Christmas at the Overlook

Ever wanted to beat the famous Overlook maze? Return to the hotel and find out what’s happening there this festive season!

Published (or updated) in December 31st, 2024.

Christmas at the Overlook is an indie first-person horror adventure game where the player returns to the Overlook Hotel, as seen in the 1980 film, during the Christmas season, complete with its iconic maze. It was developed by James Smart and initially released on December 17, 2021.

The game was designed as a casual homage to Stanley Kubrick’s film adaptation of The Shining, one of Stephen King’s most iconic novels, and features several Easter eggs and references to the movie, a dose of humor, and non-traditional horror elements.

Published by James Smart himself and released for Windows, Christmas at the Overlook received largely positive feedback from players, who highlighted the game’s visuals, sound, nostalgic references, and fun and spooky atmosphere.

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About the game

Have you ever wondered what happened to Jack Torrance at the end of Stephen King’s horror classic, ‘The Shining’?

Ever wanted to beat the famous Overlook maze? Now you can! Return to the Overlook Hotel and find out what’s happening there this festive season!

Enjoy an exact recreation of the famous Overlook maze!

Available in easy, medium and hard difficulty!

Look for Easter eggs and locations from Stanley Kubrick’s classic film. Just make sure to stay away from room 237!

Gameplay

The main focus of the game is exploring the Overlook maze—a faithful and detailed recreation of this iconic hotel (although it only appears in the film)—which requires orientation and problem-solving skills. Christmas at the Overlook is designed with simple and accessible control mechanics, allowing anyone to play without difficulty. There are no complex combat or inventory management systems. Since it is set during Christmas, there are several details that refer to this time of year.

The game offers three difficulty settings—easy, medium, and hard—each of which modifies the complexity of the maze and, possibly, the behavior of elements that interact with the player, such as the ghost in Room 237 and additional obstacles. The difficulty setting is a tool to provide replay value, since the same maze content can be explored in different ways, depending on the level chosen.

While exploring the maze and the hotel, players can look for hidden references that are direct nodes to the The Shining film and other elements of the adaptation of Stephen King’s work. These references can include visual items, text, or even small in-game challenges. At the end, there is a reward for the player, which could be a bonus scene or a themed surprise related to Christmas or the movie, but it is not clear what it consists of.

Trivia

• Originally created as part of a three-day game jam called “Winter,” Christmas at the Overlook was later updated with several improvements. Developer James Smart aimed to provide a fun, Christmassy homage to the horror classic, incorporating a lighthearted tone.
• The game features a cover by Kevin Bias of the Main Title from The Shining, originally composed by Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind and official to the film. It’s a song in a style that has undoubtedly inspired synthwave.
• James Smart acknowledged in response to feedback that the game was designed as an homage to The Shining, and expressed appreciation for the constructive criticism, noting that the main goal was to create a fun experience rather than a full-blown horror game. This casual approach allows for a different kind of engagement with the source material.
• As mentioned in the gameplay section, the maze only exists in Kubrick’s adaptation of the novel, probably replacing some bushes shaped like animals that eventually come to life in the original The Shining, which is depicted in the excellent 1997 miniseries.
• The events of The Shining take place during the American winter, developing in late October and throughout November, culminating in important events in early December, which suggests that its climax came during the Advent period, but not during Christmas itself. In the book and the miniseries, there are some references to the festivities, such as shopping and Christmas trees, but we cannot say that it is a story that takes place on this important date. So, in this game, the player must have returned to the Overlook at Christmas, but many years after the macabre events at the end of the film, since Jack had already turned into a little skull and such.
• Oh! The Overlook continued to exist only in Kubrick’s adaptation and in the film Doctor Sleep.

More Christmas adventures

• James Smart @ Twitter – Developer’s official profile.
• Christmas at the Overlook @ Gaming Room – Source, with more info and media. In Portuguese.
• Ultimate Santa Battle
• Ice Queen
• Merry Christmas Stickman
• Five Nights at Christmas
• Stickman Santa
• Adam and Eve: Snow
• Palkovil: The Way Home