The Chinese language Room stepped into the highlight earlier this yr as the brand new developer of Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2, however that is not the one mission it has on the go. It is also engaged on a brand new horror sport known as Nonetheless Wakes the Deep, and right this moment we lastly obtained our first take a look at gameplay—and I am completely happy to say that it seems to be like every part I hoped, and feared, it might be.
Nonetheless Wakes the Deep is about aboard an oil rig being battered by a raging storm on the North Sea within the Nineteen Seventies. The decks are awash, the corridors flooding, and a lot of the crew is lacking and in want of your assist. However that is not your solely drawback, and even your greatest: The true drawback at hand is “the unknowable horror that is come aboard” amidst the chaos. Because the saying goes, it doesn’t want you effectively.
The Steam web page for Nonetheless Wakes the Deep guarantees “a symphony of motion, trepidation, tender feelings, and awe,” and sure, that is fairly over-the-top. However it’s additionally the form of factor that The Chinese language Room is understood for. Pricey Esther is a polarizing sport however I liked it, and Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs was extra bizarre than scary but in addition arguably a extra adventurous tackle narrative-based horror due to its delicate, light-touch method. I did not play Everyone’s Gone to the Rapture, nevertheless it made a really constructive impression too.
This new gameplay trailer bears echoes of The Chinese language Room’s earlier work—linear, bizarre, inscrutable—nevertheless it additionally comes off as extra overtly horrific and action-oriented. I am undecided how I really feel about that: Typically talking I am not a fan of operating blindly from screaming, slavering monsters who need to put on me like a swimsuit, however I’m actually curious how The Chinese language Room’s trademark slow-burn storytelling is perhaps punched up with some full-on Frictional-style pants-shitting. As with different horror video games I’ve compelled myself into over time, I’m each reluctant and wanting to play it. Yeah, it is a bizarre feeling.
Nonetheless Wakes the Deep does not have a launch date but nevertheless it’s presently anticipated to be out in early 2024, and will likely be accessible for PC on Steam.