Frictional Games
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Vote now: 8 games remain in our scariest games bracket
PC Gamer is running a bracket to determine the scariest PC games, with readers voting to narrow down the field. The current round features eight remaining titles, including popular choices like Alien: Isolation, Dead Space, and Amnesia: The Dark Descent, which all won their previous matchups by significant margins.
Vote for the scariest game of all time: Round 1
PC Gamer is hosting a bracket-style tournament to determine the scariest PC game of all time. Readers nominated games, and the top 16 have been seeded into head-to-head matchups. Voting for the first round concludes on Wednesday, October 28, with subsequent rounds narrowing the field until a winner is revealed on Saturday.
Amnesia: The Dark Descent's co-founder explained the 'the dynamic of Steam' to Red Barrels after…
Red Barrels, the developers of Outlast, revealed that the success of Frictional Games' Amnesia: The Dark Descent was instrumental in their own development and marketing strategy. Amnesia's sales figures provided a benchmark, and its co-founder, Thomas Grip, later offered advice on navigating Steam's sales dynamics, which helped Outlast achieve significant commercial success.
No Publisher Wanted Outlast. 60 Million Players Later, The Horror Juggernaut Is Doing Just Fine.
Red Barrels' horror series Outlast, which began as a debut effort from a 10-person team with no publisher interest, has now attracted over 60 million players. The studio's founders, who left AAA studios, self-funded the first game and learned publishing on the fly, eventually finding success with the signature night-vision camera and unflinching gore. The latest entry, The Outlast Trials, has become their most successful game, embracing live-service elements while staying true to the series' core horror identity.
15 video game franchises that need to end - Reader's Feature
A reader argues that numerous long-running video game franchises have overstayed their welcome and should be retired to encourage innovation. Titles like Assassin's Creed, Call of Duty, Halo, and The Last of Us are cited as examples of games that have become repetitive and are primarily cash grabs, with the author suggesting developers should focus on new intellectual properties instead.
Ontos is a game about rats, liars, and lying rats. At least, I think that's what it is
Ontos is a narrative-driven game that explores themes of deception and moral ambiguity through difficult choices, as experienced in a Gamescom preview. Players encounter numerous rats and must decide their fate, with options ranging from freeing them to causing them harm. The game aims to present players with weighty decisions that may have significant repercussions, though the preview suggests the decision-making might be too obvious at times.
This remarkable mod transforms the most frightening horror game of the decade into Mirror's Edge
A remarkable mod transforms Frictional Games' horror title Amnesia: The Bunker into a Mirror's Edge-like experience. Created by modder TiMan for a modding jam, the 'Bunker's Edge' mod replaces the game's dark atmosphere with Mirror's Edge's bright cityscapes and implements its signature parkour mechanics. Despite some minor clunkiness and a short playtime, the mod offers a fun and impressive demonstration of creative modding.
Here's 10 more minutes of the most interesting game shown at this year's Opening Night Live
Frictional Games' upcoming horror title Ontos stood out at Gamescom's Opening Night Live with its unique blend of unsettling imagery and existential themes. A new 10-minute gameplay showcase reveals more about the narrative, which involves a scientist attempting to upload his consciousness into a rat server within a repurposed hotel.
Ontos in the Works for Over 10 Years, Extensive Gameplay Showcases Twisted Experiments
Frictional Games' upcoming title, Ontos, has been in development for over a decade and features "psychological gameplay" where players make informed decisions based on understanding characters and experiments. The game, launching in 2027 for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC, showcases disturbing scenarios involving rats and consciousness transfer, emphasizing replayability through multiple experimental outcomes.
You can't pet the talking rat wall in Ontos, the new space horror game from Soma's creators, but surely it can run Doom
Frictional Games' new space horror title, Ontos, is shaping up to be a philosophical puzzler rather than a traditional horror game. A new video showcases the game's environments and experimental gameplay, which involves interacting with sci-fi ephemera and a unique AI server made of rats. The developers suggest the game will launch next year.
