Since the early 20th century, a subgenre of horror became well known amongst avid readers. A sub genre that to this day still has an effect on authors and horror lovers everywhere: Lovecraftian horror. Also known as cosmic horror, the fear that strikes people’s hearts lies within the incomprehensible. Rather than seeing or reading graphic depictions of gore and feeling uneasy from it, not knowing what is going on is the focus; not being able to wrap our minds around the fact that the lives we live are meaningless in the grand scale of the universe. When H.P Lovecraft added physical threats to his works, they always reflected these key points: a monster so massive and extraterrestrial appearing, we cannot fathom it. The existence of such a being is shocking, and arguably the worst part of it all is that there is no way to stop it. All we can do as humans in this situation is sit and wait for the inevitable.
Developer Amortiz Games took this Lovecraftian horror and created a walking simulator based around it. In Leviathan: Rhino, a small village is at the mercy of an approaching Leviathan who is only getting closer and closer. Being so large, there is no escape from it, it’s constantly present as a dark figure among the clouds and fog. Playing as an older man, the only thing you can do is wait. Feed your cows, visit your neighbor, listen to the news–live your life as normally as you can. With the inevitable fate of the town coming, the feelings of dread, loneliness, insignificance, and a small fragment of hope to cling on to are the only things that fill the village’s mind.
Leviathan: Rhino is available to wishlist on Steam now and will be released September 13, 2026.