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16 Horror Games to Look Forward to in 2018

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Well, 2017 is a memory, and there were many great reasons for horror fans to pick up a controller or keyboard. But now 2018 is upon us, and the question is: What’s in store for horror gamers this year? Fret not, we’ve got a whole list of games to keep an eye out for this year. And yes, some of these are technically from 2017 (due to Early Access on Steam and such), but they’re also technically having their final version released this year, so there you go.


Agony – March 30, 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

We’ve been in, well, agony waiting for this game to come out. Originally announced in a Kickstarter back in 2016, the game has gone through setbacks (for good reasons, though), but at least March isn’t too far off. And judging from the game’s Facebook page, things are getting quite interesting.


Hunt: Showdown – Closed Beta January 31st, 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

Hunt: Showdown has had its fair share of turbulence, seeing as the game was announced way back in 2014. After getting a massive overhaul (including a name change), the game looks to be back on track. It still isn’t fully complete, but a Closed Alpha is progress.


System Shock – Q2 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

How sweet would it be to have an overlooked classic like System Shock get a modern update that finally sets things right? Nightdive seems to know what they’re doing, even if they had to take a step back during the switch from Unity to Unreal Engine. Still, the chance to roam Citadel Station once again is worth the wait.


Scorn – October 2018 for PC

As our own John Squires said, Scorn is probably what hell would look like if Giger himself designed it. Scorn is still a ways off, and like Hunt: Showdown, this puppy’s been in development since 2014. Developers Ebb Software can’t be blamed for being complacent, as they’ve stated that they want to “create a broad gameplay experience”. Whether it’ll be ready by October is another story.


Days Gone – 2018 for PlayStation 4

Yet another game that’s been in the works for some time, Days Gone is, according to Sony, on its way this year. A mix of Sons of Anarchy and The Walking Dead, the video from last year’s E3 got a ton of people excited. Hopefully that excitement leads to something other than another delay.


Overkill’s The Walking Dead – Fall 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

Speaking of The Walking Dead, Overkill have been at work on this one for (surprise!) a while now. But with a cool teaser last month, the delays might all be forgiven if the game delivers.


We Happy Few – Summer 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

Yes, this dystopian indie game has already been “released” via Early Access, but it doesn’t receive its official final release until this summer. You can still spring for the rather pricey Collector’s Edition before then. Then there’s also that proposed film in development…


Moons of Madness – Q2/3 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

Rock Pocket Games and their Cthulhu-inspired sci-fi adventurer are going for a character-driven fare mashed up with The Martain, and I can’t say that I couldn’t be more intrigued with the delightful psychological horror the story could hold. It’s a shame that we’ll have to wait a while yet for the game.


State of Decay 2 – 2018 for PC and XBox One

Undead Labs’ State of Decay had flack thrown its way for its lack of co-op multiplayer. That and more looks to have been fixed with the sequel, which will allow players to join up to three friends in their zombie mashing exploits.


Visage – 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

After the demise of P.T., two projects sprung up in an attempt to take its place: Allison Road and Visage. Both projects have been slow to update, with Allison Road being canceled, and then being brought back. Visage, on the other hand, has been steadily progressing (according to its Kickstarter page, at least), and seems set for a release soon.


The Inpatient – January 23, 2018 for PlayStation VR

Yep, it’s about time that this one came out after its two-month delay. Another psychological horror title, it’ll be great to revisit the Until Dawn universe (set sixty years prior to the original game), this time in VR!


Call of Cthulhu: The Official Video Game – 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

The other Cthulhu game scheduled this year, even though the official website lists its release date as “to be announced”. Based on pen-and-paper RPGs, the game will blend psychological and Lovecraftian horror elements with its gameplay, tasking players with solving the mystery behind the death of an entire family, which eventually is revealed to be linked to the revival of Cthulhu.


DayZ – 2018 PC, XBox One and (potentially) PlayStation 4

Bohemia Interactive are pushing their game to be released this year, though when 1.0 is going to be out isn’t clear (despite heading out of Early Access). Then there are those XBox One and PlayStation 4 ports (even though the PS4 wasn’t mentioned in the dev’s post on Steam) and the missed beta. But good on the team for acknowledging the latter.


The Forest – 2018 for PC and PlayStation 4

Set to come out of Early Access this year, there was that PlayStation 4 trailer last month that gave some reprieve to fans who have been waiting since 2015 to get their hands on this one. Plus, who doesn’t want to kill cannibals?


Vampyr – Q1/Q2 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

Dontnod Entertainment seem to know their way around storytelling thanks to titles like Remember Me and Life is Strange. So if being a vampire in London during the midst of the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic didn’t sound cool enough from the start, then adding in some well-crafted story can’t be a bad thing.


Remothered: Tormented Fathers – 2018 for PC, XBox One and PlayStation 4

Darril Arts’ psychological horror creepfest Remothered will be coming out of Early Access on January 30th, which is a plus for PC gamers. Unfortunately, XBox One and PlayStation 4 owners will have to wait for a bit before the port. If you’re the impatient type, you can grab the game on Steam for a discount before the release date.

