- #1 Raging Loop
97% matchOverwhelmingly Positive96% of 10,913 reviews2017
Dev: KEMCO
Windows
Median: 24.0 hrsMean: 60.1 hrs≥1hr: 84%
The feast has begun, can you escape the village alive?
Why similar: Visual Novel 43.9%, Psychological Horror 13.8%, Mystery 11.5%, Story Rich 10.7%, Anime 5.6%
Why You'll Like It: Its oppressive atmosphere, branching routes, and morally tense survival plot make it a great fit if you want another dark choice-driven visual novel.
- #2 Murders on the Yangtze River
96% matchOverwhelmingly Positive97% of 21,156 reviews2024
Dev: OMEGAMES STUDIO
Windows · Mac
Median: 11.4 hrsMean: 14.2 hrs≥1hr: 88%
"Murders on Yangtze River" is an Ace Attorney-like detective game that takes you on a journey through early 20th century China as you solve a series of intriguing cases. Use your logical reasoning and deduction skills to uncover clues, interrogate suspects, and solve the mysteries.
Why similar: Historical 42.6%, Story Rich 20.4%, Mystery 14.6%, Adventure 9.3%, RPG 6.8%
Why You'll Like It: Another China-set, text-heavy historical narrative that pairs vivid period detail with grim human stories and a strong sense of place.
- #3 The Shell Part I: Inferno
96% matchVery Positive91% of 1,461 reviews2023
Dev: Innocent GreyPub: Shiravune
Windows
Median: 10.9 hrsMean: 115.9 hrs≥1hr: 71%
Unravel a string of gruesome murders terrorizing Tokyo in this mystery-thriller visual novel. The secrets of a case from six years prior may just be the key to the current unending cycle of tragedy—and the thing that cracks this woeful world’s shell may be one girl’s smile.
Why similar: Visual Novel 28.5%, Romance 14%, Multiple Endings 12.3%, Dark 11.3%, Psychological Horror 11%
Why You'll Like It: This is a bleak period mystery VN with mature themes, damaged characters, and an unflinching tone very much in the seed game's lane.
- #4 The House in Fata Morgana
95% matchVery Positive95% of 6,643 reviews2016
Dev: NOVECTPub: MangaGamer
Windows
Median: 6.4 hrsMean: 27.2 hrs≥1hr: 83%
A gothic suspense tale set in a cursed mansion. "The House in Fata Morgana" is a full-length visual novel spanning nearly a millennium that deals in tragedy, human nature, and insanity.
Why similar: Visual Novel 24.5%, Romance 12.9%, Multiple Endings 12.1%, Dark 11.3%, Psychological Horror 9.7%
Why You'll Like It: It shares The Hungry Lamb's taste for cruelty, sorrow, and redemption, building a devastating character-driven tragedy across a historical frame.
- #5 PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo
94% matchOverwhelmingly Positive96% of 7,183 reviews2023
Dev: Square Enix
Windows
Median: 8.8 hrsMean: 10.2 hrs≥1hr: 87%
How far would you go to bring someone back from the dead? Discover the depths that some will go to in this horror-adventure game.
Why similar: Visual Novel 34.2%, Multiple Endings 18.7%, Anime 14.6%, Story Rich 10.4%, Mystery 9.8%
Why You'll Like It: Its Edo-period flavor, supernatural dread, and puzzle-like branching narrative make it an excellent match for players wanting dark Japanese historical storytelling.
- #6 Nightshade/百花百狼
94% matchOverwhelmingly Positive96% of 792 reviews2017
Dev: Red EntertainmentPub: D3PUBLISHER
Windows
Median: 5.0 hrsMean: 24.6 hrs≥1hr: 91%
A romance visual novel game made in collaboration with D3P and Red Entertainment.Character design and illustrations are by the popular illustrator Teita. The romance revolves around Ninjas who have lived through the Sengoku Period. This game has published in 2016 as PS Vita in Japan.
Why similar: Visual Novel 39.8%, Dating Sim 21%, Romance 17.1%, Anime 10.6%, Story Rich 6.4%
Why You'll Like It: A historical Japanese route-based VN where violence, loyalty, romance, and bad endings intertwine in a similarly dark emotional register.
- #7 Cooking Companions
93% matchVery Positive94% of 1,207 reviews2021
Dev: Deer Dream StudiosPub: Serenity Forge
Windows · Mac · Linux
Median: 3.6 hrsMean: 4.6 hrs≥1hr: 95%
Unravel the mystery in this cute psychological horror VN, set deep in the woods of the Tatras Mountains. Will you wind up on the chopping block?
Why similar: Cooking 21.3%, Visual Novel 15.1%, Dating Sim 13.6%, Multiple Endings 8.9%, Anime 7.2%
Why You'll Like It: The cooking angle, claustrophobic group dynamics, and steadily escalating horror make it a strong tonal match despite the very different setting.
