![]() Thankfully, Team Ninja proved up to the challenge, with Wo Long building on the foundations of the studio's earlier Nioh games. 13) System ShockĪfter Elden Ring redefined the ‘Soulsborne’ genre in 2022 with its glorious open world approach, any developer wanting to stick closer to the style’s roots had their work cut out for them. With each attempt to escape offering its own dark delights, horror fans may never want to leave The Bunker. It's how the game evolves on its predecessors that impresses though, with the catacombs a semi-open world to explore as you dare, and more opportunities for emergent gameplay thanks to the freedom to experiment with tools. Staying put isn't an option though, and every step into the depths searching for a way out or even just fuel for your greatest ally – the generator – is a claustrophobic nightmare. With its monster vulnerable only to light, The Bunker is a masterclass in tension as Henri struggles to keep a lonely generator chugging along just for a measly dim glow. Set in the middle of World War I, players inhabit French solder Henri Clement, trapped in the eponymous underground facility by cowardly superior officers, and hunted by a creature known only as 'The Beast'. The Amnesia series has long established itself as one of the best horror franchises around, and The Bunker is its scariest outing yet. Its Lovecraftian vibes – all isolated towns wary of outsiders, clinging wetness, and a palpable sense of something ancient and unknowable lurking in the briny deep – combine with an unsettling, impressionistic art style to make one of the most effectively chilling games of the year so far. Then, as your tiny tugboat trundles back to the dock just a bit too late, the fog and darkness creeping in, panic strikes – what was that under the surface?! Black Salt Games’ Dredge is far more than just an indie fishing game – it's a masterclass in subtle terror. The fishmonger smells of fish, but in a weird way. The shipwright is repairing damage above vessels’ waterline. ![]() But something's not right – the Mayor warns you not to stay out on the water past dark. As the new fisherman to the small island community of Greater Marrow, your job seems simple: catch plenty of fish to feed the islanders and boost the economy. It’s almost impossibly hard at times, but even that plays to the game’s strengths - the sense of overwhelming horror when you realise that you’re boxed in with no way out and no chance of survival is as panic-inducing as James Cameron intended.Įveryone loves a relaxing day on the water – it's the nights you have to worry about. ![]() From the whine of the motion tracker, to the crackle of the pulse rifles and even the James Horner-adjacent score, every thread of Dark Descent feels pulled from the movie, making the game an exhilarating ride and even allowing you to customise your marines to reflect their on-screen counterparts (almost mandatory). The interface is clunky and the launch version had more than a few (non-Xenomorph) bugs to stamp out but there’s no denying how lovingly developer Tindalos’ title captures the oppressive atmosphere and particular aesthetic of the 1986 sequel. A real-time, squad-based tactical survival horror rather than the blazing shooter you might expect, this unbearably tense strategy game takes pages from the Xcom playbook, but gives them a unique and effective twist as you and your squad climb aboard an express elevator to hell. It might have taken the better part of four decades, but this year we were finally presented with an Aliens adaptation worthy of the title. It took almost a decade for Ishin! to make it out of Japan, but this modern remake was worth the wait. Factor in all the compulsive side-games the wider series is known for, and it's a good time in the (very) old town. Ryoma seamlessly switching between four combat styles – Swordsman, Gunman, Brawler, and the gun/sword dual wielding ‘Wild Dancer’ – makes for beautiful carnage, while a new ‘Virtue’ system unlocks more abilities. It's that sort of bonkers approach that has won fans’ admiration over the decades, but this doesn't rely on gimmicks – it packs in some of the series’ best action yet. That's its actual in-game cast, mind – which means Yakuza's Kazuma Kiryu ‘starring’ as ronin Sakamoto Ryoma (both voiced by actual human Takaya Kuroda), and a host of other familiar faces cropping up in new roles for Ishin!'s 1860s setting. A spin-off of the wider Like A Dragon series (formerly Yakuza), Ishin! takes its cast of noble criminals and transplants them to the Bakumatsu era for a tale at the end of Japan's Edo period.
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