ONTOS: This Horrifying, Tantalizing Thriller Feels Like an Immersive Sim for Puzzle Gaming
ONTOS is a forthcoming sci-fi thriller that blends immersive sim elements with puzzle gameplay, focusing on player choice and exploration. Players control Aditi, who investigates a mysterious moon resort and confronts philosophical questions through intricate, often grotesque, experiments. The game emphasizes tactile interaction and allows for multiple solutions to its challenges, promising a deeply engaging experience.
Shack Chat: What was your favorite reveal from Gamescom Opening Night Live 2026?
Shacknews staff members shared their favorite reveals from Gamescom Opening Night Live 2026. Highlights included Stage Tour, LEGO Skylines, Mega Man Dual Override, The Witcher 3 Remastered, and Rainbow Six Tactics. Several staff members expressed particular excitement for LEGO Skylines, a new city-building game from Paradox Interactive.
Massor av gameplay från Frictional Games skräckspel ONTOS
Frictional Games has revealed new gameplay for their upcoming horror title ONTOS, a spiritual successor to SOMA. The footage, showcased by YouTuber Jacksepticeye who also voices a character, depicts the game's initial hours as the player travels to a moon-based research facility. ONTOS will feature exploration, puzzle-solving, and morally ambiguous choices, with a non-linear structure. It is set to release in 2027 for Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC.
Gamescom Opening Night Live 2026: Every Major Announcement, Reveal and Trailer | Invision Game Community
Gamescom Opening Night Live 2026 showcased numerous game announcements and trailers, with The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered and its new expansion, Songs of the Past, being major surprises. Other highlights included new looks at Final Fantasy VII Revelation, Path of Exile 2, and Gears of War: E-Day, alongside reveals for new titles like Nodus Fall and Afterworld. The event also confirmed release dates for several games targeting 2026 and 2027, indicating a strong lineup for the coming years.
D&D, LEGO, and mounting ennui: Our biggest games from Gamescom 2026
Several outlets expressed disappointment with the Gamescom 2026 Opening Night Live showcase, finding many announcements to be uninspired or lacking substance. While games like Lego Skylines, No Law, and Afterworld garnered some interest, the overall impression was one of "mounting ennui" and a reliance on familiar tropes. The event's format was criticized for prioritizing short, flashy trailers over meaningful game reveals.
Ontos Gameplay is the Right Amount of Disturbing, Hands-On Gameplay Premieres August 26th
Frictional Games' upcoming horror title Ontos, delayed to 2027, premiered new gameplay showcasing player choices and their consequences. The game will feature a reality-bending narrative stemming from protagonist Aditi Amani's experiments. Additional hands-on gameplay will be shown by YouTuber Jacksepticeye on August 26th. Ontos is slated for release on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC.
The highlights of Gamescom Opening Night Live 2026
Gamescom Opening Night Live 2026 showcased a variety of new titles and updates, with The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's free remaster and upcoming expansion stealing the spotlight. The event also featured reveals for Nodusfall, Final Fantasy 7: Revelation, Metro 2039, and numerous other games from both established and emerging studios, highlighting a strong international presence. Host Geoff Keighley acknowledged the industry's current challenges, including layoffs and hardware price increases, while celebrating developers' continued innovation.
Final Fantasy 7 Revelation trailer and Rainbow 6 Tactics headline Gamescom 2026
Gamescom 2026's Opening Night Live showcased new trailers and reveals, including a spring 2027 release window for Final Fantasy 7 Revelation on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC. Ubisoft also revealed Rainbow Six Tactics, a new big-budget turn-based tactics game for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
The hardware crisis has hit a new low: We're now using rats for RAM
Frictional Games has released a gameplay reveal trailer for their upcoming title, Ontos. The trailer showcases a near-future setting where a severe hardware crisis has led to the development of 'rat computers' for processing power. The game is set to release next year and explores themes of desperation and experimentation in the face of technological scarcity.
15 Massive Gamescom 2026 Announcements That Could Steal the Show
Gamescom 2026 is set to feature major announcements from various publishers and developers, including Xbox, Nintendo, and Bandai Namco. Anticipated reveals include potential updates for Final Fantasy 7 Remake, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Cyberpunk 2077, Metro 2039, and a rumored Xbox sequel.