- #8 Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds
92% matchVery Positive93% of 2,321 reviews2017
Dev: Idea FactoryPub: Idea Factory International
Windows
Median: 5.6 hrsMean: 11.7 hrs≥1hr: 90%
Romance 12 handsome warriors and the samurai of the Shinsengumi, uncover their dark secrets, and conquer your demons in this historical fantasy visual novel! Your narrative choices unlock multiple branching storylines and 30 different endings!
Why similar: Historical 22.6%, Visual Novel 17.8%, Dating Sim 14.5%, Romance 11.2%, Multiple Endings 10.9%
Why You'll Like It: Like The Hungry Lamb, it mixes a turbulent historical setting with dangerous travel, tragic bonds, and route-based character drama.
- #9 Hashihime of the Old Book Town
91% matchOverwhelmingly Positive97% of 686 reviews2019
Dev: ADELTAPub: MangaGamer
Windows
Step into the shoes of an aspiring author during the Taisho era in this psychedelic BL murder-mystery visual novel. Travel back in time to try and save your friends while confronting your own character flaws. Will you retreat into your fantasies, or can you keep it together enough to rescue them?
Why similar: Historical 21.7%, Visual Novel 17.8%, Romance 9.8%, Dark 9%, Multiple Endings 8.4%
Why You'll Like It: A Taisho-era visual novel with heavy psychological darkness, intense relationships, and a strong period atmosphere.
- #10 Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms
91% matchOverwhelmingly Positive96% of 1,110 reviews2018
Dev: Idea FactoryPub: Idea Factory International
Windows
Median: 5.1 hrsMean: 11.1 hrs≥1hr: 91%
Continue your journey to Edo in Hakuoki™: Edo Blossoms, where you play as the heroine Chizuru Yukimura. Romance the famous warriors of the Shinsengumi as you enter a fantasy drama of battles and self-discovery. Your narrative choices unlock multiple branching storylines and 30 different endings!
Why similar: Visual Novel 22.2%, Historical 20.4%, Dating Sim 14.1%, Multiple Endings 9%, Anime 8.7%
Why You'll Like It: This follow-up deepens Hakuoki's grim historical romance and multiple-endings structure, making it ideal if you want more emotionally costly routes.
- #11 WILL: A Wonderful World / WILL：美好世界
90% matchVery Positive92% of 5,480 reviews2017
Dev: WMY Studio
Windows · Mac
Median: 6.2 hrsMean: 12.8 hrs≥1hr: 91%
“God, please help me…” Become a god and rewrite fate with words. Drag and reorder sentences from pleading letters to twist cause and effect, changing the lives of those who wrote them. When countless joys and sorrows collide, what kind of “Wonderful World” will you create?
Why similar: Word Game 27.7%, Visual Novel 20.2%, Story Rich 10.3%, Emotional 9.7%, Anime 9.6%
Why You'll Like It: Its choice structure revolves around reshaping desperate lives, creating the same feeling of morally loaded decisions inside a dark Chinese narrative.
- #12 Pentiment
89% matchOverwhelmingly Positive95% of 9,748 reviews2022
Dev: Obsidian EntertainmentPub: Xbox Game Studios
Windows
Median: 5.0 hrsMean: 10.5 hrs≥1hr: 72%
Step into a living illustrated world in a time when Europe is at a crossroads of great religious and political change. Walk in the footsteps of Andreas Maler, a master artist who finds himself in the middle of murders, scandals, and intrigue in the Bavarian Alps.
Why similar: Historical 34.8%, Interactive Fiction 19%, Multiple Endings 14.6%, Story Rich 10%, Medieval 7.9%
Why You'll Like It: Though not an anime VN, it offers a similarly absorbing historical setting, social hardship, and choice-driven story about ordinary people caught in brutal times.
- #13 The Crimson Flower that Divides: Lunar Coupling
89% matchVery Positive82% of 73 reviews2023
Dev: dramatic create
Windows
On a continent where the number of women has drastically decreased due to an incurable disease known as "The Rot." The heroine, Naala was welcomed into the royal family and began to feel at ease in her life as Auri's bride. However, ...
Why similar: Visual Novel 46%, Romance 40.8%, Adventure 9.4%, Singleplayer 3.7%
Why You'll Like It: This darker romance VN leans into captivity, political danger, and route-based emotional stakes that resemble The Hungry Lamb's harsher relationship drama.
- #14 The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante
88% matchVery Positive88% of 12,656 reviews2021
Dev: SeverPub: 101XP
Windows
Median: 4.1 hrsMean: 8.8 hrs≥1hr: 84%
A narrative-driven hardcore RPG set in a gritty world ruled by real but unrelenting gods. Set out on a challenging lifetime journey, where every choice has a price and entails consequences. Will you become an inquisitor, a judge, or conspire against the old order? Dare to decide!
