Hellraiser Revival needs you to really feel “uncomfortable.” After half-hour taking part in, it does all that and extra

Lauren spends most of her time useless in League of Legends, or equally as useless in Valorant. Do not ask her about Vampire: The Masquerade.

Printed: September 27, 2026

I’ll begin this text with a set off warning. This interview offers with matters that embody sadomasochism, themes of abuse, substance misuse, and discussions of a sexual nature, together with the likes of BDSM. If these themes aren’t for you, that is completely okay, however I might advise that you simply keep away from this text, and maybe Hellraiser: Revival extra usually.

I am trapped in a looping hall. It is a liminal house; one which continues till you discover the related puzzle items, however one which continuously, subtly adjustments. I’m Aidan, a person who’s desperately looking for his girlfriend, Sunny, who’s been pulled into the Cenobites’ Labyrinth. As I scramble by the halls of my own residence, I discover varied notes and texts, written from Aidan’s perspective, explaining in nice element what he needs to do with Sonny later that evening. The texts are somewhat extra lighthearted, utilizing keyboard characters to attract a girl’s breasts. The notes, nonetheless, are visceral – I really feel myself shift barely in my seat. I am hardly conservative, however it’s uncommon that I see the phrase ‘c u subsequent Tuesday’ seem in a videogame – particularly on this context.

“We’re attempting to make individuals uncomfortable,” Narrative Director Antony de Fault tells me at Gamescom. “We do not compromise,” Sport Director Emil Esov echoes. That is Hellraiser: Revival, and it is completely improbable.

Hellraiser, as an archetype, confronts the concept of sadomasochism; for the uninitiated, that is the act of deriving bodily or psychological pleasure from inflicting ache upon different individuals. The Cenobites – dubiously malevolent, otherworldly beings – successfully lure individuals of their eerie realm (The Labyrinth) and inflict stated violence upon them. It is the assembly level of ache and pleasure; a realm the place the strains between torture and consent are blurred.

Translating that right into a videogame is not precisely straightforward. There is a troublesome line to tread right here between demonizing sexual fetishes and exploring the concept of consent. Movie and tv have performed this earlier than – Hellraiser being the prime instance – however videogames are supposed to be enjoyable. They draw back from violence of this nature, and I can absolutely perceive why.

I used to be curious, then, to study Boss Staff Video games’ method to Hellraiser. Throughout my playthrough, I go to a BDSM dungeon-style zone, then find yourself within the liminal house space that I discussed earlier than. Whereas the dungeon zone does not really feel too stunning (we have seen intercourse work and its potential perils explored within the likes of Cyberpunk 2077), the sequence in Aidan and Sunny’s home left me feeling an odd combination of feelings, maybe encapsulated finest by an “oh my!” That is one thing that I’ve by no means skilled whereas taking part in a videogame, however that is what makes it so fascinating.

I ask de Fault and Esov how they went about incorporating these themes into Hellraiser: Revival’s gameplay, and concerning the stability between horror and respect. “We intentionally wished to push individuals barely,” de Fault says. “We wished to confront individuals with sexuality and intimacy that might make them uncomfortable, in what we’d name the ‘secure house’ of a videogame. It is probably not taking place to them and their our bodies, to allow them to course of their ideas about it and expertise it in that secure approach. I believe it simply makes individuals really feel higher; it makes me really feel higher about dealing with these sorts of conditions if I ever discovered myself in them in the actual world.”

“We did attempt to make individuals uncomfortable,” Esov continues. “I believe that is an excellent factor, as a result of many horror video games go for the ‘concern’ emotion, which is not low-cost, however is simple to evoke. When individuals are and experiencing uncomfortable emotions, they go to concern as effectively as a result of that extended discomfort makes you afraid. It is that feeling of getting to have a look at one thing that is discomforting to you, however you’ll be able to’t look away.”

“I’ll say that we wished to indicate a spectrum as effectively,” de Fault highlights. “Sunny and Aidan are in what I might say is an unhealthy sexual relationship. The cult are in a deeply unhealthy sexual relationship with themselves. However there are additionally different characters within the recreation who interact in secure and fully acceptable, consensual BDSM. It was actually essential to us that we weren’t simply pointing at individuals who like leather-based and whips and paddles and being like ‘oh, take a look at you sickos!’ It was essential to us to indicate that there are wholesome methods to train these needs, however the major topic of the sport is individuals who take it too far.”

Esov nods. “Individuals in the actual world have a tendency to think about BDSM stuff as deviant, however in a number of methods, in our recreation, BDSM enjoyers are essentially the most regular individuals truly. There’s the half within the intercourse membership the place we truly see the enjoyable of it; it will possibly look scary at first, however it’s simply individuals having fun with themselves.” It is an fascinating stability to strike, and I believe Boss Staff does it completely.

What I preferred about Hellraiser: Revival was that nearly noxious feeling of dread; that seeping sense of unease. There is a distinct lack of leap scares, which in some methods amplifies the heaviness of the themes – nothing feels low-cost or predictable. There’s one within the liminal house sequence, however de Fault notes that it was added “fairly late” as “just a bit seasoning on prime.” At no level does Hellraiser really feel prefer it’s actively attempting to scare me; it is simply passively succeeding in doing so.

That does not imply there is no violence, nonetheless; this can be a survival horror expertise. Hellraiser’s capturing feels good; it is robust as nails, and you will find your self scrounging round in drawers searching for shotgun shells and by accident lifting up a dildo.

The story of Hellraiser, nonetheless, is intertwined with intense violence. The place different video games throw blood and guts at you as a result of they’ll, brutality needs to be a central theme right here – it is a Hellraiser recreation. Because of this, it feels significant regardless of its flamboyance. It takes middle stage, but by no means feels compelled. I ask the duo how the group managed to attain this.

“The context is the factor that makes the distinction,” de Fault says. “When individuals get bored with violence in videogames, it tends to be as a result of the violence is in service of nothing. It’s going to be glory kills for the sake of glory kills – there’s probably not a degree to the violence apart from the visceral gratuity of it that faucets right into a sure lizard a part of the mind. That is to not denigrate extremely violent video games; it is a totally different factor. The best way we approached it was to ensure it at all times had a goal. Each character on this recreation has a selected thematic, significant cause to be behaving the best way they’re behaving.

“Having discomfort as a key emotion for us actually helped us navigate and be sincere about what we need to present,” Esov says. “We designed the expertise round that; we need to microdose it in order that the participant feels it.” He remembers that, within the recreation’s first act, the method of buying your first merchandise “is de facto extended and grotesque the place you are a unadorned physique that has been disfigured indirectly. It isn’t only a fast decide up animation – similar with the primary kill, similar with the primary all the things. That is how we do it, and I believe it feels natural within the Hellraiser house.”

Hellraiser: Revival was my recreation of Gamescom. To the skeptical, it is simply one other branded horror expertise, however in actuality it made me really feel issues that I’ve by no means felt, and query my very own pre-established biases. I’ve had horror video games scare me – ask my mother concerning the child in Resident Evil Village. I’ve by no means had a horror recreation make me assume, and that is what Hellraiser does.

So sure, it’s uncomfortable. It is uncompromising. It is express. It is rather a lot. Nevertheless it’s all in service of making a terrific horror expertise. Hellraiser: Revival is definitely one of the fascinating video games I’ve ever performed, and I can not wait to play extra.

Hellraiser: Revival launches on Thursday, October 8. You possibly can play the demo on Steam proper now.