Indie horror Reveil reveal trailer isn’t one for circus-haters

Indie studio Pixelsplit has revealed its next game Reveil, an intriguing looking horror game with a trippy circus setting.

Described as a first-person narrative experience on the game’s Steam page, in Reveil, “the player is immersed into a world… where the boundaries between reality and illusion become blurred.” You play as Walter Thompson, waking up in a surreal location, unsure of where your wife and daughter are.

The game also sounds like it has something of a fun concept, with the main character apparently having previously worked as a stage builder at a circus. That circus, called the Nelson Bro’s Circus, seems to be the main setting of the game, and the announcement trailer certainly presents it as something that might not be particularly friendly to those with coulrophobia.

Gameplay will be puzzle and riddle based, making it sound somewhat reminiscent of earlier Silent Hill games. It’s also made in Unity, something the Steam page makes a specific point of, and there’s definitely some strong lighting and environment design shown off in the announcement trailer. A specific release date hasn’t been set yet, and no word on a console release, but it is set to come out some time in 2023.

Reveil seems to be a bit of a change of pace for the German-based developer, with previous game being an indoor park management simulator, and an earlier title called
Deadly Days being a 2D, cartoony rogue-lite set in a zombie apocalypse.

Elsewhere in the world in indie horror, vampire survival game V Rising has managed to sell over 500,000 copies all within three days. While only in early access, V Rising lets players take on the role of a weakened vampire after centuries of slumber, as they try to rebuild their health and their castle in a bid to form a vampire empire.

It’s certainly impressive for a game that hasn’t even technically had a full release yet, and sets itself up well for future updates.