Why similar: Interactive Fiction 31.8%, Visual Novel 29.5%, Story Rich 15.9%, RPG 9.9%, Medieval 8.6%
Why You'll Like It: Its grim branching narrative, class oppression, and constant moral compromise recreate the same sense of surviving inside a merciless world.
- #15 The Shell Part II: Purgatorio
87% matchVery Positive95% of 681 reviews2024
Dev: Innocent GreyPub: Shiravune
Windows
Median: 18.6 hrsMean: 173.5 hrs≥1hr: 80%
Detective Reiji Tokisaka is back to face down a mystery that spans decades, if not centuries. With the aftermath of his last case weighing on his soul and a long-silent cult resurgent, can he solve the crime—or will it become his curse?
Why similar: Historical 31.8%, Visual Novel 24.6%, Romance 15.4%, Anime 10.7%, Mystery 8.1%
Why You'll Like It: If you like Inferno's mature period storytelling, this sequel continues the same dark visual-novel blend of trauma, mystery, and doomed human connection.
- #16 The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles
86% matchVery Positive94% of 9,441 reviews2021
Dev: CAPCOM Co., Ltd.
Windows
Median: 11.4 hrsMean: 34.9 hrs≥1hr: 90%
Immerse yourself in a dramatic yet charming and witty world of evidence-gathering, deduction and courtroom battles with this double-pack of the adventures of rookie lawyer Ryunosuke.
Why similar: Visual Novel 34.1%, Historical 26.2%, Anime 13.7%, Mystery 10.3%, Story Rich 9.3%
Why You'll Like It: It is lighter overall, but its Meiji-era setting, strong narrative focus, and memorable character bonds make it a great period-story follow-up.
- #17 428: Shibuya Scramble
86% matchVery Positive95% of 3,939 reviews2018
Dev: Spike Chunsoft Co., Ltd.
Windows
Median: 4.4 hrsMean: 12.2 hrs≥1hr: 83%
A kidnapping on the streets of Shibuya brings together a hot-blooded detective, hard-hitting journalist, former gang leader, the head researcher of a big pharma manufacturer and a part-timer stuck in cat costume for a series of events each more unexpected and outrageous than the last.
Why similar: Visual Novel 61.8%, Mystery 15.8%, Story Rich 14.6%, Adventure 7.8%
Why You'll Like It: Its sprawling branching structure and high-stakes human drama will appeal if your favorite part of The Hungry Lamb was following intertwined fates through consequential choices.
- #18 Slay the Princess — The Pristine Cut
84% matchOverwhelmingly Positive97% of 33,680 reviews2023
Dev: Black Tabby Games
Windows · Mac · Linux
Median: 4.0 hrsMean: 7.0 hrs≥1hr: 88%
You're here to slay the princess. Don't believe her lies.
Why similar: Visual Novel 30.2%, Interactive Fiction 14.8%, Dating Sim 14.6%, Psychological Horror 12.9%, Romance 11.8%
Why You'll Like It: Few games match its combination of intimate two-character tension, branching structure, and unsettling questions about trust, violence, and redemption.
- #19 OPUS: Echo of Starsong - Full Bloom Edition
85% matchOverwhelmingly Positive96% of 9,443 reviews2021
Dev: SIGONO INC.
Windows · Mac
Median: 6.9 hrsMean: 13.0 hrs≥1hr: 83%
Echo of Starsong is a visual novel style adventure game. Eda, a girl who can hear mysterious sound waves known as starsong, crosses paths with a young man in search of their source. Together, they venture out to the heart of space to unravel an ancient myth.
Why similar: Visual Novel 33%, Interactive Fiction 24.2%, Anime 13.5%, Emotional 12.7%, Story Rich 11.4%
Why You'll Like It: This is another melancholic journey centered on a dangerous partnership, emotional intimacy, and a story that balances tenderness with hardship.
- #20 Scarlet Hollow
84% matchOverwhelmingly Positive98% of 5,206 reviews2021
Dev: Black Tabby Games
Windows · Mac · Linux
Median: 8.1 hrsMean: 14.0 hrs≥1hr: 85%
Your aunt’s dead, your cousin hates you, and you’re stuck in the dead-end town of Scarlet Hollow. Choose your path through a branching narrative so dense that you'll see less than 1/5 of the game on a single playthrough. You won't be able to save everyone. Good luck, and welcome home.
Why similar: Visual Novel 23.2%, Dating Sim 18.5%, Interactive Fiction 14.8%, Multiple Endings 13.5%, Psychological Horror 10.2%
Why You'll Like It: A highly reactive dark narrative game with sharp writing, relationship-building, and constant dread around every major choice.
- #21 The Coffin of Andy and Leyley
81% matchOverwhelmingly Positive96% of 39,157 reviews2023
Dev: Kit9 Studio
Windows
Median: 4.4 hrsMean: 13.0 hrs≥1hr: 87%
Walk-n-talk adventure with light puzzling. Brother and sister practice cannibalism after witnessing a botched satanic ritual.
