The indie studio Broken Bird Games will release its first title on July 21, a first-person psychological horror thriller with an extremely realistic setting, called Luto. Aware that there isn’t much information available on its Steam page, this title has managed to capture our attention and that of many others through its trailers and gameplay videos published on official platforms. In this article, we share an extended gameplay video from IGN’s official YouTube channel.
If the genre alone isn’t enough to draw you in, this game promises to go one step further, addressing serious and sensitive topics that will touch many of us in much more personal ways than simple jump scares around the corners of dark hallways. “Luto” (mourning) lives up to its name, putting us in the shoes of someone who’s unable to leave their own home, perhaps trapped by depression, panic, or the sorrow that often comes with the loss of a loved one. Every attempt to escape leads them to the deepest edge of unknown territory, where nothing is as it seems and the line between reality and hallucination begins to fade…
“This is a Story About Death”
That’s how the very short description of Luto begins on its Steam page. The following can be read below.
- Luto is a psychological horror experience where you take on the role of someone unable to leave their home. Every attempt to escape will lead you deeper into the unknown, where nothing is as it seems and everything will test your senses.
- What lies behind loss: feel the void left by the absence of a loved one, where despair grows, fed by anxiety and depression. Day after day…
- Between reality and fiction: delve into an enigmatic place and explore its labyrinthine paths full of secrets. The truth has many faces, and you might not like the one you find.
- Will not let you go: experience unsettling terror that envelops your senses, with fears lurking around every corner. Darkness does not only dwell in shadows.
- Never.
- =
As presented, Luto aims to explore deep feelings and experiences: the void left after the loss of a loved one, the feeling that the world is ending, depression, anxiety, and that sensation of being stuck in a place we just can’t get out of. The “descent” into despair that leads us down a path with blurry boundaries. On one side, reality, harsh, painful, and undeniable. On the other, fiction, or any alternate reality our mind chooses to believe in when the actual one seems far worse.
But don’t get it twisted gamer, Luto is a horror game. These feelings and emotions we’ve described will simply accompany you the entire way, holding onto you, not letting you move forward or take the next step toward wherever your life is supposed to go. Beyond the challenge itself, only a few will be able to overcome this exceptionally realistic adventure, in which even the slightest sound could either frighten us or transport us to a painful memory of someone who is no longer among us. This title offers an experience that definitely won’t be for everyone, as described by the developers:
“This game contains depictions of anxiety, depression, and suicide, and may not be suitable for all audiences.”
So…
That house… Do you really want to leave it? …Is there actually something stopping you? Or maybe it’s your own fear blocking the way?… Luto will make you question things, and for many of us, it’ll surely bring back a painful moment we’ve lived through. Now the question goes out to all of us, including myself: will we have what it takes to experience this journey?… I guess we’ll find out. Luto releases on July 21, in less than a week! Whatever you decide, I recommend heading over to its Steam page and adding it to your Wishlist right now. And obviously, since we have to wait to put ourselves to the test, how about jumping into the comments and telling us what you think about this proposal? You know gamer, we’ll be reading you! 🙂
Images Source: IGN Official YouTube Channel, Luto on Steam
