I haven’t played many survival horror games recently. I played the hell out of Silent Hill and Silent Hill 2 as well as the first three Resident Evils. Since then, things have kinda tailed off. Maybe, I’m waiting for the right game to reel me in, and maybe just maybe, Through the Woods is the game to do it.
Through the Woods, is a third-person psychological horror game filled with a gut-load of tension and dread, and all this is coming to Windows, Mac and Linux in Quarter 1 of 2016.
The game tells the story of Karen, an incredibly upset and distraught mother who must explain everything she knows about the disappearance of her son. The gameplay is of her telling the story of those events. The player then must guide Karen through any number of treacherous and terrifying landscapes in search for her lost son, all the while avoiding the hideous monsters that lurk within them.
The plot feels very Silent Hill-ish, a lost child, a determined yet terrified parent, unfamiliar terrain and scary monsters, and it’s that similarity that appeals to me.
If you want to know more about Through the Woods, you can read the press release below or click here to get to the official Through the Woods site.
Through the Woods, Third-Person Psychological Horror Experience, Releasing Q1 2016
Antagonist will deliver constant tension and dread that lingers for hours with Through the Woods. This third-person psychological horror game will be available for Windows, Mac and Linux in Q1 2016.
Set on the coast of Norway, Through the Woods tells the story of the extremes a mother would go to in order to save her child. The narrative begins with the mother, Karen, who is being interrogated regarding the mysterious disappearance of her son. Gameplay starts as she recounts the terrible events surrounding this tragedy.
Equipped with only a flashlight, players must help Karen navigate immersive and foreboding woods, decrepit cabins and pitch-black caverns while simultaneously avoiding grotesque mythological abominations as they lead her through the awful recounting of events.
Listening is key to surviving this perilous journey, as often times what dangers lurk in the shadows are attracted to the protagonist’s flashlight. When the flashlight is off, the volume in the game increases and the direction from which the sound originates becomes more readily apparent. Through the Woods also employs dynamic narration, so the conversation between the detective and mother will change based upon the player’s actions.
As audio is essential to the story telling, Antagonist has recruited a world class sound team whose resumes’ cite voice-acting on Telltale Games‘ Walking Dead series and two Official U.K. Top 40 singles. Antagonist is also collaborating with Funcom, developer of The Secret World and Age of Conan, to record motion-capture for multiple characters.
Inspired by classic Norwegian mythology and art in addition to Japanese horror games; Antagonist draws heavily from the dark folklore and paintings they grew up with as children and their favorite videogame genre.
“Growing up in Norway, our parents frequently told us fables about horrifying atrocities that lived in the woods and preyed on children; not the watered down fairytales Hollywood provides kids today,” Anders Hillestad, producer, Antagonist, explains. “Through the Woods will deliver a terrifying experience, making players fear for Karen and all that she holds dear.”
Antagonist is a Norwegian indie studio dedicated to developing story-driven experiences, without sacrificing gameplay for the narrative. Established in 2013 by a core group of seven students from Westerdals Oslo School of Arts, Communication and Technology, the studio is located in the offices of StartupLAB at the Oslo science park, the largest and fastest growing business incubator in Norway and home to more than 60 companies.
Jim Franklin is a freelance writer, living in Derby UK with his wife and his player 3. When time allows he likes nothing more than losing himself in a multi-hour gaming session. He likes most games and will play anything but prefers MMO's, and sandbox RPG's.
