So I finished Whispering Willows earlier. I liked it, but I'm glad that I bought it in a bundle, because it didn't feel like a $15 game. It's definitely one of those games that has a cool concept but flawed execution.
The gameplay itself is kind of dull for the most part, and it really isn't why I enjoyed the game. Most of the game is just the main character, Elena, walking around and finding things to interact with and/or collect, along with using an amulet to interact with spirits via astral projection. You can also possess things here and there, like in Geist or Ghost Trick, etc., but it's much more limited. There are also a few puzzles here and there, but they're pretty basic and straightforward for the most part, even for the achievements that take exploration to find. To be fair, I mostly found two of said achievements because I got lost at one point and had to explore most of the map, but other than that, they're mostly simple
The reason I was lost was because I completely forgot about a building I passed by near the beginning of the game, and I had just found an item that would allow me to enter that building for the first time. A good portion of the game is like that, finding a new item, whether it be a key or a knife, and returning to old areas to get another item. AKA a good portion of the game is made up of multiple fetch quests. There's also a slightly annoying design choice where you can't run in buildings. Originally you could only run in two areas (I think, at least), but running in all of the outside ares was patched in more recently. I don't know how I would have managed to get all of the achievements if had not been patched, because the walk speed is really slow, especially for bigger areas. I understand that Elena doesn't run for a major portion of the game because doing so would make the game even shorter than it already is (and slowly walking through dilapidated areas does add to the atmospheric vibes), but it was still irritating at points nonetheless.
The story is pretty basic, and the writing is adequate, if a little dry. There's some Native American folklore involve, and the game handles it pretty decently, weaving it into the narrative in a way that doesn't seem forced and/or cheesy. Some of the more important characters really don't stay around for long, they just sort of leave after fifteen~thirty minutes or so. Their short stay during the game is somewhat made up for by the numerous notes you can find, which provides a little bit of backstory for them. The backstory is probably one of the better parts of the game, honestly. It definitely makes the characters feel more fleshed out than they were in the main story alone. Also, most of the other ghosts are just there for flavor text, so that's a little disappointing.
Visually, the game looks great. You can explore rundown, dilapidated mansion rooms, dank catacombs, and a menacing garden maze, among others. And all of them look exactly like you would expect them to, each area unique. The flavor text for the rooms generally tend to add to the atmosphere, making the game a little creepier, unlike the ghosts. The different character animations are smooth, the light direction is mostly solid, it's just all around great. The one negative thing I can say about the visual aspect are that the cutscenes leave a lot to be desired. They're basically just still images that change every few seconds with background noise, no animation at all, which is a shame, considering how well the rest of the game looks. The ambient noises and music are also spot on, and add just as much to the atmosphere as the visual do.
Probably the most disappointing thing in the whole game is the lack of intimidating enemies. Instead, you need to avoid spider...crab...things, bushes with arms, and a single dark spirit that chases you in the catacombs. And that's mostly it, though you can die by one other method in a basement, and that was actually pretty cool. There are no real penalties for dying either, since the checkpoints are very generous and forgiving. It's a very easy game with basically nothing other than a few puzzles, slow walking, and exploration to slow you down.
All of that being said, I still recommend getting it if it interests you, especially in tomorrow's/day after tomorrow's new Groupees be mine bundle.