Here’s the breakdown of what you get:

Watch 1 hour:

• Profile Card Customization Items
  • Profile Icon – Moon Smile
  • Profile Background – Moon Light

Watch 2 hours:

• Kitchen Knife Tint
  • Michael – Kitchen Knife Tint

Watch 4 hours:

• Tanya & Marcus Outfit Tints
  • Tanya – Outfit 1 Tint
  • Marcus – Outfit 1 Tint

Of course, there’s a little more you have to do in order to earn the cosmetics. You’ll simply need to link your Twitch account with IllFonic, as well as link your platform specific Halloween: The Game account. From there, watch any participating stream that is streaming Halloween: The Game to earn the drop. You will need to claim your drop before being eligible for the next drop, and redeem the code via your IllFonic Account.

And just in case you missed it, the Civilian Costumes Pack 1 will launch on October 27, alongside two new Civilians, the Halloween 5 Farm Tower Map, and two Michael Myers skins inspired by Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers and Halloween 2018. The costume pack, two new Civilians, and both Michael Myers skins will set you back $9.99 each, while the map will be available for free.

Halloween: The Game is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store.

The post Ahead of Tomorrow’s DLC, ‘Halloween: The Game’ Introduces Twitch Drops appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Following a successful three-week global playtest, Demo 2.0 introduces new gameplay systems and improvements shaped by community feedback. A new tutorial stage helps operatives prepare for the horrors ahead, while refined UI, customizable keyboard controls, and ongoing multiplayer optimizations aim to deliver a smoother co-op experience. Even death isn’t the end with the new MiRO robot mechanic, which lets fallen teammates continue supporting their allies, while the Offline S.O.M.A system introduces another layer of tension by activating in response to nearby noise and player actions.

In CODE EXIT, players take on the role of Hermes operatives sent into Pantheon to restore critical systems, secure hidden data, and make it back alive. Play solo or join up to three other players to explore isolated facilities, activate terminals, bypass sealed doors, and complete objectives while Minerva watches your every move. Repeat the same strategies too often, and she may learn to use them against you.

CODE EXIT will launch on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store in 2027.

The post ‘CODE EXIT’ Demo 2.0 Available Now on Steam [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

That starts with the new premium “Florida Episode” campaign DLC, featuring three new expansive maps and four new characters. The Viral State update will also include free weapons and Daily Challenge upgrades for all players, as well as the new premium Vacation Heat Character Skins Pack DLC.

Darkness envelopes the Sunshine State. Crowds of happy beachgoers and tourists have been replaced by swarms of ravenous Zekes, ready to devour your vacation! Choose between four new seasoned survivors – Val, Caesar, Moe and Chris – to defend the Alligator State from the hordes of infected monstrosities overwhelming its theme parks, bars and other hallowed locales, including popular vacation destinations like Miami and Key West!

The Viral State Update will include the following mix of free and premium content:

• Premium “Florida Episode” DLC: Launching at $9.99, the “Florida Episode” will feature a brand-new campaign story across three new Florida maps with four new fearless heroes.
• Free Arsenal Upgrades & Perks: Hit the Zekes with the Microgun, World War Z‘s newest heavy weapon, or the light melee Dual Kama weapon, each with their own perks and abilities.
• Free Daily Challenge Reworks: Enjoy a plethora of quality-of-life improvements for Daily Challenges, including a new timer, reworked UI and reroll system, updated challenge descriptions, and the ability to pin challenges for easier accessibility.
• Premium Vacation Heat Character Skins Pack DLC: Available for $4.99, this new set of four cosmetic skins for survivors Hiroiji Okada, Eloise Durand, Angel Flores, and Marine Leblanc is perfect for defending Florida with both style and comfort in the heat.

World War Z is currently available on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series, Xbox One, Steam, and the Epic Games Store.

The post New “Viral State” Update Arrives November 12 for ‘World War Z’ [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

As with other cases (such as Pinhead and the first time around for Stranger Things), any content unlocked before that date will remain available to use in-game. And to further celebrate Chucky’s time in The Fog, the content of the Child’s Play Chapter will be on sale on all platforms starting on Monday, October 26, giving players one final chance to unlock the Character and Cosmetics before they leave the store.

As for Chucky’s perks, as before, if you’ve already unlocked him prior to November 24, they will remain in his bloodweb with the original names and flavour text. For those who have not unlocked Chucky, the perks will appear in the General perk pool to be available to unlock on any other Killer immediately. These General perks will get a name change, however:

• Hex: Two Can Play will be called Hex: Eye For An Eye
• Friends Til the End will be called One Track Mind
• Batteries Included will be called Gaining Steam

The post Chucky and the ‘Child’s Play’ Chapter Leaving ‘Dead by Daylight’ on November 24 appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Running from October 26 until November 16, Halloween Showdown 2026 is a three-week community event built around monster rivalries and player choice. For starters, Villedor has transformed for Halloween, with Día de los Muertos-inspired decorations across the open world and a more traditional Halloween atmosphere in Tower Raid. Halloween-themed enemies also return, making the seasonal takeover more than just a visual change.

But the main draw is that each week, two Halloween creatures face off in a new matchup. Players hunt special enemies, collect Showdown Candies across Villedor and donate them at Baka’s Shop outside the Bazaar to support their chosen side.

By contributing to weekly goals, players can earn a collection of new Psychic weapons, while the monster that receives the most support determines the exclusive Charm available at the end of that week. Reaching both weapon goals allows players to unlock the two main rewards.

To top it off, Dying Light 2: Stay Human will also be featured in major platform promotions and special offers during the Halloween period, with discounts of up to 80%.

Dying Light 2 is available on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series, Xbox One, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store.

The post Halloween Showdown Returns to ‘Dying Light 2’ [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The team explains, “When creating the Halloween (2018) mask in Halloween: The Game, our team partnered with Academy Award winner Christopher Nelson and used meticulous 3D mask film scans to ensure every last terrifying detail was captured with precision.”

The skin will launch October 27 alongside the Civilian Costumes Pack 1, two new Civilians, the Halloween 5 Farm Tower Map, and the aforementioned Michael Myers skin inspired by Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers. The costume pack, two new Civilians, and both Michael Myers skins will set you back $9.99 each, while the map will be available for free.

Halloween: The Game is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store.

The post ‘Halloween: The Game’ Takes You Back to 2018 With New Michael Myers Skin [Video] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

This update also brings rebalanced Escalation Therapy progression, a new high-difficulty Variator, and a Favorites feature for customization menus, alongside additional gameplay adjustments and fixes.

The new Community Event “Escape The Facility” sees players searching for Escape Intel Schematics in order to leave the Trials with them in their inventory. Every phase of the Community Event unlocks exclusive rewards for participating players, while reaching each milestone phase will get you one step closer to the possibility of Escape.

Meanwhile, the new Limited-Time Event runs through December 8th, and sees players participating in Program “Geister”, an experiment in convergent hallucinatory therapy designed to amplify unforeseen side effects of the Trials. Surviving subjects will learn to contribute to a morally hygienic Trial Environment through biohazard collection, with secondary objectives to complete for extra rewards.

A brand new Geister Catalog is also available for the duration of the event. Players can spend their acquired Geister Event Tokens in the Catalog to unlock exclusive rewards. Once the event concludes, the Catalog will be removed and any unused Event Tokens will be forfeited.

The update also includes several additions, fixes and balancing tweaks:

• The “Geister 2025” Catalog is now available for purchase in the Murkoff Store.

• Added new Weeklies to the Weekly Escalation pool.

• Reagent customization is now preserved after Relapses, except after the first Relapse.

• Lock Breaker Amp: Bricks now break instantly after unlocking a padlocked container or door.

• Reagents can now look behind them while assisting teammates in the Incapacitated or Dead state.

• Added a setting to enable or disable the new controller minigame feature.

• Trials adjustments:

• Fund the Campaign: Reworked the escape phase difficulty and exit timer based on objective completion.

• Eliminate the Past: Reworked the escape phase difficulty and exit timer based on objective completion.

• Battery Stations no longer count as light areas for player detection.

• Other general fixes and improvements.

You can read up on the patch notes here. The Outlast Trials is available on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation, and Xbox.

The post New Season Update for ‘The Outlast Trials’ Brings Back the “Geister” Program [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The skin will launch October 27 alongside the Civilian Costumes Pack 1, two new Civilians, the Halloween 5 Farm Tower Map, and the Michael Myers skin inspired by Halloween 2018. The costume pack, two new Civilians, and both Michael Myers skins will set you back $9.99 each, while the map will be available for free.

Halloween: The Game is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store.

The post IllFonic Introduces Scythe-Wielding ‘Halloween 5’ Michael Myers Skin for ‘Halloween: The Game’ [Teaser] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The demo features one game map and matchmaking functionality, and will remain available until October 26. The full game will be further enhanced with new maps, player roles & progression, gameplay mechanics, narrative content, and improvements based on player feedback.

Inspired by John Carpenter’s The Thing, Secret Hitler, and Alien: Isolation, players in Mimic must escape the crumbling Icarus spacecraft while rooting out who amongst them is secretly a mimic: an alien creature that can disguise itself as a fellow human survivor. Players must solve various objectives to create their escape route while surviving against two sinister threats pursuing them. Meanwhile, as the titular Mimic, you’ll hunt from the shadows, hiding beneath the flesh of a friend.

With five players in online matchmaking and up to ten in customizable private lobbies, Mimic aims to blend tense survival, social deduction, and dynamic mechanics into a highly replayable multiplayer experience.

Unlike other asymmetrical multiplayer horror games that pit survivors against a sole antagonist, players in Mimic are assigned secret roles that dictate their win conditions. Crew members must repair the ship’s vital systems and identify the alien threat before it’s too late. Meanwhile, the player assigned the agent role has ulterior motives of the corporate kind unbeknownst to the rest of the crew that doesn’t prioritize their survival. Lastly, the sole purpose of the mimic, is to blend in, gain trust, and strike when survivors are most vulnerable. But the mimic isn’t the only threat at play: an NPC android roams the halls of the Icarus, indiscriminately hunting all organic lifeforms who could be the mimic in disguise.

Making things even more interesting is the fact that players do not have weapons, and must rely on their wits and survival instincts. Whether with pure intent or selfish gain in mind, players have the power to influence the android’s pursuit, sabotage escape efforts, and sow chaos amongst the ranks.

In addition to PC, Mimic will also launch for the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series once the game exits Early Access next year.

The post Ahead of Launch Next Week, Check Out the Demo for Social Deduction Game ‘Mimic’ appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Players can spring for new Killer outfits that transform The Artist, The Dredge and The Nurse into Lilith, Belial and Mephisto, respectively. The outfits also feature voicework from Diablo voice actors Caroline Faber, Ray Porter and Steve Blum.

Meanwhile, select Survivors get their chance to combat Diablo’s minions with Zarina Kassir, David King and Taurie Cain having outfits that transform them into the Sorceress, Barbarian and Necromancer.

Meanwhile, Dead by Daylight is once again pulling out all of the stops during the Haunted by Daylight event, which kicked off last week. Players have plenty of goodies up for grabs, including Tricks and Treats Collection Outfits for Shane Wiigwaas and The Hillbilly, Survivor Shirts for Sable Adam, and Jeff, and new Killer Masks for The Singularity, The Unknown, and The Trapper.

That’s in addition to the return of the Hallowed Blight Collection, which this year features Jason Voorhees in an appropriately-grotesque outfit. Jason is joined by The Houndmaster and The Knight, which also sport new Blighted Outfits.

The post ‘Diablo’ Collection for ‘Dead by Daylight’ Now Available [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The Special Halloween Civilian Costumes Pack, includes 14 unique outfits (one per Civilian), with a total of 42 tints. The costumes will be available alongside a new map inspired by Halloween 5 in the Farm Tower Map, along with two new Civilians in Eugene Kelly and Michelle Blanton. The costume pack and two new Civilians will set you back $9.99 each, while the map is available for free.

The big draw, of course, will be the two new skins for Michael Myers: one being inspired by his look from Halloween (2018), and the other from Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers. The Myers skins will be available for $9.99 each.

Halloween: The Game is available digitally on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store. The game is also available physically on PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series.

The new DLC launches on October 27.

The post IllFonic Teases Plethora of Civilian Costumes Ahead of Next Week’s DLC for ‘Halloween: The Game’ [Video] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

“Bringing The Wolf Among Us to Nintendo Switch for the very first time is an exciting moment for us,” reads the update from the devteam. “We don’t take this lightly. With that in mind, we’re taking some additional time to ensure we deliver the experience Nintendo players deserve.

“The Wolf Among Us Remastered will launch as planned on October 29 for PlayStation, Xbox, and PC. The Nintendo Switch version will follow at a later date.

“We truly appreciate all the support you’ve given us along the way and want to make sure your first trip to Fabletown on Nintendo Switch is worth the wait!

