Fairy tales in video games are far from always kind and cloudless. Behind bright decorations and whimsical characters often lie dangerous creatures, dark secrets, and plots that bear little resemblance to familiar childhood adventures. It is precisely on this contrast that the selection compiled by Styler editor Yulia Lyushneva is built: five PC games with an unusual fairy tale atmosphere, original visual styles, and heroes that go beyond the classic "fairy tale" canon. Each project on the list offers its own interpretation of the genre — from reimagining Lewis Carroll's universe to worlds sculpted from clay or cut from paper.
Alice: Madness Returns — Wonderland After the Nightmare
The 2011 action-adventure from Spicy Horse is inspired by Lewis Carroll's fairy tale world, but takes it down a completely different path. The main protagonist, Alice, tries to recover from the fire that killed her family and finds herself back in Wonderland — only the once-magical world is now disfigured and full of dangers. Instead of carefree adventures, she faces creepy creatures, dangerous platforms, and puzzles: the protagonist can shrink, uses unusual weapons, and explores locations where even familiar characters take on a threatening appearance. According to the author of the selection, what strikes most is the reimagining of the universe — the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter, and other heroes remain recognizable, but look like characters from a nightmare, while the contrast between bright decorations and a dark story makes the game especially memorable.
Lost in Random — A Kingdom Where Fate is Rolled with Dice
The 2021 adventure game from Zoink takes place in the dark kingdom of Random, where the fate of every resident is determined by a roll of a magic die, and power is held by a cruel queen. The protagonist, Even, sets out in search of her odd-numbered sister, who was taken away by order of the ruler, and finds an unusual companion — a living die named Dicey. Together, they explore six royal lands, meet strange inhabitants, and try to change the established rules. A distinct feature of the project is the combat system, which combines cards, weapons, and random die-roll results that determine the protagonist's capabilities in battle. Twisted houses, unusual characters, and gloomy streets, in the author's estimation, resemble living illustrations from a creepy children's book, and the very idea of a world where the future is decided by chance makes the story truly special.
The Midnight Walk — A Creepy Claymation Puppet Film
The dark adventure game set for 2025 by MoonHood, a studio founded by developers who worked on Lost in Random, stands out primarily for its visual style: the entire world is created from real clay figures and animated in stop-motion style. The player takes on the role of a mysterious traveler, Burnt One, who meets a small creature named Potboy with a head-lantern inside which a living flame burns. Together, the heroes must journey through a creepy world where dangerous monsters lurk in the dark. Potboy's light helps overcome obstacles, but attracts the attention of creatures eager to consume the fire, forcing the player to hide, distract enemies, and solve puzzles. Every tree, building, and monster was first sculpted by hand and then transferred to the digital world — hence the sensation of a creepy puppet cartoon, where even the scariest creatures acquire a peculiar charm.
Gloomy Eyes — Friendship in a World of Eternal Darkness
The 2025 fairy tale adventure game from Fishing Cactus transports the action to a world where the sun has stopped rising: the earth has plunged into eternal darkness, and a confrontation continues between humans and the living dead. At the center of the story are the zombie boy Gloomy and an ordinary girl, Nena, who, despite the hostility of the two worlds, unite to bring back sunlight. The player controls both characters, switching between them to solve puzzles: each has their own abilities, and to overcome obstacles, the strengths of both heroes must be utilized, while the game is designed for a single player. Gloomy cemeteries, whimsical buildings, and unusual characters look both creepy and cute, and it is precisely this contrast, according to the author of the selection, that makes the game charming — the story of a zombie boy in a world of eternal darkness tells primarily of friendship and support.
Papetura — A World Cut from Paper
The short 2021 adventure game by independent developer Tomasz Ostafin, known by the pseudonym Petums, concludes the selection and stands out with its main feature — an entire world created by hand from paper. The story tells of a small paper creature named Pape who finds himself trapped in this fragile paper world. The project demonstrates how far independent development can go in search of its own visual language: here, the fairy tale atmosphere is born not from digital rendering, but from tactile, physical material, giving the game a unique, almost handmade character.
Together, the five projects form a cohesive picture of how modern game design reimagines the fairy tale: grim decorations, unusual mechanics, and whimsical heroes turn familiar childhood images into the foundation for deep, atmospheric, and visually unique stories. For players looking for something beyond classic "fairy tale" adventures, this selection is a convenient guide to the genre, where beauty and horror coexist in a single frame.
