The psychological horror genre often finds itself in enclosed areas since the main avenue for exploration lies in the minds of the characters and player. Like with any video game trend, however, there are notable exceptions, and new games are constantly pushing the boundaries of what is possible when it comes to scaring players. The recently announced Prospice exemplifies the new direction these games can take by tying psychological horror into exploration over an uncharted island. Developed by Code Walkers and published by Forklift Interactive, the game revolves mostly around traversing new areas in a truck to uncover the secrets of the land.
To introduce the game’s concept, Prospice also received a trailer along with its announcement, opening with a voice welcoming the player as a Pathfinder to the island of Nastrondey. The frozen island’s dark secrets are quickly revealed as the player’s truck passes by a huge skeleton resting against a hill as the voice claims that the relics from the island “radiate dream corruption.” The Steam page explains that the massive skeletons are the “corpses of ever rotting gods,” and the voice ends by saying that the strange threats on the island are not to be underestimated.
As the character in the trailer steps away from the computer giving the introduction, players are given a few more short glimpses of the gameplay. Most basically, players will be tasked with traveling to unexplored areas on the island to install devices or to deliver supplies across the hostile land, which will involve navigating tricky terrain. The unique aspect of the game comes when the main character sees a glimpse of a living skeleton crawling just into their field of vision. Survival on the island will require avoiding the supernatural threats as well.
Prospice will be available on PC, with an open playtest beginning along with the announcement. The playtest is set to last for one week, with the final release date not yet announced.