“We’ll share an updated release date for the Switch as soon as we can.”

Rebuilt and refined for a new generation, the Remastered edition introduces players to the world of Fabletown, while welcoming longtime fans back to where it all began: Bigby’s first case, where a grisly murder reveals that something far darker is lurking beneath the surface of the city. Across five episodes—“Episode 1: Faith,” “Episode 2: Smoke and Mirrors,” “Episode 3: A Crooked Mile,” “Episode 4: In Sheep’s Clothing,” and “Episode 5: Cry Wolf”—players investigate crimes, question suspects, and make difficult choices that shape the course of the story in a mature noir thriller where every decision matters.

Meanwhile, the next entry in the series, The Wolf Among Us 2, is currently in development for release next year.

The post Switch Version of ‘The Wolf Among Us Remastered’ Delayed From Original October 29 Release appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

“For those that waited until today to pick up Control Resonant as a physical release and to those that have already ventured into our warped version of Manhattan, we want to thank you,” said Mikael Kasurinen, Creative Director of Control Resonant. “We couldn’t ask for better fans, and seeing all of the reactions to this game has been a career highlight. Thank you for joining us on this journey and if today is your very first time playing, you’re in for an epic adventure that was crafted throughout years of passion.”

Fans can also pre-order the previously-announced iam8bit x Control Resonant merchandise collection through October 26, at iam8bit.com, with shipping expected in Q1 2027. The collection includes Corrupted Metro apparel, a Billboard Bumper Stickers Pack, an Atlantis Café Espresso Cup Set, three Federal Bureau of Control propaganda posters, and an FBC Magnet Set. The posters are 1:1 recreations of their in-game counterparts, printed on 16.5″ x 23.3″ poster stock.

The sequel to the 2019 hit, Control Resonant is also available digitally for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PC via Steam and Epic Games Store. And in case you missed it, check out Aaron’s review of the game.

The post ‘Control Resonant’ Crosses One Million Units Sold; Physical Editions Now Available appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

As with the previous entries, the latest trailer, “Act III: The Man”, reveals another fragment of the investigation for the game’s protagonist, Mila, as well as inviting viewers to piece together the mystery as it unfolds.

From the creators of Martha is Dead, When Sirens Fall Silent casts players as Mila, a policewoman in early 1990s Rome, Italy. Haunted by a past she’s desperate to escape, Mila is thrust into a high-profile case of kidnappings and murders. As the investigation unravels, you must not only save her from herself, but also from being consumed by the violence, mystery and confusion.

Featuring a branching, multi-layered narrative dialogue system, with a huge focus on verbal and emotional interaction, investigation and subsequent choices, players will be faced with difficult real-world topics. LKA aims to “pull no punches” with its story, but also hints at a few surprises along the way.

When Sirens Fall Silent is currently in development for PC via Steam, GOG, and the Epic Games Store.

The post PS5 and Xbox Editions of ‘When Sirens Fall Silent’ Announced [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Available for purchase as a two-character bundle for $9.99 USD, as with the other Civilians, Eugene and Michelle carry their own unique traits to help even the odds against Michael.

Eugene Kelly was a fledgling kid genius until he found his true calling… being a game master for his tabletop role playing game campaigns. Due to his pesky habit of being too smart for his own good and acting as an exasperating know-it-all, he was never the most popular kid in school. When he wasn’t tutoring football captain Thomas in calculus or being ignored by the girls, Eugene found solace in fantasy– the library providing a haven for him to pursue his true passions.

​His love for tabletop games and crafting new, imaginary worlds eventually distracted from his other ambitions, causing his grades to dip and making college an afterthought. Now, he spends his time in Haddonfield working a dead-end job. As long as he has his campaign, he’s not complaining.

Eugene’s Unique Trait, Lurker, allows him to linger in bushes to increase both stamina regen and stalk degradation.

Meanwhile, Michelle Blanton is Haddonfield’s local artist. Visiting the Chicago Art Institute in elementary school ignited a passion in Michelle that forever changed the trajectory of her life and squashed her parents’ hopes of her becoming a rich, successful doctor. Michelle paints her own path, even if the residents of Haddonfield think she’s a little bit different.

​It doesn’t matter that Michelle still lives at home with her parents two years after graduation because she’s on a journey to create works that reflect her unique perspective and vibrant imagination. Her bedroom, which doubles as her art studio, showcases her colorful and curious personality. Every nook and cranny is filled with half-finished sculptures, charcoal etchings, comic books, storyboards for the weird experimental animated short she plans on making, and anything that inspires her. Now the biggest question is, will this artist become Michael’s next grisly work of art?

Michelle’s Unique Trait, Therapeutic, grants a percentage of health gained from health items to those in her close vicinity.

The Civilian Characters Pack will release alongside the Halloween 5 Farm Tower Map, as well as two paid Michael Myers skins.

Halloween: The Game is available digitally on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store. The game is also available physically on PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series.

The post ‘Halloween: The Game’ Teases New Civilians Ahead of DLC Launch on October 27 [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Since launching in Early Access back in February, Question has continued to expand and refine The Killing Stone with new optional story content, gameplay balancing, quality-of-life improvements, and updates informed by player feedback. These include additional questlines, adjustments to card decks and combat encounters, and improvements to the game’s bargaining and reward systems. With the full 1.0 launch, players can access the fourth and final chapter, The Reckoning, bringing together the decks they’ve crafted throughout the first three chapters to take part in climactic rituals that determine the fate of the Svangard clan.

“Our intrepid Early Access community asked for more devious, specific cards to support their personal strategies to beat the Devil. They also requested a more intricate narrative, more voice acting from Emma Gregory and Liam O’Brien, and optional story choices which alter the endings for our cursed little family. For the past several months, we have worked to make their dark wishes come true,” said Question’s co-owner and narrative director Jordan Thomas. “We’re deeply grateful to them for helping shape The Killing Stone into the engrossing, tempting — and unique experience it is today.”

The Killing Stone is a duel of diabolical wit and strategy – which invites you to Beat the Devil at his own game. Your mission: travel to the Arctic Circle in order to save a cursed family from the clutches of demons. It features a first-person perspective, enchanted game board figurines which come to life with dazzling effects, and haunting audio. Featuring the vocal talents of Emma Gregory (Baldur’s Gate 3) and Liam O’Brien (Critical Role), the entire story, including their voiced dialogue, can be played in authentic 17th-century English or a more contemporary style.

The post Occult Horror Deckbuilder ‘The Killing Stone’ Exits Early Access, Fully Launches on October 21 [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The pack includes three blueprints, delivering early unlocks for three unique, swappable backpack upgrades. Blueprints are a new feature in METRO 2039, encouraging exploration and allowing you to craft upgrades and attachments for weapons and gear. The pre-order bonus gives players a head start to The Stranger’s journey into the Metro, but choose wisely: you can only equip one upgrade at a time.

Here’s what you get:

• Equipment Specialist Pouch – For gunsmiths who want to focus on crafting advanced weapons and gear more quickly.
• Chemtech Specialist Pouch – For explorers who want to brave radioactive areas with more gas mask filters and cleaner, more reliable equipment.
• Munitions Specialist Pouch – For marksmen looking to find and use rarer, more powerful ammunition types in their firearms.

Three editions of METRO 2039 are available to pre-order across all platforms, with the Standard, Deluxe, and Collector’s Edition each including the full game. Both the Standard and Deluxe Editions are available digitally and physically.

Also, the Deluxe Edition will include METRO 2039’s Story Expansion DLC, which will arrive post-launch. More details on the expansion are to be shared in the future.

Digital Deluxe Edition owners will also be getting the digital art book and the official soundtrack, while physical Deluxe Edition owners will receive an exclusive SteelBook, hardback art book and exclusive packaging.

The Collector’s Edition, which includes the physical Deluxe Edition, features the wearable replica Spartan Helmet.

METRO 2039 will launch February 4th, 2027 for the Xbox Series, PlayStation 5, Steam and the Epic Games Store.

The post Pre-Orders Now Live for ‘METRO 2039’; Pre-Order Bonus Includes Specialist Pack [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Located on the outskirts of Haddonfield, the Tower Farm “hosts a passionate group of farmers who spend their days tending to their fields and preparing for the next harvest.” Compared to the quiet and cozy Haddonfield Town Center, Tower Farm serves as the perfect rustic getaway.

As the seasons change, the farmers prepare their produce and get ready for the annual harvest festival. Corn and pumpkins are staple crops in these parts, and supply a huge source of food for Haddonfield and the neighboring towns. To celebrate Fall’s arrival and the upcoming Halloween festivities, Tower Farm hosts a seasonal celebration for the whole community. Families travel far and wide to carve pumpkins, listen to live music, and maybe even grab a rustic souvenir. Attending the harvest festival at Tower Farm is a wholesome rite of passage for the citizens of Haddonfield.

While nothing beats the sunset view at Tower Farm, the sprawling fields that surround the area can be quite eerie come nightfall. Some locals even claim to see shadowy figures moving amongst the corn stalks. Between the farmhouses, historic barns packed with farming tools, surrounding fields, and irrigation structures placed at the intersection of several weathered county roads, there are plenty of places for visitors to explore. And for the ill-prepared, even more opportunities for a face-to-face encounter with the Boogeyman.

Next to Tower Farm lies an established trailer park where many employees and locals wind down after a hard day’s work. With an on-site laundromat and even a convenience store perfect for late-night snacks, this trailer park has plenty of worthwhile amenities.

In addition to the Tower Farm map, players can expect new versions of The Shape with the version of Michael from Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers and the version of Michael from Halloween 2018. IllFonic will also be introducing two new Civilians, a very special Halloween costume pack, and more in this first DLC, which will arrive on October 27.

Halloween: The Game is available digitally on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store. You can also pick up the physical version of the game on PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series.

The post ‘Halloween 5’ Tower Farm Map Revealed Ahead of First ‘Halloween: The Game’ DLC Drop [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Section 9 co-founder Marcus Ottvall took some time to answer a few questions about the making of this unique game.

Little Nightmares was a moody puzzle platformer that guided you through strange areas with horrific creatures, but End of Abyss felt closer to something like an isometric Metroidvania, forcing you to explore the various locations to continue to progress. Even though the games are very different gameplay-wise, the previous experience was valuable to getting End of Abyss off the ground, especially given Section 9’s smaller team size.

“We hope that we have learned a lot from the previous projects we’ve worked on. We are using a similar workflow but tried to tweak it for our preference to make things as effective and forward-moving as we could for our smaller team. The approach for this game came out of a desire to create something that had a lot of different gameplay functions while traversing an atmospheric world.”

When starting the project, the team looked to some of their favorite media of the past for inspiration on not only what tone they wanted to set, but what kind of gameplay they wanted to explore.

“We grew up with different types of media from the ’80s and ’90s and gravitated towards horror movies like The Thing, Alien, anime like Akira and Ghost in the Shell, and video games like The Legend of Zelda and Metroid. Those older video games and movies put a higher demand on manual craftsmanship, which we think gives them a certain style that we like. There are other inspirations as well, but those, along with some others, are the ones that were top of mind  and kept us largely on track.”

Not only does the game focus heavily on transversal, giving you tools and abilities to slowly make different parts of the map available as the game goes on, but it asks you to confront enemies in a manner akin to a twin-stick shooter, albeit with a slower, more methodical pace. Ottvall says that this came from an earlier version of the project that had a slightly different focus.

“The project actually started off as a more action-focused game, but as we chose to explore a more atmospheric style and combined that with the semi-top-down action that we already had, we found that to be a pretty unique combination. From there, we tried to find the balance between the action, adventure, and horror.”

One of the things that impressed me most about the game was how little it felt like it held your hand as you made your way around the world. But like any good game, if you look close enough, you could see the deft hand of the designer subtly guiding you. After starting off with a relatively linear section, it opens up much more, allowing the player to figure their own way through the game.

“From pretty early on, we wanted the project to start off linear with hints of exploration, then have largely free exploration in the middle of the game, to then go back to have a more linear end game. Towards the end, the player would be able to choose to go to the very end or to go back and explore more areas that they had seen hints of, but couldn’t reach before. With this in mind, we tried setting a scenario that would present this option to players while giving them some side scenarios that would make it interesting to backtrack to. Since we hadn’t done this type of game before, we had to explore ways to do this, but once we set that premise, we didn’t deviate from it.”

Exploring is made dangerous by strange mutated enemies that are as deadly as they are horrific-looking. This added a satisfying layer of difficulty as you backtracked through areas, but Section 9 worked hard to get that challenge dialed in to the right level.

“The approach was challenging but not overly difficult. We wanted a pretty lightweight game system, not a fully fledged RPG system. The idea for enemies was to mix having them waking up from sleeping states with those who would instantly attack you, to keep you on your toes. For some areas, we also change enemies depending on how far you have progressed to try and make the world state a little more dynamic. Some enemies and bosses are more narratively focused than others. In all cases though, we wanted them to make sense in their environments and have gameplay patterns that would differ a lot or slightly from each other.”