Editorials

‘Leprechaun Returns’ – The Charm of the Franchise’s Legacy Sequel

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leprechaun returns

The erratic Leprechaun franchise is not known for sticking with a single concept for too long. The namesake (originally played by Warwick Davis) has gone to L.A., Las Vegas, space, and the ‘hood (not once but twice). And after an eleven-year holiday since the Davis era ended, the character received a drastic makeover in a now-unmentionable reboot. The critical failure of said film would have implied it was time to pack away the green top hat and shillelagh, and say goodbye to the nefarious imp. Instead, the Leprechaun series tried its luck again.

The general consensus for the Leprechaun films was never positive, and the darker yet blander Leprechaun: Origins certainly did not sway opinions. Just because the 2014 installment took itself seriously did not mean viewers would. After all, creator Mark Jones conceived a gruesome horror-comedy back in the early nineties, and that format is what was expected of any future ventures. So as horror legacy sequels (“legacyquels”) became more common in the 2010s, Leprechaun Returns followed suit while also going back to what made the ‘93 film work. This eighth entry echoed Halloween (2018) by ignoring all the previous sequels as well as being a direct continuation of the original. Even ardent fans can surely understand the decision to wipe the slate clean, so to speak.

Leprechaun Returns “continued the [franchise’s] trend of not being consistent by deciding to be consistent.” The retconning of Steven Kostanski and Suzanne Keilly’s film was met with little to no pushback from the fandom, who had already become accustomed to seeing something new and different with every chapter. Only now the “new and different” was familiar. With the severe route of Origins a mere speck in the rearview mirror, director Kotanski implemented a “back to basics” approach that garnered better reception than Zach Lipovsky’s own undertaking. The one-two punch of preposterous humor and grisly horror was in full force again.

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Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

With Warwick Davis sitting this film out — his own choice — there was the foremost challenge of finding his replacement. Returns found Davis’ successor in Linden Porco, who admirably filled those blood-stained, buckled shoes. And what would a legacy sequel be without a returning character? Jennifer Aniston obviously did not reprise her final girl role of Tory Redding. So, the film did the next best thing and fetched another of Lubdan’s past victims: Ozzie, the likable oaf played by Mark Holton. Returns also created an extension of Tory’s character by giving her a teenage daughter, Lila (Taylor Spreitler).

It has been twenty-five years since the events of the ‘93 film. The incident is unknown to all but its survivors. Interested in her late mother’s history there in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, Lila transferred to the local university and pledged a sorority — really the only one on campus — whose few members now reside in Tory Redding’s old home. The farmhouse-turned-sorority-house is still a work in progress; Lila’s fellow Alpha Epsilon sisters were in the midst of renovating the place when a ghost of the past found its way into the present.

The Psycho Goreman and The Void director’s penchant for visceral special effects is noted early on as the Leprechaun tears not only into the modern age, but also through poor Ozzie’s abdomen. The portal from 1993 to 2018 is soaked with blood and guts as the Leprechaun forces his way into the story. Davis’ iconic depiction of the wee antagonist is missed, however, Linden Porco is not simply keeping the seat warm in case his predecessor ever resumes the part. His enthusiastic performance is accentuated by a rotten-looking mug that adds to his innate menace.

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Pictured: Taylor Spreitler, Pepi Sonuga, and Sai Bennett as Lila, Katie and Rose in Leprechaun Returns.

The obligatory fodder is mostly young this time around. Apart from one luckless postman and Ozzie — the premature passing of the latter character removed the chance of caring about anyone in the film — the Leprechaun’s potential prey are all college aged. Lila is this story’s token trauma kid with caregiver baggage; her mother thought “monsters were always trying to get her.” Lila’s habit of mentioning Tory’s mental health problem does not make a good first impression with the resident mean girl and apparent alcoholic of the sorority, Meredith (Emily Reid). Then there are the nicer but no less cursorily written of the Alpha Epsilon gals: eco-conscious and ex-obsessive Katie (Pepi Sonuga), and uptight overachiever Rose (Sai Bennett). Rounding out the main cast are a pair of destined-to-die bros (Oliver Llewellyn Jenkins, Ben McGregor). Lila and her peers range from disposable to plain irritating, so rooting for any one of them is next to impossible. Even so, their overstated personalities make their inevitable fates more satisfying.

Where Returns excels is its death sequences. Unlike Jones’ film, this one is not afraid of killing off members of the main cast. Lila, admittedly, wears too much plot armor, yet with her mother’s spirit looming over her and the whole story — comedian Heather McDonald put her bang-on Aniston impersonation to good use as well as provided a surprisingly emotional moment in the film — her immunity can be overlooked. Still, the other characters’ brutal demises make up for Lila’s imperviousness. The Leprechaun’s killer set-pieces also happen to demonstrate the time period, seeing as he uses solar panels and a drone in several supporting characters’ executions. A premortem selfie and the antagonist’s snarky mention of global warming additionally add to this film’s particular timestamp.

Critics were quick to say Leprechaun Returns did not break new ground. Sure, there is no one jetting off to space, or the wacky notion of Lubdan becoming a record producer. This reset, however, is still quite charming and entertaining despite its lack of risk-taking. And with yet another reboot in the works, who knows where the most wicked Leprechaun ever to exist will end up next.


Horror contemplates in great detail how young people handle inordinate situations and all of life’s unexpected challenges. While the genre forces characters of every age to face their fears, it is especially interested in how youths might fare in life-or-death scenarios.

The column Young Blood is dedicated to horror stories for and about teenagers, as well as other young folks on the brink of terror.

Leprechaun Returns movie

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

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