September is just about over, which means October is coming. This is the prime time for horror games to coincide with Halloween, and on top of new releases, games like Call of Duty: Warzone are preparing horror-themed events. A new game called Strobophagia: Rave Horror is throwing its hat into this ring, and it's releasing on October 28.
Originally, horror was mostly in the domain of shooter and puzzle games. Titles like Clock Tower and Alone in the Dark set the stage for what horror would become, but these days Silent Hill and Resident Evil are at the forefront of many horror game lists. However, horror in video games casts a much wider net, with games like Amnesia: The Dark Descent ushered in a new era of psychological horror that would be seen in games like Outlast and Five Nights at Freddy's.
The trend of psychological horror is continuing this year with titles like Strobophagia, which follows its protagonist to the Headless Rave Festival. There are already multiple horror titles launching in October, including a new Amnesia game, but it is important to look at indie titles as well. The indie game scene has a history of releasing creative horror games, from the original Amnesia to more modern titles like Pony Island.
The protagonist in Strobophagia: Rave Horror is promised freedom, but learns upon arrival that the price is the lives of everyone there. While the gameplay loop is not shown in full in a trailer released by IGN today, it seems to revolve around escaping the forest by evading creatures amid psychedelic areas with EDM blasting. Whereas a cyberpunk game like Observer focuses on the horror of subjugation, Strobophagia seems to fixate on the exact opposite.
The woods the player must traverse are as impenetrable as the costumes of the ravers, which makes the neon colors stand out even more and adds a twisted look to the humanoid monsters. It is currently unknown how long the game is. Great horror games can have either a short or long runtime, as long as the pacing of the scares is well done, so the mechanics are what interested players should look out for.
Some parts of the gameplay look familiar. A smartphone is available, although what function it will have outside of communication is unclear. Monsters can attack the player, and it seems there is no way to fight them off. Unless there is a unique mechanic for survival like in In Sound Mind, players may have no choice but to run. At this point, only time will tell.
Strobophagia: Rave Horror releases for PC on October 28, 2020.