Taking inspiration from the aforementioned influences, End of Abyss’ creature design is not only impressive in a visual sense, but also does a great job of communicating the type of challenge each enemy will pose to the player. Lots of work went into crafting the enemies and bosses, and it clearly paid off.

“In most cases, we started the process by discussing gameplay mechanics for an enemy or boss. From there, we sketched a lot of concepts and created mockup models, animations, and effects to see how they could look when performing their attacks and how they would move. It was the best way to have the gameplay control the visuals, and kind of necessary in order to know how we would develop the systems for the enemies. That said, there are some enemies and bosses that came to life from wanting to explore something that we found visually interesting. Sometimes that would make it hard to find fitting behaviors and attack patterns, but the other way around could make it hard to find the visual aspect.”

To bring the moody and atmospheric world to life, the team crafted an enigmatic tale that strikes a good balance of giving you enough details to be intriguing but never enough to give you the full picture.

“We wanted to set a mysterious tone and build from there. It triggers our curiosity when we see only hints of things. For the narrative, we wanted to make the characters have their own knowledge of things, and they don’t speak much more than they have to. The idea was that the characters should be able to express hints of emotions by their poses or their movements, or that a pause in their dialogue could indicate that they are thinking. For the larger story, the idea was that you should be able to figure out more of how things are connected by exploring and finding clues in the environment, and putting that together with what the characters are saying. The thought was to have the environment tell the foundation of the story and setting.”

There are two endings to the game, with one of them hidden behind an elaborate item collecting quest that requires you to revisit areas with late game abilities to uncover previously inaccessible secrets. While Section 9 considers either ending to be ‘complete,’ they wanted to make sure to reward players for engaging with the game’s many secrets.

“The thought was to tell a little more of the story, and to give the players who take the time to explore a little badge of honor for completing most of the game. We considered having more parts of the story being revealed by the second ending, but landed on having it as a small change that would reveal a small story part that also has a big impact on [the main character] Cel’s outcome.”

End of Abyss is available now on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via the Epic Games Store.

The post ‘End of Abyss’ Developer Breaks Down the Horror, Exploration, And Secrets Behind The Sci-Fi Metroidvania appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The update also adds new permanent content including the Haunted Hotel map, filled with deadly tricks and permanently home to Halloween-themed Zeds, new single-weapon Gunslinger primary weapons, new Supply Pass and store cosmetics and much more.

Here’s the rundown for the event:

• Survival Map – Haunted Hotel: Rumors of hauntings in the Hotel Iorga in Vladislav, Romania, line up with anomalies Nightfall has tracked in the location. Specialists will investigate the multi-story hotel ripped apart by a ritual that’s gone catastrophically wrong and unleashed untold horrors. Be careful fighting on higher floors, it’s a long way down.
• Future Zeds Meet Classic Horror: The Halloween spirit has even compelled the Zeds to join in on the fun! All base Zed models and Dr. Moorcroft have been replaced during the event and Specialists will now find themselves fighting against enemies inspired by classic horror movie monsters. Halloween Zeds are available on all maps through Nov. 5, and are a permanent addition to the Haunted Hotel map.
• Stronghold Seasonal Update: The Stronghold gets a macabre new makeover as Nightfall welcomes the spookiest season in style. Enjoy the festive home base through Nov. 5.
• Gunslinger Single-weapon Variants: Following the introduction of the Gunslinger class and their unique dual-wield pistol primary weapons, a cheaper single-weapon variant of all those weapons has been added. Players now have greater granular control over how they upgrade their primary pistols.
• Halloween Supply Pass: Play and earn 208 new rewards with the latest Supply Pass via both free and paid tracks, with cosmetics including the Commando Chicken, Chickenator, Weapons Skins, Trinkets, Player Cards and stickers. The store has also been updated to include cosmetics including the Skeleton Jumpsuit, Pumpkin Mask and Monster Mask.
• Much More: New Main Menu Music, Daily Challenges, Wave and Weekly Mutators, Milestone Challenges, Quality of Life improvements, bug and crash fixes and ongoing balance and optimization work continues. A new system for veteran players with excess Supply Pass Points has been introduced, allowing players to spend them on Double XP boosters for Perks once per day.

For full details on all the changes and additions with the update, you can check out the patch notes in the Tripwire Interactive forums. The devs have also provided sneak-peak at progress on the game’s upcoming content and features in the latest Office Hours video.

Killing Floor 3 is available on PC via Steam and Epic Games Store, the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series.

The post “Halloween Horrors: Ghastly Getaway” Event on Now in ‘Killing Floor 3’ [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Set in 1977, the story centers around Henry Gray, who regains consciousness in a bathtub inside a psychiatric ward. Blood is everywhere—but it isn’t his. It soon becomes clear that the hospital has turned into a trap, and the events unfolding are tied to a tragedy from Henry’s past.

As the narrative progresses, it gradually moves beyond the asylum’s walls. Henry finds himself in grim locations connected to his past, where the line between reality and madness grows ever more blurred. Enemies include deranged patients, cannibals, ghosts, victims of brutal experiments, cybernetic creations, and other otherworldly beings.

Alongside the psychological horrors you’ll encounter in the game, one of the standout features of FIRE AND ASHES revolves around sound. Using voice recognition technology, the game reacts to your breathing, whispering, and panic. Sound becomes both a tool and a threat—being too loud can draw enemies straight to you.

Progressing through the game involves solving puzzles and piecing together fragments of the story to reconstruct what really happened. However, danger doesn’t come only from the ghosts and supernatural entities that lurk in the hospital. You’ll also face human (and inhuman) enemies in the other patients, but also the hospital’s guards and the hospital’s own experiments.

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Orkin, whose work includes several video games (including Dying Light: The Beast and the Castlevania chapter for Dead by Daylight), had revealed back in February that he had collaborated with Capcom on Requiem for the past two years.

Without going into spoiler territory, Spencer is portrayed differently in Requiem than in previous entries. Rather than the ruthless elitist with ambitions of immortality, Spencer appears to receive a bit of a redemption arc. It’s that arc that Haris is aiming to explore.

In the interview, Orkin explains the way he writes villains. Like many actors who portray villainous characters, Haris takes the route of the villain thinking that what they do is right. According to Orkin, the upcoming DLC will aim to make players understand that approach.

“We have an arc for Spencer in Requiem,” Orkin said. “Where you understand [that approach] more. And then in the DLC you will understand it even further. I probably shouldn’t say that, but yeah.”

That’s an especially exciting revelation for Requiem fans, as this feels poised to address some lingering questions regarding Spencer’s change of heart and Grace Ashcroft’s role in his cloning experimentations.

Elsewhere, when asked about what character he has written that was the closest to him, Haris states that it’s actually Grace. “If I was confronted with the horrors she’s confronted with, that’s exactly how I would react.”

Staying with Grace, Orkin talked about his approach to writing her, stating that he decided to put her on the autism spectrum. “She’s an analyst. She’s really an expert at figuring out clues, but she’s not great at dealing with people. It was all part of creating that character.”

Resident Evil Requiem, which has now surpassed over 8 million units sold, is available for the Nintendo Switch 2, PC via Steam and Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and the Xbox Series.

Thanks to IGN for spotting this.

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Update 1.1.0 adds changes and tweaks to certain combat encounters that some players found overwhelming, with fewer enemies and lighter wave compositions across several key fights.

“We’ve been keeping a close eye on what players and reviewers have been saying since launch, and we wanted to act on that feedback,” explains Sergiy Oganesyan, Publishing Director at Frogwares. “Update 1.1.0 tackles some of the biggest points we’ve seen raised, while also bringing features players have been asking for.”

Several encounters have been reworked to reduce enemy pressure and make fights more manageable without removing the challenge. Fewer enemies and lighter wave compositions have been introduced in the encounters players highlighted as “particularly overwhelming.”

HDR support has been added across all platforms, including HDR10+, allowing players with compatible displays to experience The Sinking City 2 with expanded contrast and a wider range of brightness. Meanwhile, PC players can now find AMD FSR 4.1.1 among the available Video settings. A new Legacy mode has also been added for NVIDIA DLSS.

The Sinking City 2 now supports PlayStation 5 Pro, including PSSR. Quality Mode benefits from strand-based hair, improved Lumen lighting, and higher-quality reflections, while Performance Mode now renders at a higher internal resolution.

The game’s post-completion mode, Ex Oblivione, has been reworked. Inventory slot and weapon upgrades now carry over, while Pure New Game has been added for players looking for a completely clean run after finishing the game. Lastly, players can also unlock two new outfits for protagonist Calvin Rafferty: The Warlock and The King in Yellow.

The Sinking City 2 is available for the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store. Check out Luiz’s thoughts on the game.

The post ‘The Sinking City 2’ Update 1.1.0 Brings Combat Rebalance, New Features and More [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

“I think NieR: Automata is a game that leaves its mark on anyone who plays it, and we’re thrilled to welcome it into the world of Dead by Daylight,” says Dead by Daylight Creative Director Dave Richard. “Beyond the amazing characters and incredible visuals, there’s a definite connection between the themes of our two universes, both dealing with cycles of violence and suffering. Bringing 2B, A2, and Emil into The Fog gave us a chance to help celebrate what makes NieR: Automata so special to us.”

The NieR: Automata Collection is only the start of Dead by Daylight‘s Halloween celebration. Behaviour Interactive has teased fresh content every week. That includes the game’s annual Haunted by Daylight event, which kicks off October 13 and runs for three weeks.

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Currently, details on the game are still to come. However, the story for BrokenLore: MIKI-CHAN centres on Kazuaki, a Japanese student determined to pass the entrance exam for Teidai and win over the girl he loves. When he happens upon a mysterious USB stick containing an innovative study support program, he decides to try it, convinced that it can help him. What the USB holds is Miki-chan, a sweet and reassuring virtual assistant. But eventually, something changes, jealousy and possessiveness take over, dragging Kazuaki into a virtual (but still very real) nightmare.

Kazuaki will face psychological challenges that push him to his limits in a world controlled by Miki-chan. However, he has the Rewriter at his disposal, a tool capable of altering reality to attempt to even the playing field and perhaps save him from Miki-chan.

The post ‘BrokenLore: MIKI-CHAN’ Traps You With a Jealous AI Assistant [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Teaming up with Trancas International Films, Inc., and MIRAMAX, players can expect new versions of The Shape, kicking off with the version of Michael from Halloween 5: The Return of Michael Myers and the version of Michael from Halloween 2018.

In addition, a new map will be added for all players who purchased the game, inspired by the settings of Halloween 5 – The Tower Farm Map – where worn country roads meet at the center of a small, quaint farming community just outside of Haddonfield.

A lit filling station anchors the new map, providing Civilians a reference point as they scramble across wide roads and through cornfields. While the map’s open nature helps with navigation, it also creates a no-man’s land where Civilians can become easy prey. Hide in roadside ditches to stay out of sight, then pray for the perfect moment for a harrowing sprint to safety.

Farmhouses replace suburban homes, shifting the feel and flow of 1v4 multiplayer matches. Farm equipment, hay bales, and overgrown brush turn every yard into a twisted playground for Michael Myers to attack. Barns, sheds, and houses give Civilians a chance to escape, catch their breath, and have a chance at evading the Boogeyman.

A harvest festival, trailer park, and pumpkin-filled gardens bring the new map to autumnal life, lit by the last light of a setting sun. A basement chase or a sprint through the pumpkin patch can go either way: seek new hiding spots and exits while Michael finds fresh ways to stalk his prey.

In addition to the new Tower Farm map and two Michael Myers skins, they will also be introducing two new Civilians, a very special Halloween costume pack, and more in the first of a series of post-launch content updates for Halloween: The Game that will be carried out across the first year.

“1978 was only the beginning,” said Jared Gerritzen, Chief Creative Officer, IllFonic. “With the Tower Farm map, we take the terror of that first event in Haddonfield into somewhere wide open, where there’s nowhere to hide except in the dark – where Michael Myers truly comes to life.”

Here’s the rundown for the October 27 DLC:

DLC: Michael Skins – $9.99 Each

• Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers – $9.99
• Halloween (2018) – $9.99

DLC: Civilian Characters Pack – $9.99 for Both

• Michelle (Female) and Eugene (Male)

DLC: Civilian Costumes Pack 1 – $9.99 for All

• Halloween Costumes
• 14 Outfits, 1 Per Character
• 42 Tints

Map # 5 – Free

• “The Tower Farm”

Features / Fixes / QoL – Free

As for future DLC, players can expect free and paid DLC this winter, next spring and summer.

Halloween: The Game is now available digitally on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store.

The physical versions for PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series launch tomorrow on October 6.

