooms are there in the world” is a pretty common question to test someone’s ability to make large estimates, as popularised by Fermi. It’s certainly not impossible to guess!

[Snowflower]

It’s also the name of an infamous film.

[snas]

what a story mark

[HUMANMEAT]

Hello guys, thanks for your comments. The title is actually something I’ve been thinking about for a long time, but unfortunately, many “simple” titles are already taken, given how many works exist.

At one point, I considered renaming it to “The Rooms”, but that’s also already used by a film. So for now, I’m not sure if I’ll be changing the title, and I don’t really know what I would choose instead.

As for what you said, Will, yeah, the question is really meant to make you think rather than get a real answer, tho if you want, you can try x)

[myeraland]

Iterative thriller games are my favorite! Let’s go!

Will add more later.

Some Concerns

I play Choicescript games in night mode due to my visual impairment. I can’t see the black text of your images on my already black background (CS does not automatically invert colors), BUT there is a solution I use when I code my games:

Create a night mode version of your image (invert the color or make the color lighter such as red or light blue).

Add this line of code to replace where you call *image initially:

*if (choice_nightmode)
	*image nightmode_imagename.png
*else
	*image imagename.png

May need to declare *implicit_control_flow true if you get a no *goto or *finish error.

May need to declare *temp choice_nightmode (rare).

You don’t need to do this if you don’t want to, I’ll just keep reading what I’m able to. I’m used to it.

Funny Thoughts

“The music playing inside is… soft and jazzy—not really the kind you usually listen to, if you listen to any at all—”
Made me laugh, because jazz and jazzy rhythms are my favorite types of music, including its subcategories. If you want, I suggest making this line more objective or specific, like saying not the type of bossa nova you listen to.

General Questions

tba

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@Lan

If you use *text_image instead of *image CS will automatically invert the image in nightmode.

This is perfect. Thanks so much!

[HUMANMEAT]

Hey, thanks for your comment and for trying out my game!

I was aware the images could be an issue, which is why I try to keep them to a minimum. They’re usually very short anyway, sometimes just a few words, the first one is only the title, for example. So it shouldn’t impact the experience too much if you can’t see them.

Also, wow, I didn’t expect someone into jazz to be among the first to play and comment, I guess that’s just my luck. Jokes aside, I appreciate the feedback and I’ll definitely look into it.

If you enjoy iterative thrillers, I hope you’ll find something to like in the room.

Feel free to share your thoughts/experience anytime. Thanks again, and see you soon.

[Lan]

I enjoyed what I played so far, though I either reached the end of the demo or hit a bug after meeting Enrico on the second loop and couldn’t proceed past that part.

I’m a big fan of time loops and the escape-the-room game genre, so I’m looking forward to seeing what you have in store. I’m curious if you’re envisioning a proper puzzle game we can logic our way out of (in the vein of The Room, Escape Simulator, or Forever Lost), or more of an iterative horror experience (in the vein of Restore, Reflect, Retry)?

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The sun is shining. Today is going to be a good day.

I hope.

Is “I hope” meant to be in first person here?

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@myeraland

I can’t see the black text of your images on my already black background (CS does not automatically invert colors), BUT there is a solution I use when I code my games:

If you use *text_image instead of *image CS will automatically invert the image in nightmode.

The images in this game are black text on a transparent background, so it’d be a cinch to swap the *image commands for *text_image ones.

Further info:

How to make quick and easy chapter headers

So, I see a lot of games come in without chapters headers, and I think this is a missed opportunity, because good looking chapter headers don’t have to be difficult. In fact, you can probably do them yourself for free! So, because I wanted to, I drew up a quick and easy walkthrough of how to make a good looking chapter headers in GIMP. For information on color in headers, see this post. First, you’re going to want to download GIMP. I recommend GIMP because it’s free, it’s available for Windows…

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What truly matters is what you think.

Do you agree with this “someone”? Could anyone or anything claim how many rooms exist?

Not that this rhetorical question needed an answer, but I think this is a definition issue. What is a room? Is an open concept kitchen/living room one room or two? Is a screened in porch a room? Is a dollhouse room a room? What about a closet? A freezer? A locker? A really big locker? Is a room only large enough for babies to fit in a room? What about a room for ants?

Regardless, unless Hilbert’s Hotel is lurking somewhere, I don’t think there are infinite rooms. Physical ones, at least.

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@HUMANMEAT

I didn’t expect someone into jazz to be among the first to play and comment

I like smooth jazz, much to the consternation of the real jazz fans and people with actual music taste in my life.

Hey, some people like elevator music–we’re out there. All ten of us.

[HUMANMEAT]

Hey Lan, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed what you played, and I hope what’s coming next will keep you interested.

I don’t think you ran into a bug, the demo actually ends right after the scene you reached. Normally, though, there should be a message letting you know you’ve reached the end of the demo.

I think what I’m aiming for is closer to an iterative horror experience, though I still have mixed feelings about adding certain logic patterns. It might end up being a mix of both.

For now, I have a clear idea of where I want the narrative to go and what the stakes are, but the structure is something I rethink constantly. The more the code evolves alongside the story, the more I consider things I could implement, or not.

@Lan

Is “I hope” meant to be in first person here?

Yes, the “I” is intentional here.

@Lan

If you use *text_image instead of *image CS will automatically invert the image in nightmode.

I didn’t even know that command existed. I’ll probably update my files in the coming days, so I’ll be changing that, thanks.

@Lan

Not that this rhetorical question needed an answer, but I think this is a definition issue. What is a room? Is an open concept kitchen/living room one room or two? Is a screened in porch a room? Is a dollhouse room a room? What about a closet? A freezer? A locker? A really big locker? Is a room only large enough for babies to fit in a room? What about a room for ants?

Well, I think it depends on how you define a “room.” There may not be much difference between your definition and mine, but I’m sure different cultures can perceive it differently.

To be honest, it’s more meant to make you think about the concept than anything else. And yes, “infinite” is probably an exaggeration. What I meant is how difficult it is to determine the exact number of rooms, assuming everyone agreed on a universal definition. Every day, some are built and others disappear, so the number is constantly changing.

@Lan

I like smooth jazz, much to the consternation of the real jazz fans and people with actual music taste in my life.

Changed - added the possibility to chose what kind of music you hear.