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These Are the Horror Games of August
Pucker your butts, because we’re nearing the end of another quiet summer. August is where things start heating up, then September brings SOMA and I’ll have to disappear with it into the murky depths for a few weeks. There aren’t very many horror games that have been confirmed to be arriving in what’s left of 2015, but that can change rather quickly, especially with Gamescom coming up in August and Tokyo Game Show in September.
Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture
The Chinese Room is returning to their roots in thoughtful, story-driven games with their next project, a spiritual successor to Dear Esther called Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture. Unlike the large majority of apocalypse-themed video games we get each year, this is a quiet apocalypse. Fans of atmospheric games should keep an eye on this one.
Release Date: August 11 (PS4)
Zombi
The rumors are true — Ubisoft is bringing their Wii U exclusive survival horror game ZombiU to current-gen consoles. It doesn’t look like a complete overhaul, so I’m just going to call Zombi an improved port. Sadly, the multiplayer was dropped, so this apocalypse just got considerably lonelier.
Release Date: August 18 (PC, PS4, XBO)
Resident Evil Revelations 2
It took longer than I would’ve liked for Capcom to start working toward earning back the trust of their fans who had endured the hugely disappointing Resident Evil 6 and Operation Raccoon City, and for the most part, they’ve done a stellar job in cleaning up the series’ tarnished reputation.
One of the best things to come out of all this has been the episodic spin-off, Resident Evil Revelations 2, which released earlier this year on nearly every platform except the PlayStation Vita. That changes in just a few short weeks.
Release Date: August 18 (VITA)
Until Dawn
Continuing the string of PlayStation exclusive horror games coming up in August is the long-awaited arrival of Supermassive Games’ teen slasher Until Dawn. This will be the first of the slasher games to release, so it’ll be interesting to see how it fares as that will set the bar for what comes next, including Summer Camp, Splatter Camp, Last Year and the Friday the 13th game.
Release Date: August 25 (PS4)
Fran Bow
The 2D horror adventure game Fran Bow is one of my most anticipated indies of the year. Killmonday Games started working on the game three years ago, and when it releases, it’ll be almost exactly two years after its crowdfunding campaign successfully raised over $28,000. I’m sure the 1,099 backers who helped fund it won’t be disappointed.
Release Date: August 27 (PC, Mac, Linux)
Unloved
I had no idea Unloved was a thing until I started putting together this article. This reimagining of the popular Doom 2 mod of the same name brings with it vastly improved visuals — courtesy of Unreal Engine 4 — as well as co-op that will support up to four players.
Release Date: TBA August (PC)
We have the Jason Universe to thank for the recent return of Jason Voorhees, with the short film Sweet Revenge and Jason’s arrival in Dead by Daylight helping to bring the hockey mask-wearing horror icon back into our lives. What else is planned, you ask?
In a chat with Variety this week, Jason Universe’s Robbie Barsamian teases that everything we’ve seen up to this point is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Jason’s return.
“We’ve been busy behind the scenes laying the foundation that everyone is finally starting to see come to life, but this is just the tip of the iceberg,” Barsamian teases.
“We have a thrilling lineup of new projects that we can’t wait to share more details on soon.”
Barsamian also notes during the chat with Variety, “We want to give fans fresh takes on what they love most about Jason and continue to expand his world in authentic ways that resonate with horror fans today.” One of those expansions will take the form of the upcoming Peacock and A24 series “Crystal Lake,” which stars Linda Cardellini as Pamela Voorhees.
“The Crystal Lake TV series will take fans back in time to tell the story of how Pamela Voorhees came to be the mother of all slashers,” Barsamian tells Variety this week.
“Crystal Lake” premieres October 15 on Peacock.
Callum Vinson (“Chucky”) is playing young Jason in “Crystal Lake,” which will tell the origin story of the masked slasher who has stalked the grounds of Crystal Lake for decades.
Last year, the Jason Universe team had teased that a new movie and a new video game are top priorities for the near future. But at this time we have no updates on either front.
Stay tuned for more from the Jason Universe.
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