It looks equal parts spooky and stylish.
Kingdom of the Dead is an upcoming "old school FPS" that tasks you with killing Death—and his armies—in a black and white, pen-and-ink rendition of 1867 America.
The store page is generous with its lore, lest you worry about only shooting deathly monsters in a stylish environment. Set in the aftermath of the American civil war, you play as a professor-turned-Army-General, working for a shadowy government program dedicated to defeating Death and its armies.
The art style is lost slightly in static screenshots, but it looks incredible in motion, with the trailer making use of a lot of dramatic lighting (and lightning) to illuminate the way, and dip in and out of high-contrast.
I can only look at that shadowy, questionably-limbed creature scuttling towards me over a ground built up with skulls and bones and offer my highest praise: Thanks, I hate it!
Developer Dirigo Games are as interested in FPS gameplay as they are horror and style, promising "classic FPS gameplay with different objectives at each difficulty level", eight different weapons and over 22 undead enemies, and "a never-ending onslaught" in its endless gameplay mode—which doesn't sound sinister at all.
Dirigo Games were previously featured in the third Dread X Collection, a collection of short indie horror games that Andy Kelly highlighted as being part of why indie games do horror better than anybody else: "These zine-like compendiums of quirky games are full of imagination, and have become a welcome space for indies to experiment with what a horror game can be."
You can wishlist Kingdom of the Dead on Steam, where it is planned for release in early 2022.
