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Games like The Children of Clay

Balazs Ronyai · 2025 · Windows, Linux

Steam: 97 % positive of 4,148 reviews, as of Nov 4

The Children of Clay is a short stop motion archeology horror game, where you have to study an ancient artefact and discover its dark secret.

24 games that play like The Children of Clay and 24 that look like it. Closest by gameplay: Playable Archive, Barrow Hill: Curse of the Ancient Circle and Psychopomp.

Player tags

  • Horror
  • Atmospheric
  • Detective
  • Lovecraftian
  • Adventure
  • Puzzle
  • Simulation
  • Point & Click
Map region: Psychological Horror
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Steam reviews

What players say

Short, free and atmospheric; players overwhelmingly praise its tension and unusual archaeology-horror design, though nearly all wish it were longer.

Players say the game builds real unease without jump scares, relying on a slow-burn atmosphere, eerie sound and a striking stop-motion clay look. Many players enjoy the core mechanic: inspecting an artifact, searching a journal for terms and piecing together clues, which they find satisfying and fair rather than hand-holding. Folklore and occult references, especially Hungarian mythology, are praised as fresh for horror. The main complaint is length: it takes roughly 15 to 30 minutes, and many players feel the story is cut off just as it gets interesting. Some note minor visual bugs and a few dislike the ending. Recent reviews are as positive as the older helpful ones, with the same praise for atmosphere and brevity, and players who spent longer with it mostly repeat the wish for a larger sequel.

Praised

  • Atmosphere without jump scares

    Players say the dread builds through sound, visuals and pacing rather than cheap scares, and that it stays unsettling.

    Many players
  • Clue-searching mechanic

    Players enjoy searching the journal for terms and piecing together clues; the puzzles feel fair and satisfying.

    Many players
  • Folklore and occult theme

    The use of Hungarian folklore, runes and cosmic horror is praised as a fresh take on the genre.

    Many players
  • Stop-motion art style

    Players single out the clay stop-motion visuals as striking and central to the unsettling mood.

    Some players

Criticised

  • Far too short

    Players say the game ends in 15 to 30 minutes, just as the story becomes interesting, and want more content.

    Many players
  • Minor visual bugs

    Players mention small visual glitches, especially on replays.

    A few players
  • Ending too abrupt

    Players feel the final scene arrives suddenly and leaves the story unresolved.

    A few players
Who it suits
Players who enjoy short, atmospheric horror, point-and-click puzzles and folklore-based mysteries.
Who should skip it
Players wanting a long game or heavy scares; many reviewers say it is too brief to be more than a quick experience.

Summarised by AI from 80 Steam reviews (English, helpful and recent), as of Oct 28, 2026.

Best matches

Plays and looks like The Children of Clay

These games are close to it by gameplay and by look, so they appear in both lists below.

By gameplay

Plays like The Children of Clay

Matched from Steam descriptions and player tags. The tags under each game are the ones both games share.

More matches

  1. MOLE97 % positive of 4,007
  2. Exiled88 % positive of 235Shared: Horror · Puzzle · Point & Click
  3. The Last Door - Collector's Edition94 % positive of 1,872Shared: Horror · Lovecraftian · Puzzle
  4. Krypta FM94 % positive of 2,090Shared: Horror · Detective · First-Person
  5. The Excavation of Hob's Barrow92 % positive of 2,502Shared: Horror · Lovecraftian · Puzzle
  6. Hellkind92 % positive of 198Shared: Horror · Puzzle · Linear
  7. Tormenture87 % positive of 209Shared: Horror · Puzzle · Dark
  8. Amenti80 % positive of 2,257Shared: Horror · Cinematic · Dark
  9. Prognostic93 % positive of 427Shared: Horror · Puzzle · Simulation
  10. Forgotten Hill Disillusion87 % positive of 216Shared: Horror · Lovecraftian · Puzzle
  11. Scauage90 % positive of 887Shared: Horror · Lovecraftian · Puzzle
  12. Lucid Dream90 % positive of 1,029Shared: Horror · Point & Click · Mystery

By look

Looks like The Children of Clay

Matched from screenshots. Each card shows the screenshot closest to the look of this game.

More matches

  1. Ghost Watchers85 % positive of 12,763
  2. Call of Cthulhu®79 % positive of 11,053
  3. Amnesia: Rebirth76 % positive of 7,959
  4. SONG OF HORROR COMPLETE EDITION79 % positive of 1,954
  5. Ghost Town95 % positive of 602
  6. WE ARE SO DEAD71 % positive of 727
  7. FOREWARNED89 % positive of 5,059
  8. Escape Simulator 292 % positive of 4,606
  9. The Dark Occult68 % positive of 1,138
  10. The 7th Guest VR91 % positive of 432
  11. The Wellmonts Case94 % positive of 234
  12. The Frostrune91 % positive of 299

At a glance

What games like The Children of Clay have in common

  • The tags they share most often with The Children of Clay: Horror (22 of 24), Puzzle (16) and Lovecraftian (8).
  • They came out between 2014 and 2026, 3 of them after The Children of Clay (2025).
  • Best rated by Steam players: Endacopia (99 % positive of 8,135).

How these matches work

Matches come from embeddings of Steam descriptions, player tags and screenshots, computed offline. “Plays like” compares what the games are about and how players tag them; “Looks like” compares their screenshots. The share of positive reviews is based on Steam user reviews.

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