Scar of the Doll: A Psycho-Horror Story about the Mystery of an Older Sister
Switch eShop
Child-Dream / Mamekujira
2022
Even ardent VN enjoyers are likely to roll right by this one when it pops up in Steam or the eShop. Scar of the Doll appears "cheap" at first glance (literally and figuratively), and the terrible genre-clarifying subtitle screams shovelware. Skipping this would be a mistake though: it's an interesting visual novel, in terms of both gameplay and historical status.
The original Scar of the Doll was an obscure Japanese visual novel developed in the 1990s and released as freeware. Created by an outfit called Child Dream, Hidehisa Miyashita served as writer, the same man behind the PS3 RPG Folklore. Originally unknown to Western audiences, it was localized and made available via Steam in 2017 as an enhanced port. I can't speak on sales figures but apprently this reboot was enough of a success to warrant a full-blown remake some five years later, the subject of this review. I've played both, and while I'd normally not be one to "double-dip" like this, the game is so short there really isn't a compelling reason to not continue on to the remake after experiencing the old version.
Scar of the Doll is a mystery, but not the type of whodunit murder thriller seen in many a retro VN. Rather, this is a quest to find a missing person, with a techno sci-fi theme that touches on the ethics of experimentation and scientific advancement. The protagonist is a young woman named Asumi, who has lost all contact with her elder sister. This particular sister attends an elite graduate school in Tokyo, renting a nearby apartment. Upon arrival, Asumi finds the apartment empty. Upon visiting the university laboratory, Asumi is greeted by hostile staff, all claiming that her sister was never enrolled as a student. However, after some requisite sneaking around, Asumi encounters individuals who (slowly and cryptically) offer up a series of clues. As the tale progresses, Asumi inches closer to revealing the truth.
Atmospherically, the story is quite good. It's genuinely unnerving, punctuated by some great creepy locales and frequent use of startling sound effects. The actual writing is quite straightforward. Unlike modern visual novels, which often attempt to steer the player's emotions, Scar of the Doll features significantly fewer introspective moments. There's a persistent ambiguity as well: certain events are never explained sufficiently and the game ends with some loose ends left untied. It's a rather effective sleight of hand -- the game begins as a mystery and ends as a decidedly different one. There are precious few supernatural elements found within Scar of the Doll, though oftentimes the "realistic" science fiction defies belief. Example: at one part Asumi must open a locked electronic door. Said door only responds to individuals who have the correct key card and aren't under a state of duress (what?!). There's also plenty of hypnosis and false memories and genetic manipulation -- some juicy "maybe someday" science.
Progression through the game is accomplished via a series of frequently appearing pop-up menus. Generally, a set of choices is presented and the player is required to choose one to proceed. Occasionally, only one choice is available, which on the surface seems pointless though it provides an additional sliver of player engagement and highlights some important actions. Though a linear experience overall, Scar of the Doll does feature menu-based navigation as well, so it is possible for one to get sidetracked or caught in a repetitive gameplay loop. Only a single proper ending is available and death lurks around every corner. Some deaths feel legitimate ("yeah okay that was a bad choice") while others are totally capricious ("enter the left room or right room" -- choose incorrectly and die!). Thankfully, the game seems determined to keep Asumi alive. Upon every death, after being assaulted by a blood-soaked screen and sneering killer, text appears detailing exactly what went wrong -- then the story cranks back up, a few minutes prior to the last fateful decision point. The music that plays throughout the Scar experience is decent: relaxed but sufficiently eerie.
There are two obvious differences between this remake and the original (or, the port of the original, I suppose). A minor change: the navigation is much more streamlined here. The original had some tedious "go east / go west" strolling around. Here, one simply needs to select a place from a map. But the big difference is the graphics. While the original boasted some uniquely realistic character designs and photographed backgrounds, this variant is pure anime. Nothing extraordinary here graphically, but it all looks good enough, especially the qt3.14 anime grills, but we always love those don't we folks. (I've heard some parts of the text were modified/rewritten for this new version but I played the original five years ago and I can barely remember what I had for lunch).
All told, I'd rank the original a bit higher than this new version. It's just fine but feels somewhat "generic" among the deluge of modern mystery VNs, while the original's comparatively unsettling aesthetics really pop. Can't really go wrong either way though.
Rating: 3.5/5
Reviewed: 07/13/25