Valheim
Valheim
Game
Game2014
Sanitarium
Developer Dotemu
Sanitarium is a psychological horror point-and-click adventure video game that was originally released for Microsoft Windows. It was developed by DreamForge Intertainment and published by ASC Games in 1998. It was a commercial success, with sales of around 300,000 units. In 2015, it was ported to iOS and Android devices. From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
265 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon, Lemmy) · newest Nov 4, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
88
LovedLoved
160 positive · 21 negative
95% range 83–92%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 160 | 21 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 33 | 2 | 44 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Lemmy * | 0 | 0 | 2 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
677 of 733 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
89% recommend · 160 yes, 20 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 180 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (1,285 of 1,380 positive).
Players praise Sanitarium as a classic psychological horror adventure with a deeply unsettling atmosphere. [1][2][3] Many reviewers fondly recall playing it with family, calling it a childhood classic. [4][5][6] Some players note technical issues like crashes and outdated controls. [7][8][9]
Liked
Representative posts
- [7]
Sanitarium is an ancient game from 1998. It's a whopping 26 years old at the time of this review. The game lacks support for any modern gaming display resolutions (or widescreen monitors), hasn't been modernised or updated to run smoothly on modern gaming PCs. Despite this lack of modernisation, it carries a pretty high price tag for such an ancient game. This seems to have been put on Steam as a nostalgia gouge, or …
- [4]
when i was like 3-4 my late father used to play this on pc while i watched so obviously thanks to this game i'm extremely cool and have incredible tastes now ty for everyone's hard work <3
- [17]
Was too damned scared to play this game when I was small and am really happy I backed out after the first level. I would have had some horrible nightmares and would have probably been a bit traumatized... or maybe not. Either way, I came back to it now and finished the game. I can say it has been an enjoyable experience and terrifying at the same time, but I highly recommend you to play Sanitarium if you are a fan …
- [5]
Sanitarium holds a very special place in my heart, it's a childhood classic that I would play with my dad, stuck for hours clicking everywhere and pixel hunting for items to progress. Very unsettling game that can make you question your own reality at times, it used to scare the pants off of me as a young lad. Revisiting it at a much older age and for a point and click adventure it still holds up well, and the story …
- [1]
It's less scary than deeply unsettling, and is remembered more for its bizarre, grotesque atmosphere.
Summarised from 34 of the 254 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 12, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Sanitarium sits at 88% positive across 181 opinionated reactions from 4 sources. Fresh or rotten — where do you land?
Critics, per Wikipedia
The PC and iOS versions received favorable reviews according to the review aggregation website GameRankings. Next Generation said that the former version was "still vastly different and thoroughly entertaining. If only more companies would take gaming into as different a direction, our jobs would be a lot more interesting." The PC version was commercially successful. According to Mike Nicholson of DreamForge, the game sold roughly 300,000 units. Chris Kellner of DTP Entertainment, which handled the same PC version's German localization, reported its lifetime sales between 10,000 and 50,000 units in the region. According to PC Accelerator, the PC version was a "critical success" that helped…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 265 · most liked firstI played this game with my dad when I was a kid The way that it says “ssssaave game” on the menu is a meme between us For some reason we say our cat Mokey’s name in the same cadence — Mmmmmokey Sanitarium is eternal
positive · AI labelView post →I think Crow Country's biggest strength is its a dark comedy puzzle game wearing the skin of an RE clone. It's closer to Sanitarium than Resident Evil.
neutral · AI labelView post →The last video on I Have No Mouth was actually the first "remake" of a very old mini video I made on the game 10y ago. Thanks for the wonderful reception 🙏🧡 For the next one I'm revisiting another old fossile: Sanitarium. And thematically, it's going to be IHNM's sister-essay. I'm cooking here!👨🍳
neutral · AI labelView post →New look at a mask-less Michael Myers escaping from Smith's Grove Sanitarium in HALLOWEEN: THE GAME. Launching September 8, 2026.
