The Alien Cube shaping up for launch next month

Written by Jack Allin — September 19, 2021 at 10:56

Horror fans are suckers for punishment. Case in point: After surviving the Lovecraftian perils of Alessandro Guzzo's The Land of Pain in 2017, you'd think anyone who lived to tell the tale would be wise enough not to tempt fate a second time. But that will surely not be the case for much longer, not when there are about to be new cosmic terrors to scare the bejeebers out of us in the upcoming spiritual successor, The Alien Cube. 

Players step into the first-person shoes of Arthur, the nephew of the game's original protagonist, Edgar. Times are hard enough for you these days: you're suffering from disturbing dreams, you've broken up with your girlfriend, and you recently learned of your uncle's mysterious disappearance. But things are about to go from bad to so much worse when you receive a letter from Edgar, "leaving you his apartment and a warning to get rid of all his manuscripts." Hoping to get to the bottom of your uncle's whereabouts, you set out on a quest that sweeps you up in a "spiral of terrifying discoveries ... that will haunt your soul and change your life forever, challenging you to confront a terrible truth that will threaten your sanity and your very existence."

As with its predecessor, The Alien Cube is an impressive artistic achievement for its solo Italian developer. Powered by CryEngine 5 using photogrammetric technology, the game presents a variety of beautiful but harsh environments including "snowy forests, forgotten dungeons and different otherworldly locations," some with "hostile weather conditions" that endanger your safety. Along the way you must interact with the objects around you to "solve puzzles and seek out clues to unravel the mystery set before you." That's easier said than done, however, as you're "tormented by nightmarish visions" and the world you inhabit becomes intertwined with a dark "occult reality in which your uncle seemed to have played an important role."

If the game had you at Lovecraft, you don't have long to wait as The Alien Cube is due to launch on Steam for Windows PC on October 14th. If you'd rather test your nerve with some sample chills first, you can do so right away as a playable demo is available now to download.