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In Signal Veil, players take on the role of Aki Mizuno, a teenage girl whose mother vanishes without a trace. Aki’s mother has left behind one final gift: an old cellphone that reacts to spirits no one else can see. Coincidentally, Aki’s high school has begun to experience series of disappearances, as well as the appearance of strange creatures born from emotional trauma and hidden memories. It’s up to Aki to investigate these disappearances, all the whiel uncovering the truth about herself within the school.

Taking a cue from Silent Hill‘s radio, Aki’s inherited cellphone vibrates, emits unusual sounds, and displays interference whenever spiritual presences or lingering memories are nearby. Not only does it serve as Aki’s primary tool for detecting enemies before they fully manifest, but is also used for identifying corrupted areas, and revealing clues and signals invisible to the naked eye.

Nishikawa High School is a place where every hallway hides a threat and every resource counts. Medicine, ammo and mystical weapons are scarce, so each fight against the school’s spirits demands strategy over brute force. Aki’s sanity adds another layer. As her mind slips, the world around her shifts, enemies grow more unpredictable and her own fighting becomes more desperate.

In addition to the expected fixed camera angles, inventory management and the limited tactical combat, the visuals of Signal Veil blend the tension of classic survival horror such as Resident Evil and Silent Hill with a 90s anime aesthetic inspired by psychological horror series like Another and Jujutsu Kaisen.

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Inspired by SCP-3008 and The Backrooms, Storebound sees 1-3 players trapped in an endless store. By day, lights flicker across deserted halls, inviting exploration. By night, employees roam the aisles looking to “assist” you. Silence, teamwork, and quick thinking are your only tools for survival.

Across a 6-episode campaign lasting 5 to 7 hours, squads must explore different eras across the store’s sprawling departments, solve twisted logic puzzles, and evade horrific “employees” who stalk the aisles for shoppers needing “after-hours assistance.”

Plan your next move using proximity voice chat and walkie-talkies. Piece together environmental clues and decode cryptic notes to find your next destination. Split up and look for whatever may help you escape. Along the way, search the mall for tools and items. But be wary of the employees. Do you cling to the shadows, letting madness creep in, or stay in the light where they’re already watching you?

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“October has arrived, which means Halloween is right around the corner, and nobody loves this haunting holiday quite like the people of Haddonfield,” says the team’s post on X. “We have big plans to celebrate the season of scares with this community, and can’t wait to share more details about the costumes, content, and more headed to Halloween: The Game.”

And as mentioned, the physical release for Halloween: The Game will launch for the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series on October 6. Teaming up with Nighthawk Interactive, there will be two editions for the physical edition: the Standard Edition will be available for MSRP $39.99, while the Limited Collector’s Edition will be available for MSRP $149.99.

The Standard Edition of Halloween: The Game will include a copy of the game for PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X, an exclusive poster, and advance access to the Michael Myers Clown skin and two civilian cosmetics.

Meanwhile, the Limited Collector’s Edition will include a copy of the game, plus an exclusive Trick or Treat Studios Shape Jump variant action figure, exclusive lenticular art, an exclusive poster, advance access to the Michael Myers Samhain and Clown skins, advance access to the two civilian cosmetics from the Standard edition and two additional civilian cosmetics, and more.

Halloween: The Game is now available digitally on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store. Check out our review if you haven’t done so.

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I assumed the game would involve some light puzzle solving as I moved between set pieces with horrific creatures in a strange but beautiful world. What I got instead was a challenging cross between Dead Space, Super Metroid, and Resident Evil, with a unique vibe that immediately set it apart. While there are many stylistic choices that resemble Tarsier Studio’s work on Little Nightmares, this was its own beast, and all the better for it.

End of Abyss casts you as Cel, a technician who is part of a team exploring a strange underground compound in the aftermath of an unspecified incident. You’re escorted in by a team of soldiers, but after a brief introduction, you’re largely tasked with exploring the facility on your own, fending off the warped creatures that roam its halls. For most of the game, there isn’t much more to the premise than that.

There may be things you glean from the environments or notes around the level, but the few cutscenes in the game never really fully explain what’s going on. The setup feels like just enough to send you on your journey through this harsh and compelling world, though I was hoping for a little more narrative punch to pay off all the intrigue.

An Oppressive Sci-Fi World Built on Atmosphere

What it lacks in narrative, it makes up for in pure vibes, which is something that often works best for games of this type. From the first screen, the washed out blue color palette immediately sets a bleak and eerie tone, matched by the minimal but atmospheric soundtrack that accompanies the action. The preset camera angle captures things from an isometric perspective that shifts in and out when needed, giving the devs another tool in their toolbox for setting mood. Each room feels like a little diorama, showing off a decaying and broken down facility with weird biomass growing on the walls like something out of Annihilation.

It’s clear that it takes inspiration from retrofuturistic settings like Alien, but there’s enough to the design of the technology that makes it feel like its own thing. I particularly loved the suits that the soldiers wear as they tower over Cel with weirdly geometric helmets that hide their humanity.

The strong mood is key to making the environment enticing, which is important for a game so based on exploration. The first areas feel compact and dense, tightly designed with shortcuts like Resident Evil’s Spencer Mansion, but after the second boss the game opens up dramatically, revealing a more open and sprawling game than I anticipated. Like a Metroid game, you’ll gain access to tools or abilities that will allow you to open up previously unavailable areas, building a great network of paths to cross the facility’s various sectors. After a more linear beginning, I was really surprised at how little the game held your hand, asking you to truly explore the area to find the way to your goal.

Exploration Rewards Curiosity—and Patience

For the most part, it’s incredibly successful. Save points, which bring you back to full health and restore your healing items, are scattered around at just the right distance from each other, making it feel like a well-earned relief when you stumble upon one for the first time. Each sector has a map terminal hidden within, and finding that always feels like a huge victory. Opening up your in-game map and trying to see which areas you haven’t checked out yet, then puzzling out your route to get there is one of my all-time favorite things to do in a video game, and End of Abyss captured this feeling perfectly.

To make it feel even more active, you have a scanner tool that can be used to analyze objects in the environment. This will often be the best way to figure out what’s blocking you from getting through a door, whether it’s a specific key or it’s locked from the other side. Information about doors isn’t added to your map until you do the scan, making it part of the satisfying core loop of completing your map of the world. While some people may want a smoother experience that automates this process, the friction of having to do it myself was what made it more captivating, making me feel like I’m exploring and charting this world on my own.

As with many games of this type, this open structure can lead to frustration. There were points later in the game where I swore I had explored every single option on the map, but still had areas that remained inaccessible to me. It was a laborious process to retrace all my steps, room by room, trying to figure out what I had missed. In this specific instance, I had simply not noticed a switch to extend a bridge in an area that I had passed through many times. Due to the lighting and perspective, it was hard for me to see, only spotting it when I was randomly swinging around the scanner to look for something hidden.

You’re definitely intended to feel some friction as you’re exploring, as getting lost definitely feels like the experience the developers intended, but it’s a tricky tightrope to walk to make sure that’s balanced. It feels so rewarding when you take another look at the map and realize that you finally have the right item for an area, though frustration can definitely start to build if you’re not able to spot it. I definitely have more patience for this type of game, as exploration is one of the most rewarding parts of gaming to me, but if that’s something that can grind your enjoyment to a halt, go in knowing that End of Abyss may frustrate you in certain areas. It’s challenging to explore, but that challenge comes with satisfaction when you finally find your way.

Strong Creature Design, Uneven Enemy Balance

While exploring the many sectors of the game, you’ll be fighting the mutated creatures that roam the facility. Combat takes the form of twin stick shooting, with the right stick used to aim your various weapons. The starter pistol has unlimited ammo and will be your primary weapon throughout the game, but you’ll pick up other firearms that pack a bit more of a punch. The alternate weapons have a much more limited ammo supply, so choosing when to use your precious shotgun shells is key to survival. You’ll also find other items that either have exploration utility, like flares or placed explosives, or combat uses, like grenades. A well-timed grenade definitely turned the tide of battle a few times, which meant I was sure to keep myself well stocked.

Defeating enemies will yield a currency called Fragments, which can be used in save rooms to either craft ammo and consumables or upgrade your weapons. Grenades and ammo won’t be frequently found while exploring, so crafting them is the only way you can keep yourself armed for more dangerous encounters. Weapon upgrades, which require more limited resources in addition to Fragments, help your guns pack more punch, sometimes adding new fire modes or modifications in addition to a general stat bump. Most of my upgrade materials went into my pistol, since it was the most used gun by far, which often made me less likely to try to find use cases for other weapons, but they still made their way into my rotation when things got hairy.

Enemy design is strong throughout, if a little derivative. Most of them fall into the category of shambling humanoid, often given body horror flair by The Thing or Resident Evil-style mutations. While they might not be the most unique designs, they are well-rendered in the game’s gorgeous art style, brought to life by expressive animations that make them feel strange, inhuman, and dangerous.

Boss Battles Shine Despite an Inconsistent Difficulty Curve

I appreciate the way they break up exploration, but the fact that they respawn any time you stop and save can slowly turn them from menacing to tedious over the course of the game. By the tenth time you’re crossing the same area, they no longer feel like a threat, just something you need to navigate around. This is compounded by the fact that they are a bit more tanky than they should be, meaning you sometimes have to put a couple full clips of your pistol into a standard monster to take them down.

Robotic enemies in particular were guilty of this, which was exacerbated by the fact that they were the most common enemy in many of the game’s locked room encounters that required you to kill waves of enemies to progress. The tanky enemies do make the weapon upgrades feel more meaningful, but I feel like I would have enjoyed combat more if they had fewer hit points and more variety in attack behaviors.

Boss encounters featured not only the most grotesque creature designs but also the most interesting mechanically, but the difficulty curve of them didn’t feel quite right. The second boss of the game, a massive centipede made of bodies, ended up being the most challenging to me, taking way more tries than even the game’s final boss. There were late game bosses that I was beating in one try that felt way easier than the first few, so it feels like there could have been another pass done at slowly ramping up the boss difficulty in a smoother manner.

A Rewarding Horror Adventure for Players Who Love Exploration

Another big surprise with the game was the large amount of optional content. There is a weapon you get late in the game that allows you to progress into new areas you couldn’t, and exploring these areas will lead to collectibles that will get you the game’s alternate ending. I was a little disappointed with the vagueness of the standard narrative conclusion, so having both more sectors and narrative to explore after finishing is an enticing prospect, even if I didn’t have time to get to it in the review period.

For all the praise I’ve had for the general structure and gameplay, almost every aspect was, at one point or another, marred by technical issues. I had several instances where the map wasn’t updating properly, causing me to backtrack to areas that were marked as locked but I had already opened. One room I entered was completely black and did not properly show the room until I blindly walked into the exact right spot. I got soft locked when locked doors wouldn’t open after defeating the waves of enemies, and I had several hard crashes.

When trying to beat the final boss, it would occasionally not spawn after the intro cutscene, forcing me to turn the game off and on before it would load properly. One of the most frustrating bugs involved a fan that was supposed to be blocking me from climbing a ladder, but the fan wasn’t animating, so I was just hitting an invisible wall with no indication of what was stopping me. There were multiple patches during the review period, so hopefully things will be ironed out soon after release, but technical issues definitely got in the way of my enjoyment of the game several times throughout the 12 hours I spent with it.

End of Abyss is an uncompromised take on the Metroidvania genre that will probably frustrate many players, but if you get joy out of slowly filling out a map and puzzling out your next place to explore, you’ll feel right at home in its bleak and eerie world. While the combat could use a bit of a balance pass, both in its boss progression and enemy health, Section 9 clearly achieved what they were setting out to do.

The mood created through traversing its derelict world helped make up for the lack of concrete narrative, telling its tale through immaculately eerie vibes and atmosphere. My hope is that the bugs that hampered much of my playtime will get ironed out in the near future, because End of Abyss’ brand of demanding exploration was incredibly rewarding.

Review code provided by publisher. End of Abyss will launch October 1 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series and PC via the Epic Games Store.

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In a press release, Stormind Games CEO and co-founder Antonio Cannata stated that the community has played a fundamental role in the history of Remothered. “Those who purchased and supported the first two games directly contributed to the growth of the series. We therefore want to give them access to the Remastered editions at no additional cost. The free upgrade is meant as a concrete thank you for the support we’ve received over time.”

Both remasters have been upgraded to Unreal Engine 5, featuring upgraded lighting, character models and assets, redesigned UI and more.

In Remothered: Tormented Fathers, Rosemary Reed is a sharp and determined 35-year-old woman who arrives at the isolated home of Richard Felton under false pretenses. She is there to uncover the truth about Celeste, a young girl who simply vanished. The nurse Gloria watches over the aging, ailing Felton. But the moment Dr. Felton realizes why Rosemary is really there, the hunt begins. What follows is a web of obsession, buried secrets, and psychological horror where the line between victim and monster is never where you expect it.

