Ao Oni

Did You Know?

• The player controls Hiroshi as he explores the locked mansion, gathering items and solving puzzles to escape.
• The Aooni begins to chase the player at both random and scripted moments.
• A remaster was released on Steam and Nintendo Switch in 2024 and on PlayStation 5 in 2026.

Plot

They encounter the Aooni, a naked, blueberry-colored giant that pursues them. One by one, Hiroshi's classmates die and become infected with a virus, transforming into additional Aooni. Hiroshi must solve puzzles and evade the monsters to escape.

Development

Aooni was created in 2008 by Japanese indie developer noprops using RPG Maker XP. noprops also developed other puzzle games such as Escape from the Haunted Room and White Room. Four versions of the game were released through 2011, each differing in plot, map layout, and puzzles. A spider-like Oni was planned for the third version but was scrapped due to animation difficulties.

Reception and legacy

Ao Oni received mixed-to-positive reviews. Chloi Rad of Indie Statik praised its solid puzzle design and the Oni's scare factor but criticized the simplistic graphics and story, noting the graphics were merely functional. Italian site Horrormoth gave a negative review but called it a nice way to pass the time. Anastasia Wilds of Screen Rant included Aooni in her list of top 15 best RPG Maker horror games, calling the demon extremely frightful and hard to forget. Christine Angelica Mendoza of Game Rant ranked the demon second in a list of strangest villains in horror games, remarking that its bizarre appearance makes it more laughable than scary. The game has been called probably the most famous horror game created with RPG Maker, with its popularity stemming from effective horror despite simplicity; the background music is cited as key to its chilling atmosphere. It gained a cult following in Japan through Niconico and YouTube, where related videos exceeded 50 million views by 2013. International popularity grew after western YouTubers such as PewDiePie and Markiplier posted playthroughs. Aooni games have collectively accumulated over 34 million downloads, and many fangames have been created. The game is credited with popularizing and influencing RPG Maker horror games; Makoto Sanada (Hoshikuzu KRNKRN), creator of Angels of Death and The Forest of Drizzling Rain, was inspired to make freeware games after learning of Aooni's success.