Scarlet Wolf

Developer: Graven Visual Novels
Publisher: Sometimes You
Platforms: PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S (Reviewed), PC
Release Date: June 3, 2026
Price: $9.99 USD – Available Here

Overview

Visual novels come in all different shapes and sizes and can be some of the most unique stories a player can experience. Some are simply static, meant to tell a straight story with no changes, while others offer different routes and endings. This simple set-up has allowed for plenty of interesting stories to be told spanning all kinds of genres, be it romance, horror, science fiction, and so much more while also defying expectations at the same time. Ultimately though, sometimes a game just wants to keep things rather basic and deal with trauma and a dark storyline in a fairly straightforward manner. Such is the case with Scarlet Wolf from Graven Visual Novels and Sometimes You, a bite sized visual novel that tells an interesting tale but not quite worth the price tag.

Story

For months now Alex has been suffering from the same nightmare, wandering a labyrinth of halls and hearing a girl calling out for help. Every time he feels like he is close, the girl slips away and he awakens, unable to sleep again for the night. After exhausting all options and reaching the point of exhaustion himself Alex approaches a psychologist named Dr. Amanda Silk who has discovered a new, but dangerous, form of therapy. 

After losing her daughter’s own mind in trials, Dr. Silk is reluctant to help but gives in under Alex’s persistence, using her “Anchor” and hypnosis technique to sink his consciousness into his dreams. Now, finally able to interact and have free will within the dream itself, alongside a childhood companion in the form of his, now talking, plushie Gingerro, and Silk’s own presence assisting, it will be up to Alex to find out just who that girl in his dreams is and why she haunts his mind every night.

Scarlet Wolf tells a surprisingly short and somewhat simple storyline but one that is dark no matter what route players take. This is a story about tragedy, trauma, and loss, all repressed within a mind that simply couldn’t handle the events as they unfolded before Alex. While we won’t spoil them here, it is worth noting that the game does have two routes that diverge depending on the choices that players make throughout the barely hour long story. One hinges heavily on an extremely dark and twisted topic that slowly is revealed in the latter half of the story, through the player’s encounter with the “monster” and the ending, while the other is a bit odder. Not only does it revolve around a disease that literally needed to be looked up to find out it is real, but something that could have been handled far better, even if it does help lend a little credence to why the design of one monster ended up being the way it was.

That’s not to say that the story itself is bad, as it does a satisfying enough job providing the set-up and interactions to make players care about the Alex and the characters while traveling through Alex’s mental-space, but it also doesn’t have the legs to actually go anywhere at the same time due to its short length. Even the therapist comments at how abruptly everything seems to wrap up, while the epilogue itself sets up the intention for possibly more development or revelations that go unsaid. This will likely feel players a bit disappointed, especially those looking for an ending with a bit more closure, but between the title’s short length and the premise itself, the end result is the best players could have hoped for.

Gameplay

As far as gameplay goes, Scarlet Wolf comes with the base plate of visual novel controls. This includes the bare minimum of having auto-text, a text log to read back previous dialogue, and a skip dialogue feature. Oddly enough, there is no option to turn on “skip only read” dialogue, but players will immediately recognize what scenes are different depending on the choices they have made throughout the story as only a few have actual implications. There is no “hide window” option to get a better view at the scenes and a very simple save and load system.

One thing that is a bit nice, but also something that is expected in a visual novel, is that the game does have a CG gallery that unlocks as players see different backgrounds and CGs throughout the game and see each ending, with each CG often having variants that are viewable in the same slide. It is interesting or rather odd to note, that achievements in the game do not unlock if the player is having text “auto” play. Whether this is a glitch or something intentional to make sure players are paying attention is unknown.

Audio & Visuals

It must be said that a solid amount of work has gone into making an impressive looking visual novel despite the limited number of characters to work with. Alex’s own design is rather simplistic and so is Dr. Silk’s but the real highlight comes from the imaginary friends, secondary character that we won’t spoil, and the numerous monsters that players encounter throughout the game. The monster designs are quite gruesome in nature and visceral, even if their movements are still as the game lacks any Live2D assets. Instead there are over twenty different CGs to show off the various scenes and events that play out throughout the game.

There is no voice work of any kind throughout Scarlet Wolf other than some generic sound effects used here and there, such as a character sighing or growling from beasts. Thankfully the game makes up for it by having some rather solid background music that is mixed throughout the dramatic reveals and calmer situations. 

Overall

Scarlet Wolf tells an intriguing tale that spans across a character’s trauma and the way their past still haunts them, locked away and now haunting their every dream with the only way to confront it being a life-risking endeavor. The concept is interesting and the storyline is fairly well executed, but unfortunately Scarlet Wolf tries punching a bit too high with its short length, even on repeat to see the other route, bringing it to barely over an hour long. This limited length prevents players from feeling like they’ve received a proper conclusion and, especially for the console release price of $9.99, is a bit pricey for such a limited experience.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.