In the second entry, Remothered: Broken Porcelain Remastered, the truths buried in the Ashmann Inn will not be discovered easily: its many mysteries are intertwined and guarded by the looming threat of the stalkers, powerful hunters trapped in time and the confines of its walls. Survival will take more than just quick reactions as a strategic and resourceful approach will quickly become critical in this haunting adventure. Be smart, as knowing the best time to sneak, flee or fight imminent dangers can quickly make the hunters become the hunted.

The third entry in the series, Remothered: Red Nun’s Legacy, will launch on October 27 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC via Steam, the Epic Games Store and GOG.

The post Remasters of First Two ‘Remothered’ Entries Arriving Q1 2027 [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Those players who played through the May demo will find plenty has changed in Pantheon. The former three-stage structure has been streamlined into a single, more immersive session, with clear, approachable missions replacing complex puzzles. Each run now features randomized terrain and in-game element spawn locations, while fallen players can return as “MiRO” to assist teammates and be revived through interaction. S.O.M.A. also now begins offline, awakening only when it detects nearby noise or movement, keeping players on their toes with an unpredictable threat.

CODE EXIT puts players in the role of investigators sent into Pantheon, which has been overrun by the rogue AI known as Minerva, an integrated artificial intelligence that has turned the city into a locked-down machine nightmare. As players explore dark, isolated facilities, they’ll have to contend with Minerva roaming the city, observing their behavior in real time, and adapting its tactics. Restore systems, recover hidden data, and work together to uncover the truth behind the collapse of Pantheon before Minerva closes in.

Look for the full version of CODE EXIT on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store in 2027.

The post Playtest Is Now Live for Sci-Fi Co-Op Survival Horror Game ‘CODE EXIT’ [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The 1998 SiN pushed traditional shooter formulas further, introducing systemic features rare for its time, including area-specific hit detection, reactive enemy responses and interactive level elements ranging from functional computers to pilotable aircraft. SiN: Reloaded maintains the full scope of these mechanics, bringing the game’s reactive combat and adaptable mission structure to current platforms without compromising its core design.

“SiN has always been one of those games that deserved another chance,” said Stephen Kick, Studio Head at Nightdive Studios. “It was ambitious, interactive, funny, and willing to experiment with ideas that were years ahead of their time. There’s an incredible amount of personality in this game, and that’s something we never wanted to lose. With SiN: Reloaded, our goal was to preserve everything that made the original special while finally giving it the presentation and performance it deserves. More than anything, I’m excited that a new generation of players will finally get to discover why so many of us fell in love with SiN in the first place.”

Enter a near-future dystopian world as security consultant Colonel John R. Blade as you take on the seductively evil Doctor Elexis Sinclaire. When Elexis, the CEO of SinTEK Industries, begins injecting the streets with a DNA-altering drug, it’s time to reassess the laws of morality. As Blade, you’ve made a religion out of fighting crime. Now you’re going to make Elexis pay for her sins by taking on her unholy army of genetically-engineered mutants.

The post Nightdive Studios’ Long-Awaited ‘SiN: Reloaded’ Now Available On Consoles and PC [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Players take on the role of Dylan Faden as he battles a paranatural crisis engulfing a reality-warped Manhattan, unleashing his powers and mastering the different forms of his shapeshifting melee weapon, the Aberrant, to face dangerous enemies and monumental bosses.

“Control Resonant is the result of nearly seven years of true team effort and collaboration that pushes our paranatural action RPG series into an expansive, reality-warping playground of choice, power, and consequence,” said Mikael Kasurinen, Creative Director of Control Resonant. “For our new players, you don’t have to know the first game to jump into this sequel. We’ve made this easy to pick up and hard to put down. For our returning fans, we’ve pushed the scale beyond anything we’ve done before, elevating combat, exploration, and storytelling into a bigger, more memorable experience. It’s ambitious, a little wild, thought-provoking and was never easy to create, but easy was never the goal! Now that Control Resonant is here, we can’t wait for our players, both old and new, to get lost in it.”

And for those interested in extra goodies, Remedy is teaming up with iam8bit for a new merchandise collection. Inspired by the game, the collection includes Corrupted Metro apparel, a Billboard Bumper Stickers Pack, an Atlantis Café Espresso Cup Set, three Federal Bureau of Control propaganda posters, and an FBC Magnet Set. The posters are 1:1 recreations of their in-game counterparts, printed on 16.5″ x 23.3″ poster stock.

The full iam8bit x Control Resonant collection is available for pre-order now through October 26, with shipping expected in Q1 2027. Hit up iam8bit.com to explore the collection.

And if you need further convincing to grab the game, check out Aaron’s review.

The post ‘Control Resonant’ Out Today; New iam8bit Merchandise Collection up for Pre-Order [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Townfall centers on Simon Ordell, who is called back to the island of St. Amelia in Scotland to ‘put things right’. What he encounters is a town lying quiet beneath a heavy fog, seemingly abandoned but not at rest. All he has on him besides his clothes are an IV bag and a medical wristband with his name on it. He heads to the town with no leads but the voices from the CRTV he picked up along the way. Venturing deeper and driven to understand his connection to the place and its inhabitants, Simon begins to discover fragments of a past rising to the surface.

Played entirely in first person, Townfall has players exploring, evading, and ultimately trying to survive using a limited set of weapons and tools, including the CRTV, a pocket television used to tune into unstable signals. Evasion is tense; combat is frenetic, while narrative driven puzzles reveal a truth that refuses to stay submerged.

And if you haven’t already, check out Harrison’s review of the game, which continues the scares you expect while offering up a few new tricks.

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In addition, Section 9 is teaming up with Epic Games for an all-new End of Abyss cosmetic in Fortnite to celebrate the upcoming launch of the former. And coincidentally, the cosmetic is hitting the same time as the upcoming annual Fortnitemares event.

In the depths of a mysterious underground compound, a mission to investigate disturbances of unknown origin has descended into a harrowing descent through a broken and abandoned world. Players take on the role of a young combat technician, Cel, as she uncovers the truth behind the facility’s derelict areas and confronts the monstrous creatures that roam them.

Players descend into the halls of a sprawling complex, where broken machines whisper to you from the depths, and nothing you encounter is fully human. Outmatched by the twisted horrors you face, you must upgrade your gear and adapt, pushing your limits just to stay alive against the crushing pressure of the facility you’re trapped within.

Navigate branching paths and uncover hidden areas using your Scanner and the tools you unlock along the way. Pathways open as you grow stronger, allowing you to return to forgotten corridors and secrets once sealed away.

End of Abyss will launch October 1 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series and PC via the Epic Games Store.

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Alongside the physical release dates, Stormind Games also confirmed that both the Standard Edition and Digital Deluxe Edition will launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC via Steam, the Epic Games Store and GOG.com on October 27.

The Digital Deluxe Edition of Remothered: Red Nun’s Legacy includes:

• The full game
• Digital artbook
• Full digital soundtrack, composed by Akira Yamaoka and Aram Shahbazians

Meanwhile, the Physical Deluxe Edition includes the same digital artbook and soundtrack, alongside the full game and an exclusive reversible coversheet.

In this third entry in the Remothered series, players will enter a world where nothing is quite as it seems. Exploring an abandoned villa, you’ll need to use your wits to overcome disturbing revelations, secrets, and a twisted reality to learn the truth behind the Red Nun—all while surviving the relentless Stalkers preying upon you.

Red Nun’s Legacy introduces more ways than ever to fight back against the terror and expand your exploration. Utilize limited melee weapons to keep the Stalkers at bay, and conjure unique psychic powers to uncover new hidden pathways and secrets in the villa.

Remothered: Red Nun’s Legacy features a star-studded roster of talent including the voices of Cissy Jones (Telltale’s The Walking Dead, Life is Strange, BAFTA winner for Firewatch) and Maggie Robertson (Lady Dimitrescu in Resident Evil Village).

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Building on what players loved about the gameplay for Cronos: The New Dawn, the Lazarus expansion takes it even further, aiming to deliver a “more visceral and intense style”. That includes the new abilities available to Pathfinder, including:

• Teleportation: Allows players to instantly teleport across a designated area, helping them outmaneuver groups of enemies. It can also be used during exploration to navigate distorted environments and reach otherwise inaccessible areas to discover hidden resources.
• Decoy: Allows the Pathfinder to leave a ghostly copy of himself behind while moving to a new position as an invisible to enemies.
• Gladius (new weapon): A new and much more powerful weapon wielded by the Pathfinder, featuring a higher fire rate and piercing bullets that deal increased damage.

Cronos: Lazarus sees players return to the wastelands of New Dawn as the once-loyal Pathfinder in the process of transforming into the Warden from the base game. Isolated in the Terminal and severed from the Collective, he devotes every waking moment to awakening a lost Essence that he refuses to let fade. His sanctuary has unfortunately been compromised, as a new kind of hunter has been deployed with one directive: to find and eliminate The Warden.

The expansion is scheduled for release in Fall 2026 for PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, the PlayStation 5, the Xbox Series,  and the Nintendo Switch 2.

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As a warm-up for the real festivities to celebrate the anniversary, Techland has launched a Double XP Event, giving both existing and new players an extra reason to jump into the game before the main anniversary celebrations begin.

The Call of the Beast: Anniversary Edition will run for three weeks, featuring global community goals and weekend boons that players can vote for. Reaching each weekly goal will unlock special anniversary rewards, including the unique outfit and stylish weapon inspired by Castor Woods.

Players can also look forward to daily Crane’s Anniversary Drops, with a new surprise waiting each day just for logging in. The rewards will include a mix of in-game items and digital anniversary goodies to celebrate the occasion. And every Friday, players can claim an exclusive weapon to use during Call of The Beast.

As for the new physical PS5 edition of the game, all three physical editions will include the Definitive Edition of Dying Light: The Beast, which includes all post-launch updates.

The Retail Version includes the game on PlayStation 5  and a game manual. This version will be available with an unlimited pre-order quantity.

Meanwhile, the Super Rare Games Edition includes the game and manual, plus an SRG sticker, an exclusive metallic slipcover and a numbered SRG release. This version will be available in a limited pre-order quantity.

Finally, the Anniversary Edition is designed for the ultimate Dying Light: The Beast fans. It includes the game together with a collection of physical items inspired by Castor Woods and will also be available in limited quantities.

All physical editions will be available to pre-order now from Super Rare Games. Additionally, The Super Rare Games Edition and Anniversary Edition will be available as limited pre-orders until October 16th, with final quantities announced once the ordering window closes.

Dying Light: The Beast is available now on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.

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You see, ever since the original creative force at Team Silent disbanded — resulting in the property being passed around between hack developers who undoubtedly loved, but didn’t quite get, it — Silent Hill had been in a state of gradual decline. From the mid-2000s onwards, it seemed as though every new instalment in the series was destined to be a disappointment. Some were admirable (Shattered Memories), some were abominable (Homecoming), but they were failures all the same. As if to add insult to injury, the tantalizing Silent Hills collab between Hideo Kojima and Guillermo del Toro was bafflingly killed in its crib, and the less said about that pachinko machine debacle, the better. For a while there, it truly felt like putrefaction had set in and that SH was now well past its sell-by date.

Enter the awkwardly titled f, which — in a feat comparable to how Resident Evil 7 saved its respective franchise from atrophy — showed that there was still some gas left in the tank after all. Breathing fresh life into Silent Hill, it took bold risks by daring to leave behind the familiar US setting; shaking up the gameplay in ballsy ways; and shedding much of the narrative baggage associated with its predecessors. Not everyone appreciated these changes but, for those of us who could get on board with the radical vision, it made for a galvanising experience. One that still adhered to the spirit, if not the minutiae, of the classic games.

All of which is to say that f was always going to be a tough act to follow. Not only was it brilliant in its own right, but it seemed to widen the scope for what an SH title could be and got us excited about the series’ future again. We’re pleased to report, then, that its immediate successor more than lives up to that promise and keeps the hot streak going.

Silent Hill: Townfall might be less iconoclastic when it comes to tearing up the series rulebook — indulging in more traditional “Silent Hill” tropes — but it still has ideas to spare and a unique vibe that’s entirely its own. From excellent storytelling to outstanding puzzles, an evocative sense of place, and supremely effective scares, it’s one of the franchise’s best outings to date. And proof positive that f wasn’t a fluke.

St. Amelia Provides A Welcome Change of Scenery

Of the many liberties that f took with the Silent Hill formula, the most striking was surely its decision to relocate the action from provincial Maine to rural Japan. It set a freeing precedent that Silent Hill games needn’t have anything to do with the titular municipality itself (SH4: The Room at least took place in the neighbouring Ashfield, which has plenty of lore connections).

Having now developed a taste for jet-setting, it seems that the franchise is overcome with wanderlust and wants to see the rest of the world. Because Townfall whisks us away to yet another time zone!