Why similar: Visual Novel 28.6%, Multiple Endings 22.4%, Dark 16.6%, Psychological Horror 13.8%, Story Rich 12.8%
Why You'll Like It: It offers another deeply unhealthy central bond, grim humor, and escalating moral collapse for players drawn to darker relationship dynamics.
- #22 BURIED STARS
82% matchVery Positive84% of 2,248 reviews2021
Dev: LINE Games Corporation
Windows
Median: 5.5 hrsMean: 9.1 hrs≥1hr: 90%
A mystery adventure set at the collapse site of a live survival audition show. Trapped contestants communicate with each other—and the outside world through social media—as they wait for rescue. But as unexpected events unfold, trust begins to crack, and survival becomes far more complicated.
Why similar: Visual Novel 28.1%, Interactive Fiction 23.9%, Emotional 11.2%, Anime 11%, Story Rich 10.5%
Why You'll Like It: Its confined cast, heavy interpersonal suspicion, and multiple-endings thriller structure make it a strong pick for dark character-focused VN fans.
- #23 The Letter - Horror Visual Novel
83% matchVery Positive86% of 1,527 reviews2017
Dev: Yangyang MobilePub: Neon Doctrine
Windows · Mac · Linux
Median: 6.6 hrsMean: 11.0 hrs≥1hr: 89%
When seven people fall prey to a vicious curse, they will discover that horror rests not from the shadows lurking about, but within themselves. To what ends will one go in order to survive?
Why similar: Visual Novel 37.5%, Multiple Endings 11.7%, Interactive Fiction 9.9%, Psychological Horror 8.4%, Anime 8.4%
Why You'll Like It: A long-form VN full of choices, bad endings, and doomed character relationships that scratches a similar bleak interactive-fiction itch.
- #24 The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood
80% matchVery Positive93% of 6,312 reviews2023
Dev: DeconstructeamPub: Devolver Digital
Windows
Median: 4.8 hrsMean: 6.1 hrs≥1hr: 77%
Immerse yourself in an enchanting narrative experience as Fortuna, a fortune-teller Witch condemned to exile on her asteroid home. Craft your own Tarot deck, regain your freedom, and shape the fate of the cosmic Witch society.
Why similar: Visual Novel 36.8%, Interactive Fiction 36%, Story Rich 12.6%, Mystery 5.6%, Adventure 5.1%
Why You'll Like It: Its choices shape fate, relationships, and identity in a way that captures the same story-first appeal and multiple-endings satisfaction.
- #25 Zero Escape: The Nonary Games
82% matchVery Positive93% of 7,340 reviews2017
Dev: Spike Chunsoft Co., Ltd.
Windows
Median: 6.5 hrsMean: 21.7 hrs≥1hr: 90%
Kidnapped and taken to an unfamiliar location, nine people find themselves forced to participate in a diabolical Nonary Game by an enigmatic mastermind called Zero. Why were they there? Why were they chosen to put their lives on the line? And more importantly, who can be trusted?
Why similar: Visual Novel 34.9%, Multiple Endings 19.1%, Story Rich 12.6%, Psychological Horror 10.4%, Mystery 10.3%
Why You'll Like It: If you want another story-rich game where every route matters and human desperation drives the plot, this is an easy recommendation.
- #26 女儿国的诅咒 The Curse of Womanland
77% matchVery Positive95% of 484 reviews2026
Dev: 符离游戏（FuliGames）
Windows
A romance-adventure text-based game themed around the Land of Women. You will travel to the Land of Women, meet the mysterious young lady Jian Ling, and gradually uncover the bloody and dark secrets behind this realm. Death, resistance, or degeneration? Everything depends on your choices.
Why similar: Word Game 18.6%, Visual Novel 15.8%, Dating Sim 14.3%, Interactive Fiction 12.9%, Historical 7.3%
- #27 CORPSE FACTORY
81% matchVery Positive80% of 879 reviews2022
Dev: RIVER CROW STUDIO
Windows
Median: 4.4 hrsMean: 6.7 hrs≥1hr: 94%
Discard your sense of morality and enter the world of CORPSE FACTORY. An obscure website allows users to request a death. Victims supposedly receive a photograph of their own corpse before they are killed! With English voice acting by an all-star cast.
Why similar: Visual Novel 26.3%, Interactive Fiction 15.4%, Psychological Horror 12.1%, Anime 11.5%, Multiple Endings 8.4%
Why You'll Like It: Its modern setting differs, but the game similarly explores human ugliness, emotional damage, and dark outcomes through a linear-heavy visual novel format.
- #28 Roadwarden
79% matchVery Positive94% of 5,150 reviews2022
Dev: Moral Anxiety StudioPub: Assemble Entertainment
Windows · Mac · Linux
Median: 1.2 hrsMean: 7.5 hrs≥1hr: 54%
Roadwarden is an illustrated text-based RPG that uses isometric pixel art and combines mechanics borrowed from RPGs, Visual Novels, adventure games and interactive fiction.