neutral · AI labelView post →YUP! (while the team was kind enough to put me in the credits for feedback on an early build of the game, I am not speaking for them in any way, this is just my personal belief) if you want more games like it, you should check out SANITARIUM, STASIS: BONE TOTEM, and BEAUTIFUL DESOLATION
positive · AI labelView post →when i was like 3-4 my late father used to play this on pc while i watched so obviously thanks to this game i'm extremely cool and have incredible tastes now ty for everyone's hard work <3
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →[Forever-Free Friday] *FEED*, a spooky retro point-and-click adventure. > "FEED" is a bite-sized retro point-and-click puzzle game. It features multiple puzzles and a touch of cult horror. Mini-review from PC Gamer: > Here's a short 'n' sweet point and click adventure that kinda reminds me of the '90s cult game Sanitarium, though the presentation here is a touch scaled back. You're best to go into this one blind, but expect a growing sense of discomfort and puzzles.
neutral · AI labelView post →Tonight at 8:30PM EST we have Sanitarium, a game where you enter a dream world after getting hit by a car and everyone's weird and fucked up. Its a relaxing game with lots of weird 90s voice acting that just keeps getting stranger as it goes. Be there.
positive · AI labelView post →Hey we're sharing horror games! Sanitarium is a 1998 isometric adventure psychological horror game that I still think about 25 years later. And it's on Steam! store.steampowered.com/app/284050/S...
positive · AI labelView post →It's less scary than deeply unsettling, and is remembered more for its bizarre, grotesque atmosphere.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →"Sanitarium" is a 1998 point-and-click psychological horror game with gorgeous prerendered graphics, fantastic art direction and writing. One of the best P&C games I've ever played. Currently just $3.49 on GoG. www.gog.com/en/game/sani...
positive · AI labelView post →this actually happened to me once
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Short version: Pros: + Super interesting story and setup + Strong art style + Great atmosphere + Good sound design Cons: - One horrible level drags on for too long - Story loses steam as it goes on - Puzzles get frustrating "Long" version: Sanitarium is a point and click adventure game with a dash of the macabre. You play as Max, who wakes up from a coma after suffering a car crash – he finds himself in a sanitarium and must regain his memory and search for answers while dealing with trauma…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →That's just a late 1990s adventure game valve puzzle, you can't fool me, that belongs in Sanitarium.
neutral · AI labelView post →Sanitarium is an ancient game from 1998. It's a whopping 26 years old at the time of this review. The game lacks support for any modern gaming display resolutions (or widescreen monitors), hasn't been modernised or updated to run smoothly on modern gaming PCs. Despite this lack of modernisation, it carries a pretty high price tag for such an ancient game. This seems to have been put on Steam as a nostalgia gouge, or just a cash grab to try profit from abandonware. This bargain bin point…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Sanitarium Enhanced announced for Nintendo Switch, return of the 1998 psychological horror adventure game nintendoeverything.com/sanitarium-e...
neutral · AI labelView post →CGW's 1998 Game of the Year Awards Game of the Year: Half-Life Best Action: Battlezone Best Adventure: Sanitarium and Grim Fandango Best RPG: Baldur's Gate Best Simulation: European Air War Best Space Sim: Independence War Best Strategy: Starcraft Best Driving: Need for Speed III Hot Pursuit
neutral · AI labelView post →Anyone have any rogue Steam Autumn Sale recommendations? I'll start: Sanitarium, a little-known point-and-click from 1998 that is genuinely one of the greatest psychological horror games I have ever played. Runs well on Steam Deck if you mod the keybinds, too. store.steampowered.com/app/284050/S...
positive · AI labelView post →🩹Sanitarium (1998) – A disturbing psychological horror adventure game. You wake up in an asylum with no memory, and try to find answers. It’s a bit old but still holds up as a point and click game. Essential title.
positive · AI labelView post →It actually uses logic to solve puzzles, unlike many other adventure games.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Remember the demented circus nightmare game from 1998 called SANITARIUM? Pepperidge Farm remembers. And by that we mean we turned the soundtrack into an industrial metal EP. It's free. Check it out: error47.bandcamp.com/album/sanita...
neutral · AI labelView post →This week, @neilbolt.bsky.social and @notfunnyj.bsky.social debut "Making the Case For", a new series exploring unique approaches to game design, by exploring the surreal dreamscape of 1998's Sanitarium! @bloody-disgusting.com @bloodyfm.bsky.social 🍎 apple.co/4l3eLPb 🟢 bit.ly/4m9abjc
neutral · AI labelView post →This is toxic yaoi the likes of which the world has never seen.....