Fair warning, though, this latest excursion is a tad less exotic, as you’ll be trading in the picturesque backdrop of Asia for the chilly temperatures, bracing winds and choppy waters of the Scottish North Sea. Specifically, you’ll be exploring the fictional island of St. Amelia; a tight-knit fishing community that was once sustained by a bustling angling trade but that now appears to have been utterly deserted.

It’s not immediately clear what could have befallen such a quaint, isolated spot to make it a strict no-go zone. Yet there are a few clues scattered around the place. Notices from the district council reference disruptions caused by some recent incident; there’s evidence of both picket lines and vigils being held in the town square; and we gather that all of the public services were stretched to their absolute limits in the town’s final days (even the healthcare providers put up signs begging patients not to turn up).

So, other than the fact that you’ll be seeing pound signs instead of dollar signs, and that all the post boxes are coloured red, it’s got an awful lot in common with the bleakness of Silent Hill. If the civic leaders of the two towns were ever to reach out to one another, you could easily envision them establishing some kind of sister city arrangement. After all, they’re both enveloped by eerie fog, they both have the same normal world/otherworld dichotomy, and they both do that thing where they lure in doomed souls to torment them with their innermost fears and anxieties.

The target in this instance is one Simon Ordell, an American who has supposedly been to St. Amelia before yet appears to have no recollection of what went so horribly wrong there. He’s been summoned by an apparent acquaintance from the past, named Richard, who is under the impression that, together, they will be able to make things right. Whatever that means.

Washing up on the shore, with a mysterious intravenous drip hooked to his veins and a patient ID tag fastened around his wrist, Simon embarks on a mission to find Richard and reclaim his memories. Of course, that’ll be easier said than done, as navigating St. Amelia will also mean contending with its hellish weather, its illogical geography, the aggressive, vaguely humanoid creatures that prowl its streets, and the unshakeable feeling that the place itself wishes you ill will. Oh, and in addition to being a typical British town, it’s also got some freaky supernatural stuff going on!

Intelligent Writing and Mature Themes Make for One of Silent Hill’s Best Ever Stories

We’re reticent to give away any more than that, as the storytelling is often a bright spot in these Silent Hill games.

Townfall is no exception in that regard, with writer-director Jon McKellan crafting an enthralling and incredibly sad mystery that unfolds at a deliberate pace. Instead of saving everything for one big showstopping twist at the end, he and his team at Screen Burn Interactive sprinkle in clever misdirects and subversions throughout that keep you guessing as to the nature of Simon’s hidden shame, and how exactly it relates to Richard (as well as to an enigmatic third character: Zoe).

In many ways, the narrative does take its lead from SH2, with a protagonist once again being dragged on a metaphorical guilt trip through their own psyche. Yet there are some crucial differences too.

For a start, there’s a sense of political rage bubbling beneath the surface that we haven’t seen before in the franchise. McKellan brings a uniquely British perspective and righteous anger to proceedings that’s no doubt been inflected by recent events in the nation’s news cycle. Without going into spoilers, it’s not a coincidence that the first game in the series to be set in the UK focuses on a strained health service being brought to its knees, the impact of privatisation on communities, public inquiries into corporate negligence, a place that’s cut itself off from the rest of the world, and people generally feeling like they’ve been let down by the system. It’s probably not intentional, given the actual context in the story, but there’s even some stuff that cuts quite close to the bone revolving around protests happening near a local hotel.

There’s no question, then, that contemporary British issues were swirling around in the developers’ minds when they made this (either consciously or unconsciously). Yet even if you don’t quite understand the cultural relevance of certain images or references, it’s still a narrative that should resonate with just about anyone. Because the themes and emotions are universal. Not to mention, it’s fundamentally well told, with a keen understanding of the principle of “show, don’t tell”, a neat nonlinear structure that’s refreshing for Silent Hill, and layered characterisation.

It also puts an interesting spin on what the point of Silent Hill is. We won’t divulge any spoilers, except to say that it’s less about punishment and guilt here, and more about taking accountability and coming to terms with the immutable fact that what’s done can never be undone. Granted, it’s a subtle distinction, but one that makes quite a big impact when you get to the revelatory third act.

Stealth Encounters Get the Heart Racing

The experimentation doesn’t stop with the story either. Screen Burn also reimagines the franchise’s established gameplay by shifting the action into a first-person perspective and prioritising stealth over combat mechanics.

Indeed, while Silent Hill f was effectively a brawler — complete with parrying, perfect dodges, and upgrade trees — Townfall goes in the polar opposite direction. Fighting is treated as an absolute last resort, and the best strategy is invariably to run, hide and do your best to stay out of trouble.

This emphasis on evasion is so strong that, within the first two hours of our playthrough, we only killed a single enemy. That tally increased to about ten once we crossed the halfway mark, and then admittedly shot up to 87 by the time we rolled credits (the later acquisition of a shotgun emboldened us somewhat). Yet it might be feasible to get through most, if not all, of the 13-hour campaign pacifistically. Every area has one or two hiding spots for you to cower in, the levels are designed in a way that allows you to lure enemies away from the critical path, and it rarely feels like you’re being compelled to bloody your hands (which may have greater thematic significance when you eventually realise what the tragic, surgical-themed monsters are supposed to represent).

Another thing that helps you avoid conflict here is the portable CRT monitor that Simon carries. Utterly indispensable when planning your route through hostile territory, this device can be tuned into specific frequencies, enabling you to perceive the world in different wavelengths and look right through solid objects.

Sometimes, this is necessary for solving puzzles and accessing collectables, but it has great utility in stealth too. You see, the CRT can also lock onto the signals emitted by St. Amelia’s resident beasties, thereby allowing you to keep tabs on them even when there’s something blocking your line of sight.

It’s a very handy ability that functions similarly to Batman’s detective vision. However, there is a trade-off in that you can only monitor one channel at a time here. So, while you might be able to pinpoint the exact whereabouts of a foe when actively tracking them, you’ll also be putting on blinders to everything else around you and could be oblivious to threats approaching from the sides.

In a few scripted sequences, you do get access to an alternative tool that has the inverse problem. Using the medical pager, you can tell what direction assailants are coming from by consulting radial markers along the edge of the screen (a la Alien: Isolation’s motion tracker) and successfully track multiple blips at once. Alas, the readouts here are quite imprecise and give you no indication whatsoever of distance. This leads to agonising situations in which you’re hiding in a closet, painfully aware that there’s a fleshy abomination at your 12 o’clock, but not sure if it’s hundreds of meters away or standing right outside the door.

Other than the inclusion of those gizmos, the stealth is pretty basic. You’ve got a crouch button, throwable distractions, hiding places, and a few weapons for if things get hairy. Still, just because the mechanics are familiar doesn’t mean they’re bad. On the contrary, encounters can be downright electrifying in Townfall.

For example, there’s one bit where you are introduced to a new antagonist (resembling a figure covered in a suffocating hospital cast) that’s amongst the tensest set-pieces we’ve experienced in years. Trapping you in a small, four-room cottage, it gives you barely any space to manoeuvre and tasks you with somehow tiptoeing around your pursuer so that you can acquire a key and leave the building undetected.

However, when you finally escape those intimate confines (and recover from the associated panic attack), the reprieve is short-lived. For you soon realise that the whole neighbourhood has been overtaken with duplicates of the same mummified ghoul. What follows is an extended gauntlet that instils more palpable dread and anxiety than most horror games manage to conjure over the course of their runtimes.

Puzzles That Meaningfully Test the Old Grey Matter

In general, Townfall is a deeply frightening game. Enemy encounters can be pulse-pounding, the atmosphere is consistently oppressive, the environments are foreboding, the story goes to uncomfortable places, and there are a lot of those classic Silent Hill mind games to immerse you in the tortured headspace of your avatar.

Even the puzzles afford vanishingly little opportunity to decompress or calm your nerves. On the contrary, they often twist the knife in further by forcing you to commit grotesque atrocities and by imposing extremely stressful conditions when you’re trying to solve them.

Said headscratchers deserve special mention across the board, as they are all very well-themed, inventive and challenging. We got stumped for a while on this one that made us simultaneously account for dozens of initials, the workings of a dial mechanism and the compatibility of multiple different blood types. There was so much information to process that we resorted to busting out a notebook and drawing a quick chart to sense-check our conclusions. Meatier riddles like these, that actually make you pause and think for a bit, are the most rewarding to crack, and Townfall has a pleasing abundance of them.

Crucially, though, Screen Burn never pushes it too far or makes any of their brainteasers plain obtuse. More often than not, if you’re getting stuck it’ll be because you’ve overcomplicated things or misconstrued an obvious hint that’s staring you right in the face. That happened to us on a couple of occasions and, when we eventually cottoned on to what we were meant to be doing, our reaction was one of embarrassment, rather than frustration (case in point, there’s a moment where the code to a door is literally spelt out for you on a whiteboard, but we interpreted it to be something way more convoluted and ended up doing some Beautiful Mind shit for 20 minutes).

St. Amelia Feels Like A Real British Town

Other puzzle highlights include an escape-room scenario that has you jumping around to different points in history (with a fiendishly clever interaction), as well as a multi-layered problem that’ll demand you don a pair of scrubs and take on a gruelling night shift at St. Amelia’s hospital. A hospital that, unlike Silent Hill’s Brookhaven, is unmistakably British.

Which brings us to the exceptionally realised setting. Townfall does a phenomenal job of making you feel like you’re on a Scottish island. If you’re a UK resident or have ever visited one of the nation’s coastal resorts, you’re likely to spend hours marvelling at all the inconsequential details here. Everything from the road signs to the mini roundabout markings, the guide dog donation statues, the 20p tattoo machines, the signs advertising Sunday carveries, and the seagull-shit-stained benches feels truly authentic.

Without wanting to turn the rest of this review into a prosaic list of things I recognised as a British native, it got to the point where I was happily scrutinising the furnishings of council houses and examining the items displayed in the windows of unenterable mini markets. And when I discovered that, in order to restore power to a home, I didn’t have to replace fuses (as in every other horror title ever) but rather fetch a pre-paid utility card from the local newsagents and transfer the credit to a meter under the stairs, I was practically euphoric. I couldn’t believe that it was something I was doing in a Silent Hill game.

It Does Falter At the End

Between the nail-biting stealth, exemplary riddles, engrossing narrative and characterful setting, Townfall comes very close to brilliance. Alas, it’s not quite perfect.

Most notably, it starts to run out of steam in the final stretch. As Simon gets closer and closer to uncovering the truth he has long been repressing, the writing gets a little on the nose and starts making explicit what — up until then — had been artfully suggested. The ensuing exposition dump robs the narrative of some of its mystique and makes the prospect of repeat playthroughs feel less enticing (given that everything has been verbalised and wrapped up in a neat little bow). I particularly didn’t like how they bluntly explain what one of the monsters is supposed to symbolize, when everyone knows that part of the fun of a new Silent Hill release is coming up with your own interpretations for what the creatures mean.

On the subject of your adversaries, it’s also towards the end of the game that the lack of enemy variety really starts to hit you. You’re essentially dealing with the same three or four monsters over and over again and, after a while, you grow numb to them. That fleshy nightmare I described earlier is frightening when you first bump into him in a small cottage (unarmed and unprepared), but he’s nowhere near as intimidating when you’ve got a double-barrel and have vanquished him 50+ times.

The developers do at least try to mix things up by introducing an invulnerable stalker in the second half but, honestly, we just found them to be kind of irritating. They’re constantly harassing you during riddle sections and often stand around idly blocking passageways that you need to get down (only moving when you bait them into a chase). It doesn’t help either that this relentless pursuer drags out what is, by some measure, the game’s weakest level: an underground network of corridors that has no discernible personality, a confusing layout and the only dud puzzle in the whole game.

Nerveless, those iffy closing hours aren’t enough to negate all of Townfall’s considerable strengths. Even with the flaws, this remains a gripping experience that delivers everything you could want from a good Silent Hill title, while also pushing the envelope and innovating in some cool ways.

More than that, it’s the singular vision of creative people who had a personal story they really wanted to tell and who knew exactly how they were gonna tell it. Between this and f, it really does feel like we’re in a new golden era for this iconic franchise.

Review code provided by publisher. Silent Hill: Townfall releases on September 24 for the PlayStation 5, and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.

The post ‘Silent Hill: Townfall’ Delivers a Scary Good Time While Continuing to Innovate the Series [Review] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Co-founder of Section 9 Interactive Mattias Ottvall is back, and is joined by Environment Artist Gustav Bunse, Level Designer Robin Jansson and Game Programmer Isabella Norström as they dive into the gameplay and level design philosophies that shaped the player experience.

In the depths of a mysterious underground compound, a mission to investigate disturbances of unknown origin has descended into a harrowing descent through a broken and abandoned world. Players take on the role of a young combat technician, Cel, as she uncovers the truth behind the facility’s derelict areas and confronts the monstrous creatures that roam them.

