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Stealth horror game 'Hello Neighbor' arrives on mobile devices
Stealth horror game Hello Neighbor puts you at odds with the creepy next-door neighbor, tasking you with sneaking in to his house to find his secrets while you avoid getting found out. Just one day before the game is slated to launch on PS4 and Switch (it originally came out for Xbox and PC), it's available on mobile platforms.
Watch the trailer for George R. R. Martin's new sci-fi horror show
Game of Thrones is one of the most beloved, watched and pirated TV shows in recent history, but it's not the only George R. R. Martin tale being adapted for the small screen. The author's sci-fi horror novella Nightflyers was first published in 1980 before being turned into a movie later that decade, and now a new TV adaptation airing this fall on Syfy in the US and Netflix in other regions. A brief teaser for the show's first, ten-episode season caught our attention a few months ago, and now we have a full trailer that debuted at this year's San Diego Comic-Con to sink our teeth into.
Nintendo Switch game streaming starts in Japan this week
The Nintendo Switch might not be the most capable piece of gaming hardware on the market today, but it never ceases to surprise us. Case in point: This morning Capcom announced that last year's terrifying Resident Evil 7 biohazard will be available on Nintendo's latest console later this week. The wrinkle here is that unlike Doom or the forthcoming Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus, you'll stream the first-person horror-fest's port rather than downloading the game file all at once.
Netflix snags Guillermo del Toro horror anthology series
Netflix has just ordered a horror anthology series created by Guillermo del Toro, who will also serve as executive producer. The stories included in Guillermo del Toro Presents 10 After Midnight will be "both equally sophisticated and horrific," according to Netflix, and will be curated by del Toro. The filmmaker will also write and direct certain episodes.
'The Blackout Club' is a co-op horror game from 'BioShock' veterans
Many horror games are solitary affairs -- a little odd when horror movies are frequently shared experiences. Why not make games which play off the social side of fear? Question is trying just that. The group of BioShock and Dishonored alumni has unveiled The Blackout Club, a co-op horror title where survival depends on working as a team. You play as a group of teens who've uncovered a terrifying conspiracy in a small town, and they can only see the villains' central "boogeyman" by closing their eyes (part of the reason for the "blackout" in the name). If your group is going to live, everyone will need to keep watch -- you may save a friend who doesn't realize they're in danger.
Amazon renews podcast-inspired 'Lore' series for a second season
Amazon's podcast-based series Lore will return for a second season. Production for the horror-tinged series begins in April, and in addition to new episodes, it'll feature a new showrunner, Sean Crouch, who worked on The Exorcist series. There aren't a ton of details, but Amazon promises that the new season will explore horror stories on a global level. Given the production timeline, it doesn't seem like a stretch to assume the new episodes will be available by Halloween -- just in time to compete with Hulu's forthcoming macabre show.
The original 'Dead Space' is free... on EA Origin
Beloved horror survival game Dead Space is now available completely free on PC. The 2008 sci-fi hit is the newest addition to EA's "On the House" offering, and as long as you grab it directly from Origin it's yours without charge, to play and keep forever. That said, it's not clear how long the promotion will run for, so you should probably download it sooner rather than later.
Hulu's latest exclusive is an indie-horror anthology series
Recently, Hulu's efforts to bolster its stable of exclusive programming (original and otherwise) has been in high gear. That trend continues with an as-of-now untitled horror anthology series from the macabre-centric Blumhouse Productions according to Variety. Rather than release an episode a week or all at once, they'll be released once a month for 12 months, starting this October. From the sounds of it, Hulu might be interested in targeting horror fans beyond this series.
'Evil Within 2' trial gives you a taste of surreal survival horror
Free trials (aka demos) are good ways to get a feel for a game before you buy, but they could be particularly helpful for The Evil Within 2. How are you going to wrap your head around Shinji Mikami's surreal survival horror game based on second-hand info? You don't have to. Bethesda has released a free trial of Evil Within 2 for PS4, Xbox One and Windows PCs. The sample lets you experience a few chapters of detective Sebastian Castellanos' bid to rescue his daughter, including some open world experiences and character customization. Any progress you make can transfer to the full game if you decide to splurge.
Turning indie horror hit 'Neverending Nightmares' into a manga
She stands in front of you, clutching a teddy bear to her chest. She can't be older than 8, with long, straight black hair and a frilled dress. You don't know her name, but she's smiling warmly. And then, suddenly, she isn't: Her doe eyes widen, white and afraid. Her mouth gapes and blood drips past her lips. You follow her gaze down -- a knife protrudes from her stomach, staining her dress bright red, blood dribbling into her socks and Mary Janes. A knife that your hands are grasping tightly. This is how the video game Neverending Nightmares begins, and it's also the first scene in a manga of the same name that debuted last week. As a game, Neverending Nightmares is a chilling, powerful peek into the darkest thoughts of a person struggling with depression and intrusive thoughts. The protagonist, Thomas, is trapped in a hellscape loop, repeatedly waking up only to realize he's still in a terrible nightmare: Headless corpses are piled against black-and-white walls; bodies hang from meat hooks in a claustrophobic cell; Thomas pulls a vein from his wrist like a stray thread.
