Sam Barlow has a storied historical past. Whereas Silent Hill: Origins and Silent Hill: Shattered Recollections are, maybe, his two apparent claims to horror fame, 2015’s Her Story – his investigation-focused interactive movie – has etched itself into gaming historical past as one of many biggest FMV-style video games ever made. Excellent in its presentation and storytelling, we gave it a strong 9/10 again within the day – was that actually 11 years in the past? Was Telling Lies actually launched in 2019? Rattling. That hurts.
Barlow is again, nevertheless, following on from Immortality in 2022, which was additionally well-received. He is been working away on Venture C with the group at Half Mermaid, and, till now, we have not actually identified a lot about it. However, as a part of Kinetic Publishing Showcase – organized by Phasmophobia developer-turned-publisher Kinetic Video games – we all know that Venture C is now Precognition, and it is a sci-fi horror sport within the vein of Barlow’s different FMVs.
Launching in 2028, Precognition revolves round Diana who, following the implementation of an experimental implant, can all of a sudden see the long run. You are tasked with utilizing her foresight to both make the world a greater place, or, to cite the Steam description, change it “for the more severe.” You may be leaping throughout varied a long time and timelines, piecing collectively narratives and bending them to your will. It is described as “probably the most sprawling and impressive time journey tales but created.” Part of me believes that.
Barlow is not alone right here, nevertheless. He is recruited Possessor’s director Brandon Cronenberg, too. With a 94% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and 2023’s Infinity Pool additionally sitting at 87%, he is had a fairly good run with horror, and I count on that to shine by way of in Precognition.
“We have actually been attempting to check the boundaries of non-linear storytelling, specializing in how the sport feels to play, whereas encouraging participant company and freedom,” Barlow says. “We have pushed ourselves even tougher with Precognition by bringing the texture of investigation and thriller video games right into a world of cause-and-effect, with a narrative that spins out as a consequence of your decisions.”
Precognition is ready to launch in Spring 2028. You’ll be able to wishlist it on Steam, and look by way of the weird but oddly lovely screenshots. They do not let you know a lot, however they’re very fairly.
Whereas I’ve by no means been an FMV particular person, I am all the time excited to see what Barlow is as much as. I cherished 2K’s Ghost Rider sport (clearly his finest work), and I discover his FMVs equal elements perplexing and interesting. I like Precognition’s concepts, and whereas it is nonetheless a methods off, I am excited to see what comes of it.