Players descend into the halls of a sprawling complex, where broken machines whisper to you from the depths, and nothing you encounter is fully human. Outmatched by the twisted horrors you face, you must upgrade your gear and adapt, pushing your limits just to stay alive against the crushing pressure of the facility you’re trapped within.

Navigate branching paths and uncover hidden areas using your Scanner and the tools you unlock along the way. Pathways open as you grow stronger, allowing you to return to forgotten corridors and secrets once sealed away.

End of Abyss will launch October 1 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series and PC via the Epic Games Store.

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The world was so compelling that it became the cornerstone of Remedy’s brand. They incorporated it into their cult classic Alan Wake franchise, making it a key part of the long awaited sequel. They released FBC: Firebreak, a co-op shooter that casts you as an emergency response team dealing with continuing issues in the Oldest House. Most importantly, the full-fledged sequel Control Resonant is now upon us, and it’s anything but a comfortable retread of the first game’s successes. Remedy has changed location, protagonist, and even combat style for their follow-up, but from the trailers it was clear that it still retained the brand of quirky humor and surreal weirdness that made the original so memorable. What remained to be seen was the new melee focus, something that Remedy has never attempted in their long history, would help or hinder combat encounters.

For those unfamiliar with Control (there’s a recap video that can be watched from the main menu if this applies to you), the series is focused on a shadowy government agency called the Federal Bureau of Control that investigates paranatural events. They secure and research various objects of power, while also dealing with entities or people that have extraordinary abilities. In the first one, you played as Jesse Faden, who enters the Oldest House, the ever shifting headquarters of the FBC, who is searching for her brother Dylan who vanished after an anomalous incident when they were young. Audiences latched on to the SCP-style tone of the game’s world as well as its unique and striking brutalist architecture, making it their fastest-selling IP since Max Payne.

The story of Control Resonant picks up seven years after the events of the original Control. This time, you play as Dylan, who is awakened from his coma when his sister jams the Aberrant, a shapeshifting weapon he’ll use throughout the game, straight into his chest. As he stumbles out of his cell in the Oldest House, he finds that not only has the lockdown been breached, allowing the Hiss, the antagonistic force that’s menaced the Federal Bureau of Control since the first game, to escape containment, but the surrounding area of Manhattan has been affected by a new paranatural event known as the Pattern, which has warped the city streets into something out of Inception.

Dylan, who has been subjected to FBC experiments for most of his life, is reluctantly recruited by the agency to help out with the situation, but is kept under close watch due to his previous Hiss infection. While in the first game he was mostly a blank slate of a character, acting as both Jesse’s goal and antagonist, Resonant manages to give him a depth that even Jesse lacked.

Designated as a powerful paranatural from a young age, the bureau attempted to harness his power for their own purposes, making him volatile and dangerous. Control Resonant uses this to the story’s advantage, allowing him to quickly become such an interesting character, searching both for redemption and a sense of self that he never was allowed to develop as a child. Several sequences dive into his character and his past, allowing us to not only understand him, but also come to a deeper understanding of Jesse as well.

Since he’s working with the FBC on the Manhattan crisis, Dylan is paired with Zoe De Vera, an agent that acts as his primary radio contact. Much like Remedy itself, Zoe has a love of music that is a big part of her personality, which is used to add impact to some of the game’s most memorable moments. Their relationship evolves throughout the course of the campaign, and I found it to be a surprisingly emotional friendship that anchors the heart of the game. She’s contrasted by Simon Arish, a no-nonsense hardass who views Dylan as a disposable weapon to be pointed at whatever the FBC needs to destroy. While he starts out a bit one-note, the journey he goes on adds more compelling wrinkles to his personality.

For fans of the original, we have a few returning characters, including Emily Pope, who has risen in the ranks following Jesse’s disappearance at the beginning of the game. Her performance is great, with real humanity coming through as she tries to parse the strangeness surrounding her. Dr Casper Darling gets some great sequences, presented in live action video as Remedy loves to do, filling in not only his past but Dylan’s as well.

In a surprise move, you’re often given dialogue choices when responding to people, either in-person or over the radio. These don’t have big, Telltale-style branching narrative choices, but instead just allow you to figure out what type of character your Dylan is. All of the options sound in-line with how he’s written, but it gives you a chance to dictate where you feel he is on his path of redemption and how he would feel at the moment. It’s not a huge part of the game, and can make things slightly clunky when trying to respond during action or exploration, but it’s neat to see Remedy experimenting with ways to make their stories more personal to the player.

Bringing you outside of the Oldest House is not only a stylistic difference from the first game, but also a structural one. Manhattan is a dense open world for you to explore, with discrete zones that all have their own personality. You start the game with double jump, hover, and dash abilities that make getting around a blast, and it only gets more fun as your mobility suite expands throughout the course of the game.

Part of the fun of the game becomes treating navigation like a puzzle. Many times you’ll look at your map and see you’re close to your objective, but you need to read the environment to try to figure out exactly how to make your way there. In addition to having side quests scattered around the zones, you’ll also have more traditional levels that you’ll enter, like subway systems or buildings, that will break up the exploration and put your more on a linear path. The world never feels too expansive, and there’s a healthy spread of fast travel points, in the form of free standing doors, scattered around the map, making it so you never have to struggle to get from one side of the world to another.

There are three main things that you’re chasing down to progress the narrative: story missions, Resonants, and Faults. Story missions are self-explanatory; these are the bigger missions given to you by the FBC to help try to solve the Pattern and put an end to its stranglehold on Manhattan. Control Resonant’s narrative feels better paced than the first one, with a very clear emergency that felt like it had more forward momentum to keep you engaged. Many of the game’s most memorable moments come from these missions, such as a dramatic escape from a place known as “the Sinkhole” or following a research team through several fractured timelines.

The Resonants are bosses that are scattered around the map, usually behind quests or levels that lead you to locating them. They are not on the main path, but defeating them will allow you to choose between a pair of combat abilities to add to your set of powers. Resonants are all gorgeously designed, either as staggering monstrosities or warped humans, and provide some of the best fights in the game. My favorite was the Dancer, who not only had the most fun patterns and attacks to learn, but was also an audio-visual feast from start to finish. While some of them are optional, it’s definitely worth tracking them down, as they are valuable for both the powerful rewards and the gameplay experience.

Faults are cracks in the world that Jesse has been exploring in order to do a ritual that will hopefully fix the Pattern once and for all. Indicated by the same strange FMV overlay that was used for Director Trench in the last game, you’ll need to seek these out in order to help her on her quest, while also saving her from the disastrous consequences of it. These sections of the game are almost exclusively platforming-based and reward you with new traversal powers, making the most fun part of the game even more entertaining.

While I loved the feeling of moving through these sections, they were most important for the interactions between Jesse and Dylan that drove them forward. The two characters have such a strong dynamic that brings to light their shared family history with sharp details, deepening the emotional core of the game in ways that surprised me. There’s a great little bit with them reminiscing about a video game, “Severed Circle 2”, they used to play when they were young that just makes the relationship feel so much more lived in and believable than in the first game. Faults are a perfect synthesis of gameplay and narrative, highlighting Remedy’s greatest assets.

Aside from the open world structure, the biggest shift in gameplay is the combat, which is now focused on melee weapons instead of firearms. Your basic combat kit has three components, your standard weapon that does your light attack, a stronger form that’s for your heavy attack, and a combo finisher which will happen after a series of light attacks. Each of them has their own stats and utility, and they can be mixed and matched to your liking. For most of the game, I was rocking the sweeping scythe attack for my light, which had a wider swing, along with a huge, slow hammer for my heavy attack, and an uppercut finisher that popped enemies into the air, taking advantage of the generous amount of air juggling you’re able to do thanks to Dylan’s floating power.

In addition, you slowly accumulate a set of abilities that run on a power meter that’s recharged by your melee attacks. As I mentioned before, Resonants will supply you with new options for your arsenal, and the choices you make will greatly affect your build. Options include summonable minions, powerful projectiles, or fiery enhancements to your weapons. All of these abilities have their usefulness, making the choices feel significant to your playstyle. The mix of abilities and standard attacks also creates a nice rhythm for the combat, forcing you to engage with the standard attacks to build your meter for the powers.

Like many modern action games, enemies have both a health bar and a falter bar, and figuring out how to affect each of them is important to victory. Filling up their falter meter will make them vulnerable to an execution, which gives you a brief burst of power that can easily turn the tide of an encounter. Unlike most modern action games, you do not have a parry button, only allowing you to dash out of the way if you want to avoid damage.

The feel of the combat is solid and satisfying, but I once again think that the encounters don’t really live up to it. Any time you run into a fight, the enemies are broken down into two types. There are small drones that won’t be terribly tough to deal with but will continue to respawn, and there are heavy creatures that are much more challenging, and need to be defeated to bring the encounter to a close. This structure feels a bit like the modern DOOM games, especially given that health is only recovered by picking up power-ups that drop from defeated foes, but it doesn’t work quite as well in Control Resonant.

The main problem I have is that enemies feel like they have too many hitpoints. Enemies do have levels based on where or when you encounter them, but even when you are evenly matched they still feel like they take a bit too long to kill. Combined with the fact that there are so many enemies at any given time, shooting at you from all directions, it makes many encounters feel tedious. I found myself standing in one place, slashing a heavy enemy over and over again while doing my best to not be pelted to death by projectiles coming from everyone around me. This type of structure would work better in a shooter, where you can constantly be in motion while chipping away at their health, but given that I need to hit them in melee range, it becomes a lot of button tapping at a certain point. The feeling is compounded by the fact that encounters themselves are also a bit too long, making many of the later game fights feel like a chore.

Fortunately, Remedy has done an excellent job with the accessibility options it presents in the game, allowing you to tweak a plethora of settings to customize the difficulty in very specific ways. If you’re like me and find the enemies feeling too spongy, you can go in and adjust the amount of outgoing damage you do with your attacks. Feel like you’re constantly dying because you’re being hit from all sides? Go ahead and tune down the incoming damage you take. Falter build up, power regeneration, enemy aggression and more can all be changed to your liking, allowing you to customize your experience to ensure you’re still having fun.

Since there are multiple paranatural threats loose in Manhattan, there are various subsets of enemies that all have different strategies to deal with them. The Hiss are the most common enemy type, with mechanics like regenerating shields to deal with, while the Mold were my favorite, with a resistance to blunt damage but a weakness to fire. Unlike the first game, which mostly had possessed humans for enemies, the creature design in Control Resonant is more exaggerated, often featuring huge monsters that have no semblance of humanity left in them. Towering bipedal beasts with hammer-like heads and horrible winged monsters that shoot laser beams are mixed in with mutated humans, providing some great visual variety to the encounters. I wish there were a few more enemy types, as given how encounter-dense the game is they run out of new tricks long before the end of the game, but I found them all visually unique and easy to read in the heat of battle.

To keep up with the escalating power of the enemies, you have access to several skill trees to enhance Dylan’s combat abilities. Each part of your arsenal has its own upgrade path that can be enhanced alongside a more generalized skill tree that affects everything you do. Obviously, there are some standard “do X percent more damage” options that aren’t as interesting, but many of them do change up how you play a bit. I really enjoyed a skill that allowed me to do extra damage when attacking from behind, which coupled well with my summons that could draw enemy attention. You can also craft artifacts that can be equipped into one of three slots, which further modify your stats in specific ways.

While I did like slowly watching my skills grow, there’s a bit of fiddliness with the process, as just like in Control, there are a ton of currencies that you use to do this. I appreciate the flavor that comes with using things like Living Shards or Warped Resonance as upgrade materials, but it felt like I spent a lot of time at vendors buying specific resources with the generic currency, when it probably would have been better if it was more streamlined. That said, I love the Remedy touch of forcing you to go into a strange liminal space called the Gap to interact with various stone structures to perform said upgrades, rather than just having it all run straight through a menu.

It’s these Remedy touches that really make the game shine, even when getting frustrated with overlong combat encounters that don’t offer much variety. For every fight that I found myself grumbling at, it would be offset by stumbling on a clever puzzle that hid intriguing lore notes. If you liked the dream logic style of puzzles featured in the original game’s Oceanview Motel as much as I did, you’ll find yourself frequently rewarded for your exploration.

Aside from the side quests, which are always a surreal pleasure to chase down, there are plenty of collectibles scattered throughout that make exploring rewarding. On top of that, doing quests and discovering collectibles will help you level up a zone, providing you extra bonus for that particular area, giving you a sense that the world is being helped through your actions. This sense of improving the area helps thematically reinforce the idea of Dylan’s path of redemption, finally finding a way to use the powers to help rather than hurt.

Near the end of the game, I took some time to go back through areas and sweep for secrets, and it’s some of the best time that I had. With the full set of movement powers, it feels like getting around an open world superhero game, allowing you to appreciate the world that Remedy has crafted. The gravity shift in particular, which allows you to shift which direction you’re oriented, allowed the developers to create some mind-bending spaces that feel satisfying to explore. In later areas, I found myself constantly in awe of how they were able to not only fold space on itself to create complex layouts, but also of how effectively they were able to invisibly lead me through these areas, making navigation feel like a puzzle that I was being elegantly guided through.

