Video Games
Comedy Horror Co-op Title ‘Terrorbytes’ Out Now in Early Access [Trailer]
Publisher Over the Moon and developer Treetop’s 4-player comedy horror game Terrorbytes has launched into Early Access on Steam, with the goal to remain in the service to polish the game and release it in full in “a year or less”.
This Early Access version of Terrorbytes has launched with five levels, four different playable characters, five tools, and six safe room upgrades. New maps, enemies and more will be added in the months to come.
“Terrorbytes is the culmination of everything I love about gaming. It’s got goofy humor, addictive emergent gameplay, throwbacks to the retro arcade scene that inspired me as a child, and it’s just a lot of fun to play with your friends,” said John Warner, Founder and Studio Lead at Over the Moon. “This Early Access version offers great value with endless replay value, but it’s just the beginning. We’ll be adding more content throughout based on our own ideas in concert with player feedback.”
Inspired by Tron and Stranger Things, Terrorbytes follows four young friends as they’re sucked into a haunted arcade cabinet and turned into ghosts (the game’s old villains). The quartet is now forced to gather pellets for the horrifically mangled retro arcade hero “Ms Croak-Man”.
Cooperation in Terrorbytes is key. All players collect pellets for energy, which go into a shared pool, and everything has a cost; even sprinting costs energy, so players will have to manage energy carefully if they want to meet the game’s collection targets, or purchase upgrades and special items. Items range from a simple flashlight, to a satisfying power washer, to map-room upgrades that allow players to spawn helpful arrows, decoys, or broadcast their voice to other players. You’ll need all the help you can get to survive this arcade realm full of skin-walkers, invisible stalkers, pocket-dimension horrors, and more.
When Season 7 “Project Boneyard” arrives for The Outlast Trials on July 14, players will be greeted with the return of Prime Asset Sergeant Leland Coyle. And he’s not alone. Launching for PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation, and Xbox, Project Boneyard will include a new Trial, two fresh MK-Challenges, major updates to Escalation and Invasion, new customization features, and a new Ex-Pop enemy stalking the Prison Farm known as The Biter.
Season 7 will see Reagents sent into Murkoff’s latest correctional nightmare in the Prison Farm. At the center of it all is Sergeant Coyle, returning in a prominent new role for the season’s new Trial, Locksock the Warden.
The American prison is a meat grinder, taking in sociopaths and criminals and extruding functioning members of society. But strict routine, severe conditioning, and close quarters create a crucible for power dynamics built on violence, contraband, and flesh.
With the new Trial, you are freedom. The indefinable promise that keeps prisoners at the grindstone that turns authority to profit and back again. Don’t let false authority stand in the way of real capital. Kill the Warden, and set yourself free.
Season 7 also brings with it two new MK-Challenges. In “Bribe the Judges”, you are the master, whose property is the purpose of the law. Salary reminds enforcement that their monopoly of violence only exists for your monopoly of capital. Collect the bribes in order to pay the judges. Meanwhile, “Cancel the Broadcast” has you sabotaging the broadcast and defiling the faithful with blood in order to be let out.
Then there’s the new Ex-Pop stalking the Prison Farm in The Biter. Having had its arms removed to prevent further self-harm, Biters are universal sadists, still capable of grievous harm with their mechanically enforced jaws. Though Biters are kept chained by the neck for safety, you should approach them with caution, as their augmented legs grant them unexpected velocity.
If that’s not enough content for you, from July 14 to August 11, Twitch users who tune in to participating The Outlast Trials Twitch streams can earn rewards through the latest Twitch Drops campaign. You can read up on the full details from the FAQ on developer The Red Barrels’ website.
Lastly, Project Boneyard also introduces a range of new features and improvements for The Outlast Trials, designed to “expand player expression, streamline preparation, and improve the overall experience” across key modes. That includes the introduction of Rig Customization, Knife Customization, Loadout Presets, and Mastery Tasks, giving players new ways to “prepare for therapy” and personalize their approach before entering the Trials. The update will also bring major reworks to both Escalation and Invasion, with significant changes designed to improve the flow, structure, and overall player experience of both modes.
More details on these features, and the full contents of Project Boneyard, will be revealed closer to launch.