Joure Visser, known for developing the acclaimed Don’t Scream in 2023 alongside Joe Henson, had already shown he was pretty good at this whole horror game thing with a found footage aesthetic, since, just to prove the point, the game went viral in a real and organic way, without expensive campaigns or a marketing budget. It managed to sell around 40,000 copies during the first 24 hours, and surpassed 100,000 in its first week, generating nearly a million dollars after two weeks. The short and intense challenge proposed by Don’t Scream became a target for YouTubers and streamers, who captivated their audiences with the game’s realistic experiences.
Now, during this past June, Joure Visser released his new title DEADCAM, also an analog survival horror game with a “found footage” aesthetic, inviting us to experience several short stories inspired by the 80s and 90s, each set in unique locations and filled with terrifying and visceral encounters. In them, we experience fear from behind an old VHS camera, with all the defects and technical issues that come with it, aided only by the flickering light of an old flashlight, as we face the horrors waiting around every dark hallway corner, though this time, better armed than before, and for longer XD
Realistic Analog Horror
We’re looking at an analog survival horror game inspired by the 80s and 90s, based on found footage and developed with Unreal Engine 5, in which we explore and survive various short stories presented as video recordings, each set in unique scenarios and featuring different stories and mysteries to uncover. Each tape is a unique and self-contained story, which not only has its own location and plot, but also its own challenges. In some of the recordings, action plays a bigger role, sometimes making us feel like we’re in a retro horror shooter, while in others, the main strength might be, for instance, exploration, or the high level of immersion.
DEADCAM leans heavily into the aforementioned decades and draws inspiration from classic Japanese horror films, as well as American horror and slasher movies presented in VHS-style format. Because of this, throughout exploration and gameplay in general, we come across details, errors, or glitches that are typical of the pre-digital era, something that is undoubtedly very well executed, helping build tension so that in the most intense moments, we’re either on the edge of our seat or climbing on top of the person next to us. DEADCAM doesn’t aim to entertain the easily frightened, but to scare the brave, and trust us, it’s got everything it needs to do just that.
So…
DEADCAM launched in early access this past June, and just got an update yesterday. If you want to find out what it’s all about before diving in fully, you can try the free demo on its Steam page, actually, we invite you to do so… if you dare, of course. Obviously, you’ll find the link down below as always. And once you try it out, or even if you decide not to, it would be awesome if you dropped by the comments and told us what you think of this visceral proposal. You know gamer, we’ll be reading you! 😉
Images Source: IGN Official YouTube Channel, DEADCAM on Steam
