Protagonist Alex Young wakes in a strange mansion.

Some of these puzzles involve other prisoners, and the ending that players receive depends on how many people they save.

[4] Describing it as "a must play for puzzle fans", Rock Paper Shotgun said the attention to detail necessary to solve the puzzles makes it "almost an immersive sim" and that some of them "feel revelatory to solve".

Though acknowledging that The Tartarus Key is not scary, Rock Paper Shotgun felt it effectively evokes nostalgia for a range of horror franchises.

[5] Slant Magazine, who did not like the narrative elements, said The Tartarus Key "squeaks by on the strength of its puzzles alone".