How ‘Channel Zero’ turns online ‘creepypasta’ tales into TV horror
Syfy's Channel Zero is one of the best shows on television that you're not watching. It's a horror anthology series based on "creepypastas"-- short, scary stories shared on forums and sites like Reddit. Slenderman is the most famous, but there are countless others in which (typically anonymous) writers take a stab at crafting modern folklore. For its first season, Channel Zero adapted one of the most popular creepypasta stories, Candle Cove. It centered on an old kid's TV show that warped the minds of its young audience. With its second season, which is airing now on Syfy, Channel Zero creator Nick Antosca set his sights on No-End House. It's a twist on the standard haunted-house genre, focusing on a legendary Victorian home that can tap into your deepest fears and desires. I chatted with Antosca about what it's like to bring creepypasta stories to TV, and why horror is an ideal genre for exploring our anxieties around technology and modernity.
Watch Hulu's first teaser for Stephen King's 'Castle Rock'
Ever since Hulu announced Castle Rock, there's been a lingering question: just what would JJ Abrams' take on Stephen King's universe look like? You now have a better idea. Hulu has posted the first trailer for the series, and it makes more than a few references to King's many stories. Shawshank State Prison gets more than one nod, to start. Even the casting pays tribute. It star Bill Skarsgård shows up at one point, while Carrie's Sissy Spacek is returning to King's landscape -- albeit as a different character.
Amazon's podcast-inspired 'Lore' series premieres October 13th
Amazon embraced the podcast revival late last year when it opted to turn the nonfiction podcast Lore into a Prime Video series, and you're about to see whether or not its effort was worth the wait. The internet giant has revealed that its Lore adaptation will reach Prime Video on October 13th. It's a six-episode stint, but it could be intriguing even if you haven't listened to a single episode of the show that inspired it. It combines documentary footage with cinematic scenes to tell the origins of horror myths, and it stars big names like Terminator 2's Robert Patrick and True Blood's Kristin Bauer van Straten.
The top Twitch clip involves a horror game and Jack Daniels
Tom Wheldon started streaming on Twitch as JurassicJunkieLive two months ago. He was an intrepid tinkerer and a veteran video creator who started making YouTube videos before it was the cool kids' multi-million-dollar industry. Wheldon regularly discussed video games, so Twitch felt like a natural evolution of his online presence -- his channel quickly earned a following of about 100 folks, some of them tuning in every Friday to watch Wheldon scream his way through a horror game. Last week, Wheldon booted up Outlast 2 for his regular "Frightday" stream, and he became Twitch legend.
Hack into a world of cyberpunk horror next month in 'Observer'
If you think things are unendurably awful in the world today, maybe don't play Observer when it hits PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Mac and Linux on August 15th. Observer follows one of the darkest paths at humanity's feet, imagining a 2084 where corporations are the highest authority and much of society lives in Blade Runner-esque squalor. In Poland, Detective Dan Lasarski is tasked with hacking into the minds of murderers and degenerates, witnessing their crimes in twisted detail, first-hand.
PlayStation VR horror title lets friends mess with your game
Most solo virtual reality games don't make for great entertainment at parties... not unless your definition of fun involves making everyone wait their turn. Firesprite, however, has a way for your friends to join in. Its upcoming PlayStation VR sci-fi horror title The Persistence will include a mobile companion app that lets nearby friends see the game map. Your pals can make your life easier by steering you toward items, or create havoc by running you toward threats -- this is one of the few horror games where the people on your couch may be as much of a hazard as the virtual enemies.
'Outlast 2' will seriously creep you out this April
The follow-up to hit survival-horror game Outlast is coming to PC, Xbox One and Playstation 4 on April 25. Outlast 2 will attempt to raise the creep factor with more genre-defining "WTF" moments than were possible in the first game, due to budgetary restrictions.
'Outlast 2' is all about documenting your own mental breakdown
Philippe Morin wants to break your brain. As a creator of the grotesque, critically acclaimed horror series Outlast, he delights in dissecting the psychology of terror and dreaming up new nightmares for video game fans. Look at Outlast 2. Morin's latest project -- due out for PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 this spring -- promises to play with the idea of isolation in unexpected ways. The game throws players in the middle of the sprawling Northern Arizona desert, but the setting isn't designed to generate the feeling of freedom. If Morin gets his way, this vast environment will make players feel claustrophobic, crushed by all the open space and consumed by fear of the horrors it might be hiding. "This time we could afford to pursue a little more thoroughly the psychological layer," Morin says. "Internally what we've been saying is, the first Outlast was meant to take away your physical integrity, and the second Outlast will take your mental integrity."
'Until Dawn' looked way different as a PlayStation 3 game
Until Dawn was my favorite game from last year. It had a rocky development history, though, starting as a first-person PlayStation 3 game that used the Move motion controller pretty extensively. And now, footage from an early prototype has surfaced online, showing off just what the game looked like as a motion-controlled PS3 title.
The mysterious existential dread of Krillbite's 'Mosaic'
Adrian Husby and Martin Kvale have been working together since 2011, when they were finishing up their bachelor's degrees in Norway. That's when they began conceptualizing Among the Sleep, a surreal first-person horror game that puts players in the shoes of a toddler, waddling around a suburban house at night as stranger and stranger things creep through the floorboards. With their studio Krillbite, they released Among the Sleep in 2014. It was a hit, selling well across PCs and consoles and garnering a handful of awards. Today, Husby and Kvale are hard at work on their new project, Mosaic. It's a mysterious, atmospheric game that retains Krillbite's trademark creepy vibe. They only want to tease Mosaic for now; they don't want to give too much away before its expected release on PC and PlayStation 4 in late 2017. As they attempt to describe Mosaic while maintaining its mystery, Husby and Kvale play off each other as old friends do.
