Arboreta Games have announced they will be releasing a new horror game to Steam later in the year. It Sleeps Below the Haar was teased with a chilling new trailer this month, giving viewers a mysterious taste of what horrors lie ahead from the indie developer. The game looks set to feature more of the unique atmosphere and style from Arboreta Games’ previous title.
Arboreta Games is the project of Jamie Ferguson, a Scotland-based indie game developer, who has been building cosmic horror games. Ferguson previously developed and released The Black Iris, a short horror adventure set in Northern Scotland in the 1980s. The game was praised for its unusual style and rich atmosphere, characterized by retro 3D graphics and a distorted, surreal aesthetic.
Uploaded to YouTube earlier this month, the game trailer depicts a dark, moody atmosphere. Rough, gray waters lap along a rainy beach. A forest, hugged by snowy hills, is lit only by pale, blue moonlight. A ghoulish pink glow beams from lighthouse, a strange object twitching in the murky waters below. It’s a trailer full of mystery and atmosphere, and promises to build upon the style of its predecessor, complete with custom music and sound design.
In It Sleeps Below the Haar, players will explore Kellas Bay, with its forests, caves, open waters, and village. As with The Black Iris, the game will take place in Northeast Scotland, but is set 25 years earlier. It’s unclear if this game is meant to be a prequel to The Black Iris, but a connection of some kind is strongly implied. Players will take the role of a research student who travels to the area to learn about “primordial natural forces” and “curious phenomena” taking place in the quiet coastal village.
It Sleeps Below the Haar will be coming to Steam later in the year, and can be wishlisted in the meantime. According to the Steam page, it will be a short adventure game (designed for 2 hours of play) and will allow players to freely explore the area. Although the trailer depicts a lonely and isolated setting, there will be interactive characters in the game and objectives to complete, offering some structure to the gameplay. Features expected in the game include collecting scientific data, taking photographs, and experimenting with mysterious objects.
Posting on Twitter with the handle @arboreta_games, the developer said they were “very excited” to be announcing the game. Fans of cosmic horror games will surely be excited to hear about this new project, too. It Sleeps Below the Haar will be released later in the year, but in the meantime, gamers can get a taste of Ferguson’s style with The Black Iris, available on game service itch.io. All proceeds from The Black Iris (less fees) are being donated to the West Dunbartonshire Community Foodbank.
It Sleeps Below the Haar will be released for PC this Fall.
Source: ARBORETA GAMES/Twitter
