We have been following Zoetrope Interactive for a while now. We were following them, because their Darkness Within series are a solid proof that studio carefully internalised the Lovecraftian Horror: No jump scares, no fighting. Only the fear emerging from shifting realities, the great unknown and the greater, inter-dimensional entities. Oh, we love inter-dimensional entities.
Conarium takes place after the events that took place in H.P. Lovecraftâs novella At the Mountains of Madness. Weâll take the role of Frank Gilman, a member of Anthropology Department in Miskatonic University; and as a Lovecraftian protagonist, weâve already made a great mistake: Attempting to pass the barriers of consciousness via âConariumâ, a strange device. Here is the excerpt from the Steam page:
You, as Frank Gilman, open your eyes inside a room filled with strange, pulsating noises. Patterns of lights executing a Danse Macabre on the walls is presented by a queer device on the table. Having recalled nothing other than that youâre in Upuaut, an Antarctic base located near Antarctica, you find the place deserted and have a distinct feeling of something being terribly wrong. Somehow knowing that your memories cannot guide you enforces a strange feeling of vulnerability, a familiar yet alien sensation of being a part of a peculiar whole⌠Soon you will discover that having used the device during the expedition, you have died but then returned subtly changed, speaking of strange memories and of strange places. You have lost something important or gained something sinisterâŚ
Zoetrope Interactive released a teaser, letâs watch it, and then talk about it:
Well, I am trying to be objective and keep my âgame-journalistâ behaviour intact but DAMN I AM EXCITED. Why am I excited, because we have seen a lot of Lovecraftian games lately, and they all were astonishing; but this game, that Old One statue, that place gave me a strange kind of creep. I hope that the studio keeps this strange feeling as a priority and goosebump the Tindalos out of us.
Here are some screenshots, desserts for the Great Ones (there are a lot, relish):
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Conarium will be published by Iceberg Interactive. Made by Unreal Engine 4, the game promises us a great Lovecraftian story with âlots of secrets and Easter eggsâ, multiple endings and a âhauntingâ soundtrack. Antediluvian enough for us. You can visit the Steam page for more details.
The game will be released in Q1 2017, for PC, PS4 and Xbox One. Lets (cannot) wait.
And of course, an essential footnote:
Phânglui mglwânafh Cthulhu Râlyeh wgahânagl fhtagn.