Horror

13May

By Parker FauxNo Comments

The Third Shift – PC Review

When I was a kid, my mom would take me to a big natural history museum close to our house. I remember feeling both enraptured and terrified by the taxidermy animals, with their frozen poses and glassy eyes. Sometimes I would wonder if they moved at night, or when I wasn't looking at them. It was a strange atmosphere; a place of learning, yet with a sense of quiet, creeping dread. It's a sense of horror that very few games have capitalized on, at least up until now. The Third Shift is a survival horror game developed and published by Teebowah Games. The initial demo released all the way back in 2020, and I distinctly remember watching it back in high school. Development has been on and off for the past few years, but the game finally released this April, and I was excited to finally ...

8May

By Kyle McGrathNo Comments

Previews & Early Access

Dark Pals: The 1st Floor – PC Preview

Happy to be checking out another studios attempt at the Mascot-Horror theme. This time we get Dark Pals from the team at Skunx Games. We enter another ruined factory called the Upwards and attempt to find out or escape, who know? If you are in the market for a new horror Dark Pals' demo is available now on Steam. Here we go again. Gameplay We awake in a run-down toy factory with no context of how we got here. We then use a small octopus that looks like it is sporting a ski mask to solve some puzzles and progress the story. Most of the information we learn comes from Televisions that play around the levels, with a Mr. Grin spewing the typical stuff. The puzzles themselves though are not that bad, with most being related to colours, and some others come from shooting targets. Between al...

Resident Evil: The 90s Trilogy – PC Review

7May

By Alex CrooksNo Comments

PC Reviews

Resident Evil: The 90s Trilogy – PC Review

Before there was Requiem and a large collection of remasters, there was the original Resident Evil trilogy. The original 90 releases are now available on Steam. You can grab them for £7.99 each now. Check out our other PC reviews here. Once upon a time, these were some of the most terrifying games that ever existed Gameplay Arguably, the first Resident Evil is one of the most important horror games to come out in the 90s, launching the franchise into the public eye and defining a solid run of horror games. After being sent to investigate strange murders just outside Raccoon City, you can play as either Chris Redfield or Jill Valentine as you explore the horrors of Arklay Mansion. The second installment introduces Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield trying to flee Raccoon City after a ...

7May

By StuartNo Comments

Previews & Early Access

Wilderdark – Demo Preview

Last week we posted the news that Team Junkfish, the masterminds behind iconic horror-survival, Monstrum, are back! And boy oh boy are they back. Wilderdark was announced to a raptor-ous reception, and over this past week, we also had access to their new demo. Available now on Steam, so check it out here. In The Dark, No One Can Hear You Scream If you like what you read, I urge you to go and check out the demo yourself. Even Wishlist while you are there. Gameplay Being touted as a horror-survival, you are immediately greeted with a nice dark forest and a campsite. Don't be fooled though, the campsite means that someone has come before you. You've been sent to this island where the dinosaurs and plantlife have been infected with some mysterious ectoparasitic organism. Meaning that every...

Monstrum Devs Announce New Horror Survival!

30Apr

By StuartNo Comments

News & Updates

Monstrum Devs Announce New Horror Survival!

Team Junkfish, the Developers behind the hit horror survival game Monstrum, are returning to their roots. Wilderdark is a new single player horror game just announced and we have all the details! As well as the new trailer of course. It's ok to scream now! Wilderdark is a survival-horror exploration game where you find yourself on an unnatural island infected with a mysterious ectoparasitic organism that is corrupting the dinosaurs and plant life. A dinosaur survival horror game? We're in! So what's the plot? A good question! The organisation you work for has sent you to a remote island all in search of immortality. You are tasked with documenting the island’s ecosystem, collecting samples, and unravelling the fate of previously vanished expeditions. Just like in the Team Junkfish's i...

Poppy Playtime: The Story So Far – PC Review

20Apr

By Alex CrooksNo Comments

PC Reviews

Poppy Playtime: The Story So Far – PC Review

As horror boomed on Youtube, I was always a Five Nights At Freddy's gal. As a result of that, I've never played any of the Poppy Playtime games. With the release of chapter 5 back in February, I was lucky enough to be play all five chapters back to back. Does Poppy Playtime deserve the hype that it gets? Is it all a big marketing ploy to get you to buy some cuddly toys? I've spent many, many nights playing through to find out whether you need to add this Mob Entertainment franchise to your library. 15 plus hours of sadness, torture, death and running... no hour of joy to be found. A Brief Overview... Each chapter of Poppy Playtime plays into one interconnected story. However, the game introduces new characters, gameplay mechanics and more with each chapter. I have played ...

16Apr

By Kyle McGrathNo Comments

PC Reviews

Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss – PC Review

Lovecraftian horror, who is insane enough not to love the mythos. That is why I am checking out Big Bad Wolves' new narrative, cosmic horror game, Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss. I watched the trailer a while back, and that caught my attention, but now I will finally get the chance to try it out on Steam. When he calls, maybe it's best not to answer. Gameplay We will be playing an Ancile Agent named Noah, who is tasked with investigating an underwater facility. This soon leads him rather quickly to the ancient city of R'lyeh. But he won't investigate alone thanks to his A.I. companion Key, who helps him stay focused and talks through his findings. Each chapter acts as its own little investigation, and most of them offer two ways to proceed. As one will cause Noah's brain to suffer with ...

14Apr

By Parker FauxNo Comments

PC Reviews

Angel Engine – PC Review

"And the Lord Of All Games spake, 'Thou shalt not make a game in the image of a data entry overtime shift', and all saw and said it was good." -Polygonics 4:51 Angel Engine is a self-proclaimed "horror surgery simulator" developed by HMS Studios and Black Lantern Collective and published by NerveLabs and Aurakenn Games. It is currently only available for PC. Clocking In to the Martyr Factory The game is based on a highly-popular short-form analogue horror series of the same name, centered around humanity kidnapping an angel and performing horrific experiments on it it to try and stave off Armaggedon. Based on my research, the original Angel Engine series is controversial for heavy AI usage, to the point that the Steam page directly says that, unlike the original, this game doesn't...

21Mar

By Kyle McGrathNo Comments

PC Reviews

Project Songbird – PC Review

First thing's first, I have not looked into anything about Project Songbird. And I have not played anything else by Connor Rush or FYRE Games. Which means I will be going into the game blind, besides knowing the basics: it's a horror narrative, and we play as an artist named Dakota. Who knows, after this, I might check out some of his other works! There is a type of beauty, found in tragedy. Whilst Project Songbird does not release until 26th March on Steam, that doesn't stop you giving it a little Wishlist. You know we love helping out indie developers here at Thumb Culture. Gameplay Project Songbird places us into the shoes of the musician Dakota, who is struggling with a bad case of writer's block. After a phone call from her manager Rob, she is offered a recluse cabin in the wo...

20Mar

By Kyle McGrathNo Comments

PC Reviews

Crabmeat – PC Review

I love a good fishing game, especially when they attempt a bit more of a horror type one. Like Dredge, or About Fishing. This time we play as a Crab fisherman in Crabmeat! A game developed by Nicholas McDonnell and Mitchell Pasmans. It looks rather interesting, and I am hoping for some nice creepy ambience with it. But with all that said, you can pick up Crabmeat on Steam for £6.69, that's not bad. If you haven't got the money now, then a demo is also out for Crabmeat. So you have no excuse not to try! Dark waters, and all I can hear is the sound of pincers. Gameplay We play as a no named character, who happens to be caught up in debt. This leads to us being forced to pay it off via sailing and capturing King Crabs. Hence, the game's name, Crabmeat. The player then awakes on their boa...