Why similar: Interactive Fiction 28.7%, Visual Novel 18.3%, RPG 15.2%, Multiple Endings 14%, Story Rich 12%
Why You'll Like It: This choice-heavy narrative journey channels a similar feeling of traveling through a harsh world where every conversation can change survival and trust.
- #29 The NOexistenceN of you AND me
77% matchVery Positive93% of 21,931 reviews2024
Dev: 0x0Real StudioPub: Nino Games
Windows · Mac
Median: 2.5 hrsMean: 18.2 hrs≥1hr: 70%
Use "game" as a medium to showcase the world of "you/girl". Explore the truth of "you/girl/world" through the form of a "visual novel".
Why similar: Visual Novel 27.1%, Multiple Endings 14.3%, Interactive Fiction 13.7%, Psychological Horror 10.4%, Anime 9.1%
- #30 The Excavation of Hob's Barrow
78% matchVery Positive92% of 3,259 reviews2022
Dev: Cloak and Dagger GamesPub: Wadjet Eye Games
Windows · Mac · Linux
Median: 3.4 hrsMean: 4.5 hrs≥1hr: 90%
The Excavation of Hob's Barrow is a folk horror narrative-driven adventure. Explore the isolated moors of rural Victorian England as you uncover the mysteries of Hob's Barrow. The answers lie in the soil...
Why similar: Interactive Fiction 30.9%, Dark 22.7%, Emotional 12.8%, Mystery 11.8%, Story Rich 11.1%
Why You'll Like It: Its slow-burn historical dread, rural misery, and narrative focus make it a good fit if the seed game's grim atmosphere was your favorite part.
- #31 Ambition: A Minuet in Power
79% matchVery Positive85% of 432 reviews2021
Dev: Joy Manufacturing Co.Pub: Iceberg Interactive
Windows · Mac
Median: 3.5 hrsMean: 4.3 hrs≥1hr: 94%
18th century Paris - a city of love, lies and revolution. You are a woman of fashion trying to survive the political turmoil. Date a cast of unforgettable characters. Amass the wealth and respect you deserve. Engage in gossip that can alter the course of history, or lead you to the guillotine.
Why similar: Historical 22.6%, Visual Novel 22.5%, Dating Sim 21.3%, Romance 11.8%, Multiple Endings 9.8%
Why You'll Like It: For players who especially want historical social maneuvering and branching relationship outcomes, it delivers a strong period-drama alternative.
- #32 The Weeping Swan: Ten Days of the City's Fall
78% matchMixed59% of 9,271 reviews2026
Dev: 零创游戏(ZerocreationGame)
Windows
Median: 9.5 hrsMean: 19.6 hrs≥1hr: 91%
A visual novel of brutal beauty and tragic love. You wake up trapped inside your own dark fantasy, Lion Camel Kingdom. To escape a ten-day demon massacre, you must survive and recover your memories to solve the mystery of a drowned Yangzhou courtesan.
Why similar: Historical 16.5%, Word Game 13.7%, Visual Novel 11.2%, Interactive Fiction 10.9%, Multiple Endings 8.9%
- #33 Sweet Home
74% matchVery Positive95% of 10,224 reviews2025
Dev: 开心茶房Pub: Tailtone Games
Windows · Mac
Median: 5.0 hrsMean: 6.4 hrs≥1hr: 81%
Sweet Home is a visual novel set in a Chinese high school. Parted friendships, ambiguous romances, tangled relationships, and flawed families... Are these just the pangs of adolescence—or something heavier? Step into the shoes of Zhao Ying, shape her choices, and uncover every possible path.
Why similar: Visual Novel 20.8%, Word Game 19.4%, Interactive Fiction 16.9%, Dating Sim 14.9%, Multiple Endings 9.3%
- #34 Aliya: Timelink
75% matchOverwhelmingly Positive98% of 9,562 reviews2024
Dev: TDGame StudioPub: Anotherindie
Windows
Median: 4.0 hrsMean: 23.7 hrs≥1hr: 72%
The player connects to a girl in distress in space thousands of years later? How will they resolve the crisis and discover the truth? Through the mechanism of real-time synchronization, the game breaks through the dimensional wall and creates an immersive dialogue across time and space.
Why similar: Word Game 25.8%, Visual Novel 21.7%, Interactive Fiction 20.5%, Multiple Endings 14.3%, RPG 6.2%
- #35 Lay a Beauty to Rest: The Darkness Peach Blossom Spring
76% matchOverwhelmingly Positive95% of 7,029 reviews2021
Dev: 零创游戏(ZerocreationGame)
Windows
Median: 4.9 hrsMean: 17.3 hrs≥1hr: 79%
Love-suspense AVG with the theme of "The Peach Blossom Spring". The equinox flowers, bloom for one thousand years and wither for one thousand years. Eternal paradise. Do you choose to stay here, escape here, or bury everything here?