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Sanitarium holds a very special place in my heart, it's a childhood classic that I would play with my dad, stuck for hours clicking everywhere and pixel hunting for items to progress. Very unsettling game that can make you question your own reality at times, it used to scare the pants off of me as a young lad. Revisiting it at a much older age and for a point and click adventure it still holds up well, and the story is very interesting and prominent to anyone struggling with any sort of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of the best point-and-click games ever made. If you enjoy games like Harvester, Sanitarium offers a similarly eerie atmosphere, less absurd, but just as unsettling. It's structured in chapters, while the last few chapters aren’t as strong, they’re still worth playing through. A must-play for fans of psychological horror and classic adventure games
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Was too damned scared to play this game when I was small and am really happy I backed out after the first level. I would have had some horrible nightmares and would have probably been a bit traumatized... or maybe not. Either way, I came back to it now and finished the game. I can say it has been an enjoyable experience and terrifying at the same time, but I highly recommend you to play Sanitarium if you are a fan of adventure point 'n click games as well as horror stories. It scores really…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →My dad played this game when I was a kid and has been recommending it to me for years. I finally bought it on a whim and I'm glad I did. The story is very engaging and the plot is so cool. It's got a charm that you can only really get from 90s horror.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Started playing Sanitarium (old school 90s adventure game a friend got me). It's pretty intriguing but I am def missing the conveniences of modern games (I miss you run button) Then again I have fought through tiring gameplay for a compelling premise before (looking at YOU Alan Wake 1)
neutral · AI labelView post →2/5 Wonderful, but doesnt work well on steam, alot of crashes.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A cult classic, with insanity inducing dialogue, visuals and characters, getting crazier and crazier with an interesting background plot that reveals slowly and satisfyingly. This Steam version is pretty stable. I had only one crash, but its age still shows... the clunky mechanics, clicks misregistering or characters moving in weird poses that make interacting with them impossible until they move again... It was still a joy to replay this after so many years.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Long, long ago (as they say), I owned the boxed version of this strange game and perhaps still do tucked away in a dusty corner somewhere in the attic or basement, but at the time it was produced, it was the creepiest mind warp I had ever played and that would have been since DOS.. (yup I've been a game player for that long). To date it is still one of the best psychological horror adventure games I've ever played based on it's unabashed and unique creep factor and weirdness vibe overall.…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →🌿 Stream Alert 🌿 Yapping about my virtual experience at Twitchcon 2025! Then let's play some Sanitarium, a spooky and surreal game from 1998! www.twitch.tv/amaliasolaris
neutral · AI labelView post →4 games 4 uh moots? Sanitarium - this requires an essay to esplain Ocarina of Time - very first consol game :o Curse of Monkey Island - ARRRRR! Fran Bow - FUCKED ME UP (positive) @ellery-sansei.bsky.social @tsushi.bsky.social @ickysticki.bsky.social @vegetablesaute.bsky.social
positive · AI labelView post →escape a sanitarium after waking up with amnesia in the newly-remastered retro isometric point-and-click horror game Sanitarium Enhanced
neutral · AI labelView post →Going into the deeper cuts from the Wadjet Eye Games library, I truly recommend trying out: -Primordia -Gemini Rue -Resonance -Technobabylon -The Excavation of Hob's Barrow I also enjoyed Shardlight, A Golden Wake and the quite disturbing Sanitarium-style psychological horror game Strangeland.
