Video Games
‘Conscript’ Brings Survival Horror to The Real Horrors of WWI
Taking one of the worst conflicts in human history in World War I, and combining it with supernatural horror sounds like it might be overkill, but that’s certainly not the case for Conscript. The indie-developed project (which you can try out now thanks to the Steam Game Festival) touts itself as “a new take on classic survival horror”, which is certain to grab more than a few peoples’ attention.
Developed by indie company Catchweight Studio, Conscript tells the tale of a lone French soldier named André, who is looking for his brother Pierre – missing-in-action during the battle of Verdun. In the midst of the trenches of the Great War. You must navigate the mazelike trenches, scavenge for supplies and solve complex puzzles – all the while fighting for your survival.
And yes, the muck and the mire and the bleak landscape definitely are ripe for horror. At the moment, Catchweight Studio head JD is holding a Kickstarter to help get Conscript made, so if you enjoy the demo, and want to see the project to its fruition (Catchweight wants to get the game completed and on Steam by May 2021), then head on over and chip in a few bucks.
Kinetic Games has followed through with the 13 Willow Street map rework for Phasmophobia today, which is free across all platforms. Accompanying the map rework is the first of two major quality-of-life updates bringing hundreds of bug fixes and helping refine the gameplay experience.
Ghost hunters can prepare for a refreshed investigation experience with the reworked Willow map, adding a host of new paranormal interactions, objects, and hiding spaces. As with the most recent overhaul to 6 Tanglewood Drive, Willow retains an almost identical layout but features redesigned rooms, including a reconfigured basement layout, bringing the gameplay experience up to the team’s current development standards.
The reworked rooms include an art studio, home gym and entertainment room, replacing the bedroom, garage and basement previously featured in the haunted house. Alongside these visual updates, curious players will be able to uncover new lore hidden throughout Willow, piecing together a story waiting to be discovered.
“As part of the 13 Willow Street rework we’re continuing our approach to storytelling in Phasmophobia and developing the game’s narrative,” said Anastatia Dukakis, Senior Narrative Designer at Kinetic Games. “It’s always exciting to see the community make new discoveries together and we love seeing everyone share their theories and thoughts on the lore behind in-game locations.”
Players will also be tasked to correctly identify (and survive) 50 ghosts as part of map’s challenge, awarding the Sun Seeker ID set upon completion. Players can also unlock the Cool Cat ID card and badge for the first week after launch, by watching 2 hours of Phasmophobia streams.
Meanwhile, the major update accompanying the map rework is inspired by community feedback following the Player Character Update, and reflects Kinetic Games’ ongoing commitment to delivering the level of quality players expect before Phasmophobia leaves Early Access.
The update introduces a range of changes helping to refine the gameplay experience with refreshed animations allowing for smoother and quicker movements, and changes to evidence collection for a more seamless experience, and ghost hunters might also face a new presence lurking in the shadows…
New keybinds have also been added with players now able to use 1,2,3 and 4 for changing inventory slots alongside wider accessibility tweaks. For an overview of all the fixes landing in-game, you can check out the blog post here.
Phasmophobia is available in Early Access on PC via Steam, PlayStation 5 and PlayStation VR2, and the Xbox Series.