When I think back on my nearly 30 hours with Control Resonant, it’s not the friction with the combat encounters that pops into my head. It’s sense of discovery and exploration provided by exhilarating traversal abilities. It’s the surreal visuals I’m being led through by an engaging narrative. It’s the compelling characters and relationships that breathe life into the delightfully strange world. It’s a testament to the strength of the game that no matter how much I was sighing at yet another encounter that I had to button mashing my way through, I still fell in love with everything the game was doing. Control Resonant’s narrative, characters, and worldbuilding are top of class and not to be missed, and if you find yourself like me, bristling at some of the combat repetition, it’s incredibly easy to use the accessibility tools to create an experience that makes the melee combat work for you.

Review code provided by publisher.

Control Resonant launches September 24 digitally for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PC via Steam and Epic Games Store, while physical editions for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series will be available from October 15.

The post ‘Control Resonant’ Provides a Visual Feast With a Compelling Narrative and Engaging Combat [Review] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Titled “Entering the Facility: Meet the Creators”, the video features members of the devteam, kicking off with studio co-founder and programmer Mattias Ottvall, who explains the genesis of the studio when three members of Tarsier Studios set off on their own.

From there, Ottvall talks about how End of Abyss came about as an early prototype. Originally feeling more like a mobile game due to its faster pace, the gameplay was eventually slowed down and End of Abyss became more atmospheric as the team worked more on the environment, which widened the scope of the game. “It just became obvious quite early that, okay we have something that doesn’t feel so much like other games.”

End of Abyss is an atmospheric action-adventure game set in a dark science-fiction world with an emphasis on exploration, supported by engaging and tense combat. In the depths of a mysterious underground compound, a mission to investigate disturbances of unknown origin spirals into a harrowing descent through a broken and abandoned world. Players take on the role of the young combat technician, Cel, as she uncovers the truth behind the facility’s derelict areas and confronts the monstrous creatures that roam them.

Players will descend into the halls of a sprawling complex, where broken machines whisper to you from the depths, and nothing you encounter is fully human. Outmatched by twisted horrors, players must upgrade their gear and adapt, pushing their limits just to stay alive against the crushing pressure of the facility you’re trapped within. Players can navigate branching paths and uncover hidden areas using their scanner and the tools unlocked along the way. Pathways open as players grow stronger, allowing them to return to forgotten corridors and secrets once sealed away.

End of Abyss will launch October 1 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series and PC via the Epic Games Store.

The post Go Behind The Genesis of ‘End of Abyss’ in New Developer Video [Watch] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

After Chelsea Krause revealed earlier that she was the one providing voice work for Laurie Strode in the game’s single-player and multiplayer modes, it turns out that The Dead Meat Podcast’s own Chelsea Rebecca did some voice acting herself for the game.

Amongst the various citizens of Haddonfield, Rebecca also voiced the ill-fated Judith Myers.

Chelsea spilled the beans yesterday after Halloween: The Game launched for PC and consoles, taking to Instagram with the news.

“THRILLED to finally say I voice horror’s most iconic big sister (and lots of hapless victims) in Halloween: The Game, out today,” says Rebecca. “Thank you to the best session directors ever, [Halloween: The Game writers] Elyse Willems and James Willems, the team at IllFonic, and Sandy Johnson for making Judith so legendary in the first place. Let me know if you somehow fail the “Kill Judith” mission like I did the first time, something I did not even realize was possible.”

Dead Meat Podcast co-host James A. Janisse chimed in via a YouTube Short, stating how they had been sitting on this news for “so long.” And as a bonus, over on Dead Meat Games, James, Chelsea and the crew livestreamed a session playing Halloween: The Game, which you can check out here.

 

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According to the SteamDB stats, Halloween: The Game currently sits at a 24-hour peak of just over 33,000 players. Again, this is still just after one day, but that’s still good enough for landing the game among the more popular titles this week on Steam.

[Related] ‘Halloween: The Game’ Day One Patch Notes – Here’s the Full List

Furthermore, it’s also among the top new releases in terms of player count behind last week’s Onimusha: Way of the Sword and The Blood of Dawnwalker.

That’s not all. Drilling down into the debuts of other asymmetrical multiplayer horror titles, Halloween: The Game comes out on top in terms of debut player counts on Steam. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre debuted to 17k players, Friday The 13th: The Game launched with 16k players, and Dead by Daylight garnered 18k players on its launch.

Halloween: The Game beat all of them with over 22,000 players at launch.

Admittedly, 500,000 players isn’t quite the same as Onimusha: Way of the Sword selling one million units on launch day, but it’s a different genre, and a different audience. The real test will be a month from now, when the physical release launches on October 6 for those who are holding out for a disc. We’ll see if IllFonic is able to retain and grow the player base.

As the devteam states, the game’s launch is only the beginning of the Boogeyman’s journey…

In addition to Steam, Halloween: The Game is out now on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, as well as the Epic Games Store. The disc version will be available for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series.

[Related] Chelsea Krause Voices Laurie Strode in ‘Halloween: The Game’

The post ‘Halloween: The Game’ Gets Over Half a Million Players at Launch; Most Popular Asym Horror Launch Ever on Steam appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Free for current owners of The Outlast Trials, reagents can also take on two new MK-Challenges, unlock rewards through the new Chemical Leak Limited-Time Catalog, and experience a new round of improvements, balancing updates, and quality-of-life additions across Invasion, Escalation, and the wider therapy experience.

In the new Limited-Time Event “Chemical Leak”, a chemical leak is filling the Trials with toxic gas. Reagents must locate valves throughout the environment and shut them off to clear the air from each area. In addition, a brand-new Catalog is available for the duration of the Chemical Leak Limited-Time Event. Spend your Event Tokens before the air clears.

As for the two new MK-Challenges, players have Change the Program, where you are the crier who knows that news does not have to be journalism; it only has to be new. Spread our truth, change the program, and you’ll be set free. There’a also Fund the Campaign, where you are the hammer in the hands of a child, to shatter the fragile swine who would separate success from the government it created. Money is the future of speech. Fund the campaign, and you’ll be let you out.

Season 7.1 also brings a fresh round of bug fixes, balancing updates, and improvements across The Outlast Trials, with particular attention to Invasion, Escalation, online stability, and player settings.

Speaking of Invasion and Escalation, both modes have been given updates, with Season 7.1 further improving the experience for players. Invasion receives several updates designed to improve fairness, readability, and flow during high-pressure encounters. Reagents remain focused on the hunting and the escaping; Murkoff takes care of the rest.  For Escalation, community feedback helped improve stability, and players’ progress is saved in the event of a lost connection.

Season 7.1 also introduces broader improvements across the game. Check out the patch notes to read the full list of upgrades.

The Outlast Trials is available on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation, and Xbox.

The post Catch Your Breath in Season 7.1 of ‘The Outlast Trials’ on Now [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

That might not seem like a lot, but you have to consider the last major title in the series was Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams, which was released back in 2006 for the PlayStation 2.

In the press release, Capcom credits their marketing initiatives prior to the launch of Way of the Sword, which included multiple demo releases and hands-on exhibitions, which no doubt helped to push the one million units on the day of its release.

And once again, much like what happened after the release of 2024’s Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, Capcom is reiterating its goal of “re-activating IPs” that have been dormant for some time. “The company is working to further maximize corporate value by leveraging its rich library of content, including [Onimusha].”

Does this mean that long-suffering Dino Crisis fans will finally get their moment in the sun? One hopes that will be the case.

Onimusha: Way of the Sword transports players to a twisted vision of Kyoto. Set during Japan’s Edo period, the game features real-life locations, local myths, and historical figures within a dark fantasy world. Among the cast of characters is protagonist Miyamoto Musashi, a fierce and striking young samurai, who today we now know as one of the most legendary figures in Japanese history.

In the game, Musashi’s path takes an unexpected turn after a run in with the demonic Genma. He soon finds himself armed with an Oni Gauntlet, a mystical artifact that grants abilities beyond human limits. While this power allows Musashi to slay these monsters from the underworld, he desires to fight with his strength alone. In his quest, he’ll face many gritty, blood-soaked brawls.

Onimusha: Way of the Sword is available now on PlayStation 5, the Xbox Series, the Nintendo Switch 2, and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.

And check out Aaron’s review of the game and its “exhilarating” combat.

The post ‘Onimusha: Way of the Sword’ Sells One Million Units on Launch Day; Capcom Reiterates Commitment to Dormant Franchises appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

It’s Halloween night, 1978, and while unsuspecting families in the quiet suburbs of Haddonfield enjoy trick-or-treating, evil has made its way home.

Become immersed in the single-player story mode through six haunting chapters narrated by Dr. Sam Loomis to uncover how Michael Myers acquired his iconic blue jumpsuit, mask, and kitchen knife. Recreate the notorious babysitter encounter with a sandbox approach rewarding patient, brutal, and methodical playstyles alike.

Join 1v4 matches as either the Boogeyman himself or a Civilian trying to save the day. As Michael, stalk innocent residents using a nightmarish array of abilities, leveraging shadows and stealth to paint the town red. As a citizen of Haddonfield, alert other residents to the danger lurking in the dark and help them escape by calling the police, arming themselves with everyday household items, and overpowering the unkillable monster until everyone can escape.

Powered by Unreal Engine 5, Halloween: The Game aims to deliver the ultimate horror sandbox experience with an expansive array of dynamic map features, distinct gameplay systems, life-like NPC interactions, hauntingly realistic visuals, and endless scares just in time for Halloween.

“Everyone at Compass is thrilled to see this game get to longtime fans of the Michael Myers universe. It’s also been extremely exciting to see a whole new generation of fans find their way into Haddonfield. I cannot wait to see you all in the game,” says Malek Akkad, President of Compass International Pictures, Inc.

“Seeing Halloween: The Game finally in the community’s hands is the payoff of years of work honoring Moustapha Akkad and John Carpenter’s legacies,” said Jared Gerritzen, Chief Creative Officer at IllFonic. “For anyone who wants Michael Myers on their shelf as well as their consoles, the physical edition will be out just in time for Halloween. We hope fans have as much fun this October as we had recreating the terrifying events of 1978!”

And in case you missed it, here’s Harrison’s review of the game.

The post Stalk The Streets of Haddonfield Today in ‘Halloween: The Game’ on PC and Consoles [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Onimusha: Way of the Sword transports players to a twisted vision of Kyoto. Set during Japan’s Edo period, the game features real-life locations, local myths, and historical figures within a dark fantasy world. Among the cast of characters is protagonist Miyamoto Musashi, a fierce and striking young samurai, who today we now know as one of the most legendary figures in Japanese history.

In the game, Musashi’s path takes an unexpected turn after a run in with the demonic Genma. He soon finds himself armed with an Oni Gauntlet, a mystical artifact that grants abilities beyond human limits. While this power allows Musashi to slay these monsters from the underworld, he desires to fight with his strength alone. In his quest, he’ll face many gritty, blood-soaked brawls.

The gameplay revolves around satisfying sword-to-sword clashes with a deep arsenal of combat techniques. These maneuvers include parrying, deflecting, dodging, and more. The series’ signature gameplay features, Issen counterattacks and Soul Absorption, also return and add layers of decision making for players in the heat of battle.

Throughout the game, Musashi will also gain Oni Armaments that offer unique tools to turn the tide in his favor, and Oni Abilities that empower him to perform supernatural feats both in and out of battle. These powers also provide ways to explore previously unreachable areas and take on new challenges that await there, such as duels with formidable bosses. Together, these action elements deliver supreme swordplay combat and a gameplay experience that is uniquely Onimusha.

And for those “try before you buy” types, there’s a free public demo for Onimusha: Way of the Sword is also out now, where players can experience the game’s satisfying action while exploring an early slice of the story. The game’s demo is currently available via the PlayStation Store, Xbox Store, Nintendo eShop, Steam, and Epic Games Store.

If you need further convincing, check out Aaron’s review.

The post ‘Onimusha: Way of the Sword’ Slashes Onto Consoles and PC Today [Trailer] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Maneater 2 takes place during an invite-only preview event for Neptune’s Kingdom, an ultra-luxury private island theme park. Described by the park’s CEO Victor Reardon as “your exclusive gateway to the grandeur of Ancient Rome”—and attractively branded as such—the park combines the excess of Las Vegas with the whimsy of Anaheim, aiming to be the type of gargantuan venture that’s the first of its kind.

Obviously, that leaves plenty of opportunity for you to chow down.

Maneater fans will be pleased to know that Trip Westhaven is back (once again voiced by Chris Parnell) as your go-to source for color commentary and one-sided conversations. And as before, you’ll earn experience and evolve your shark as you complete objectives and gain experience.

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