neutral · AI labelView post →berry cool, shat my pants a lil
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Started Sanitarium and I'm already invested, love me a good ol' point and click game 🔎
positive · AI labelView post →I loved how different and unique every level is and the puzzles are especially interesting too. Very good game overall, definetly worth playing.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is phenomenal - every bit of it. The story unfolds in the most intriguing way allowing you to bizarrely piece it together. It's a great blend of unsettling story, insanity, and tragedy. The puzzles aren't so difficult that you'll spend hours aimlessly wandering around nor are you hosed if you miss something and 4 hours later realize it. (Looking at you, custard pie from King's Quest.) I cannot recommend this game enough. Once I started playing it, I didn't want to stop.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Making Sense of the Insane Sanitarium's story, when all is revealed, is actually pretty simple. What makes this game special is the unique and interesting way the story is told — something that wasn't seen much when the game came out in 1998. At the beginning, it feels like the game throws random levels at you. Yet it totally makes sense when all the pieces connect to each other. All those seemingly random, insane things are actually related, and together they draw a picture of what…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Why is it lowkey good. Like if those cool bizarre OG fallout cutscenes were an entire game. Still the worst controls in all of gaming. 7/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →slimy squid boy broke loose
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Sanitarium, re-released on Steam by Dotemu and published by Ziggurat, is a psychological horror adventure that has earned a place as a classic within its genre. Originally developed in the late 1990s, this game offers a unique blend of eerie storytelling, atmospheric environments, and challenging puzzles, all wrapped in a haunting narrative that explores the fragility of the human mind. The game’s ability to immerse players in a surreal and unsettling world remains impressive, even years after…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →yet another reminder that big pharma is evil
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A- A true classic. It's been a really really long time since playing this game and I only remembered key pieces of the story. As a PnC Adventure game, the game is pretty easy and there are only a couple of puzzles that should take you brief moments to solve. The gem of this game is the art direction and delivery and it still is so novel. It takes the isometric 3rd person perspective where this was unique for PnC since nearly all viewpoints were orthogonal or perpendicular to the world. I…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One in particular, Scratches, is maybe the scariest game I have ever played. Another, Sanitarium is just an all timer for one of my favorite games period.
positive · AI labelView post →wow, was suprised how good it was. If you like point and clicks , you should check this one out. The looks can be a bit dated making completing certain puzzles a bit more challenging than they already are. It’s optimized great! Played on SteamDeck LCD. I would rate it a 5 out of 5 .
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Spooky "BOO, Haunted House" ass game in the best possible way.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Next week on The Great Game Guide, I'm going to finish out the 1990s adventure game wave by talking about how the genre started to go 3D with games like The Longest Journey and Omikron: The Nomad Soul. I'll also cover offshoots like Sanitarium, The Last Express, The Neverhood and VooDoo Kid!
neutral · AI labelView post →posting 12 am alone bc its relevant to previous post. dad also asked riz if there were any movies based on his favorite horror video game, Sanitarium
neutral · AI labelView post →Continuing my Sanitarium adventures (the game, currently)
neutral · AI labelView post →Super fun, controls are manageable on the steam deck once you get used to them; it can be hard to tell what you can just because of the design of the graphics but its still very fun.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →An underrated masterpiece. Easily one of the top 3 best games I have ever played.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very enjoyable adventure game! Works very well on the Deck.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Some difficult pixel hunting but doable, very good story and vibe 9/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's a really great game.Kafkaesque plot makes me reflect on reality.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is quite possibly the strangest game I have ever played. Fully recommend.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →So I 1st received this game for free over 2 decades ago while i was standing outside a superstore scratching my gorse, when the shadows of an adjacent alleyway that seemed to ask threatening questions of my possibly justified paranoia. All at once the shadows spun out into a person in front of me and began to speak, the words on his lips clearly tattooed as unknown symbols and the ones from his mouth told me of the deranged solace he held in his hands, I put down the dead seagull that i was…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →quite possibly the best point and click game ever made i love it!!!!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a bit of an odd one! A strange horror point and click game from my childhood. We're starting up Sanitarium. www.twitch.tv/twilightthec... #FurryLive #VTuber #Twitch
neutral · AI labelView post →
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