Why similar: Word Game 16.7%, Visual Novel 15.2%, Interactive Fiction 13.1%, Dating Sim 12.1%, Multiple Endings 11%
- #36 Vampires' Melody
76% matchOverwhelmingly Positive97% of 5,727 reviews2020
Dev: AsicxArt
Windows · Mac
Median: 4.0 hrsMean: 36.8 hrs≥1hr: 88%
3 centuries have passed after sleeping for one night!? On a rainy night filled with thunderstorms, a young chef Raylan encountered a mysterious girl who resembled Sleeping Beauty in a huge tree hole, but everything suddenly went black before he could find out what happened...
Why similar: Word Game 19.3%, Visual Novel 18.5%, Interactive Fiction 14.9%, Dating Sim 14.7%, Multiple Endings 10.9%
- #37 Vampires' Melody 2
75% matchVery Positive87% of 1,026 reviews2023
Dev: AsicxArt
Windows · Mac
Median: 4.0 hrsMean: 16.9 hrs≥1hr: 94%
Emerald seas! Blue skies! Sandy beaches! An island adventure in the ocean sounds like a trip to paradise. However, the place is a nightmare with no one to provide any blood for Raylan to feed on after he turned into a vampire by accident, especially since he has another hungry vampire at his side.
Why similar: Word Game 21.2%, Visual Novel 17.1%, Interactive Fiction 15.7%, Dating Sim 15.5%, Multiple Endings 7.9%
- #38 Ignited in Cavern
74% matchVery Positive94% of 1,370 reviews2024
Dev: 伤官制作组 Team Uranian
Windows · Mac · Linux
Median: 3.3 hrsMean: 5.3 hrs≥1hr: 71%
In the waning years of the Northern Wei Dynasty, a rumor circulates about a stone statue that bestows blessings in the mortal realm. Lured by the rumor, Anu and Chu Qingqing, a Xianbei General and her Han captive, are led to Dunhuang to face their fates.
Why similar: Historical 24.8%, Word Game 22.6%, Visual Novel 18.3%, Multiple Endings 11.3%, Interactive Fiction 8.4%
- #39 DEAD LAMB WALKING
73% matchVery Positive97% of 200 reviews2024
Dev: Lyn Mametchi
Windows
A story about a dead lamb walking.
Why similar: Visual Novel 24.7%, Interactive Fiction 22.7%, Multiple Endings 14%, Psychological Horror 10.1%, Cute 8%
- #40 我的美味丈夫 My Tasty Husband
73% matchVery Positive82% of 397 reviews2026
Dev: 劳斯麦斯Rolls-MicePub: Tailtone Games
Windows · Mac
Murders quietly upend May's life. A strange husband, a reckless courier, a dutiful officer—reality and hallucination blur together. In this narrative adventure of food, intimacy, and death, make choices as May and reach her ending. If she can still tell what she's eaten from what she's loved...
Why similar: Visual Novel 28.1%, Dating Sim 16.2%, Interactive Fiction 15.1%, Psychological Horror 12.5%, Mystery 7.6%
- #41 Sultan's Game
71% matchVery Positive94% of 34,938 reviews2025
Dev: Double CrossPub: 2P Games
Windows · Mac · Linux
Median: 12.4 hrsMean: 24.8 hrs≥1hr: 85%
Survive a mad Sultan's reign in this brutal resource management RPG. Draw a card every seven days and complete its challenge. Make dreadful choices to stay alive: will you die a loyal servant, become a kingslayer, or call down the gods' judgement?
Why similar: Multiple Endings 27.6%, Psychological Horror 18.3%, Emotional 16.1%, Story Rich 15.7%, RPG 10.1%
- #42 Forsaker:DingDing&Blade
73% matchVery Positive80% of 250 reviews2025
Dev: 圣剑提灯制作组 [BladeLanternStudios]Pub: Infini Fun
Windows · Mac
A visual novel/roguelike hybrid where a simple mission spirals into a cannibalistic odyssey. You'll struggle as a fragile human, blood-soaked knight, or flesh-devouring Forsaker. Devour or be devoured—yet your fate dangles by unseen strings. Choose: cling to this broken world... or forsake it.
Why similar: Historical 23.6%, Visual Novel 20.7%, Interactive Fiction 16.6%, Anime 9.6%, Medieval 8.9%
- #43 Tiny Shadows Interwoven Hearts
70% matchOverwhelmingly Positive99% of 3,713 reviews2025
Dev: 土豆花制作组
Windows · Linux
Programmer Lin Mo is tired of his monotonous life. One day, he meets a mysterious girl at a café who hides many secrets. As lies and true feelings intertwine, can this chance encounter save him from his numb existence? A visual novel filled with "love and hope".
Why similar: Dating Sim 18%, Word Game 17.8%, Interactive Fiction 16%, Visual Novel 15.4%, RPG 6.4%
- #44 Shanghai Summer
72% matchVery Positive90% of 452 reviews2024
Dev: FUTU StudioPub: Astrolabe Games
Windows
Median: 3.0 hrsMean: 3.4 hrs≥1hr: 78%
Shanghai Summer is an adventure game set in the millennium. Our protagonist, Baichuan, goes through a series of "anomalies" over the length of twelve days. In his pursuit of the truth, he found that his hopes and regrets from the past finally seem to converge. Will he be able to "fix" it for good?
Why similar: Word Game 15.3%, Visual Novel 14.5%, Dating Sim 12.4%, Multiple Endings 11.4%, Interactive Fiction 10.7%
- #45 PatriotMemoirs
70% matchNo user reviews84% of 584 reviews2026
Dev: KARMAGAME HK LIMITEDPub: EpicDream Games
Windows · Mac
Shangchuan, 1939, Japanese-occupied. By day a bowing traitor, by night a ghost, in Demon's Lair, No. 86. All wear masks: pretend, kill, survive. When sacrificing a friend is the only way, when betrayed, when only isolated cities remain - fight to the end, live a coward, or take an unimagined path?
Why similar: Historical 27.1%, Interactive Fiction 14.8%, Visual Novel 13.6%, Dating Sim 10.9%, Multiple Endings 9.5%
- #46 Insects Awaken
71% matchVery Positive89% of 468 reviews2025
Dev: HelloMeow
Windows · Mac
Insects Awaken is a puzzle visual novel set in the 1940s. It follows the story of Chen Shan, a young man entangled in espionage while defending his family and homeland. He embarks on a journey between the isolated cities of Chongqing and Shanghai, braving the chaos of war with his passion and youth.
Why similar: Historical 22.6%, Visual Novel 17.7%, Interactive Fiction 14.1%, Multiple Endings 13.5%, Word Game 9.5%
- #47 缚戎人：唐建中十三年
72% matchVery Positive85% of 59 reviews2025
Dev: 思维度工作室（Sharewedo Studio）Pub: 思维度工作室（Sharewedo Studio)
Windows · Mac · Linux
A text adventure game of the mid Tang Dynasty, where players can experience the story of a lonely city in the Western Regions during the Tang Tibetan War in the 13th year of Jianzhong by the 'bound barbarians'. Witness the growth and helplessness of characters and the rise and fall of the era.
Why similar: Historical 20.7%, Word Game 16.2%, Visual Novel 15.4%, Interactive Fiction 13.6%, Dating Sim 12.6%
- #48 The seven days i spent with you
69% matchVery Positive95% of 1,143 reviews2026
Dev: RErevue_studioPub: LoveStoryProject
Windows
Median: 3.0 hrsMean: 6.5 hrs≥1hr: 85%
With the enigmatic girl who imprisoned you――seven days in an unfamiliar room.
Why similar: Visual Novel 17.4%, Dating Sim 15.4%, Interactive Fiction 12.3%, Multiple Endings 11.3%, Anime 8.8%
- #49 月华辉映之刻
68% matchVery Positive89% of 4,698 reviews2025
Dev: 侠客狗工作室
Windows
Median: 9.0 hrsMean: 18.0 hrs≥1hr: 85%
——这是由阴阳两面的夹缝中，诞生的深刻羁绊。世人只言开封繁华，歌舞升平，却难以看到那，被隐藏起来的黑暗背面。粉饰的美好，残酷的真相。生者的思念，亡者的祝福。所以，你要止步当前，还是深究一切？
Why similar: Word Game 17.6%, Dating Sim 15.4%, Visual Novel 15.4%, Interactive Fiction 12.2%, Multiple Endings 10.8%
- #50 The Three Kingdoms: Rebirth
68% matchVery Positive91% of 3,009 reviews2026
Dev: 玛奇阿朵互娱科技Pub: 凤麟工作室
Windows
Median: 3.8 hrsMean: 7.0 hrs≥1hr: 87%
You, an ordinary modern person, cross into the Three Kingdoms. There you meet legendary heroes and beauties. Will you retreat with your love, or rise to conquer the land? Every choice rewrites history—or leads to your doom.
Why similar: Visual Novel 19.8%, Dating Sim 19.1%, Interactive Fiction 16.3%, Multiple Endings 14.1%, Romance 12.8%
- #51 目盲/Blind
71% matchVery Positive85% of 908 reviews2022
Dev: GOCORE
Windows
Median: 1.9 hrsMean: 5.4 hrs≥1hr: 67%
「Sometimes what the eye can't tell, the heart can.」 《Blind》 is a light fantasy game for girls set in a modern city. After a childhood accident that left me with a strange face blindness, I was introduced to a profession called "watchman" and since then, the world has taken on a whole new dimension.
Why similar: Visual Novel 17.8%, Dating Sim 16.3%, Word Game 15.8%, Multiple Endings 11%, Psychological Horror 7.9%
- #52 Lost:Antinomy
70% matchVery Positive88% of 1,075 reviews2024
Dev: IMaiIna
Windows
Median: 2.8 hrsMean: 35.1 hrs≥1hr: 68%
With just a swipe to the left or right, you can make all kinds of decisions. So, please embark on your own unique adventure tale through the continent of Astra!
Why similar: Word Game 22.8%, Interactive Fiction 18.4%, Dating Sim 18.3%, Multiple Endings 10.4%, Anime 7.9%
- #53 Under the River
67% matchOverwhelmingly Positive96% of 543 reviews2026
Dev: 夜火游戏（Night Fire Game）
Windows
Under the River: The Borrowed Skin-She saved you—but turned you into a monster. You live on, wearing her skin as your body rots. To survive, you must devour her. One begs you to eat her. One begs you to stay human. What will you choose?
Why similar: Word Game 25.4%, Visual Novel 25.2%, Interactive Fiction 20.5%, Multiple Endings 7.9%, RPG 7.8%
- #54 The Restless Sheep & The Lone Wolf -A Tale of Cutthroat Lovers-
69% matchVery Positive86% of 140 reviews2024
Dev: CLOCKUPPub: Shiravune
Windows
In this twisted love story of a visual novel by CLOCKUP, an insomniac must decide whether to protect his position as a yakuza bigwig’s pet killer or the mysterious woman who can put him to sleep.
Why similar: Visual Novel 22.7%, Interactive Fiction 19.6%, Romance 14.1%, Dark 12.9%, Anime 10.5%
- #55 Uberich: Advent Sinners
69% matchVery Positive83% of 306 reviews2025
Dev: NBDR GamesPub: XD
Windows
The world and reality of Joe collapse as a sequence of paranormal events starts in September. A mysterious girl with physical powers named Chava wants him dead, as he can be a core key for her cult to dominate the reality between worlds.
Why similar: Word Game 16.3%, Visual Novel 15.4%, Interactive Fiction 11.4%, Dating Sim 11.3%, Romance 7.2%
- #56 Demonheart: The Cursed Trial
68% matchVery Positive91% of 133 reviews2025
Dev: Rolling Crown
Windows · Mac
You are a girl with a demonic heart, trapped with a group of suspicious individuals. A demonspawn arrives, setting off a chain of mysterious murders. Can you trust any of your fellow captives and find love in the chaos? Or will you fight for your life alone?
Why similar: Visual Novel 17.7%, Dating Sim 15.9%, Interactive Fiction 14.1%, Romance 10.7%, Multiple Endings 10%
- #57 暴杀残雨之夜
65% matchOverwhelmingly Positive99% of 786 reviews2026
Dev: 茶斩刀制作组Pub: 无
Windows · Mac
On a rainy night, it's all up to you whether to show love or be cruel.
Why similar: Visual Novel 19.6%, Dating Sim 17.4%, Interactive Fiction 15.7%, Multiple Endings 11.3%, Romance 8.8%
- #58 The Crimson Maid
67% matchVery Positive88% of 113 reviews2026
Dev: GrimTalinPub: Wales Interactive
Windows
A marriage between first person exploration and visual novel, blessed with a sprinkle of puzzle gameplay. Immerse yourself in a period drama that intertwines romance with murder mystery, as a young cleric who must resist or give in to the charms of a strikingly beautiful maid.
Why similar: Romance 20.7%, Interactive Fiction 13.9%, Visual Novel 13.8%, Story Rich 12.2%, Mystery 11.6%
- #59 Kugayama Shiori's Death Diary
65% matchOverwhelmingly Positive95% of 992 reviews2026
Dev: Laplacian
Windows
Median: 7.2 hrsMean: 7.1 hrs≥1hr: 82%
A mystery visual novel where horror meets occult comedy. Follow Kugayama Shiori, a ghost who casually dies over and over as she searches for her cause of death and the regrets that bind her to this world. Her investigation will eventually lead to a single incident—and the truth behind her demise.
Why similar: Visual Novel 57.7%, Adventure 13.6%, Mystery 10.8%, Story Rich 9.1%, Casual 7.4%
- #60 Paper Bride 7 Lethal Bond
66% matchVery Positive93% of 303 reviews2025
Dev: HeartBeat Plus
Windows
Speak not of love untouched by passion's fire, as it's a torturous journey. If lovers would remain faithful evermore,On Peony Pavilion’s road they’ll meet for three lives more. Paper Bride 7: Lethal Bond is a Chinese horror puzzle game, and the 7th title of the Paper Bride series.
Why similar: Word Game 28.5%, Visual Novel 22.2%, Interactive Fiction 21%, Psychological Horror 7.6%, RPG 7.1%
