Playdead, developer of the acclaimed 2010 indie game Limbo, is finally back with its second game six years later. Inside, like the studio's freshman effort, is again a monochromatic, tense, haunting, side-scrolling puzzle game, but with six years of effort under its belt, Playdead now delivers a masterclass in its form.
The story of Inside, released today on Xbox One and July 7 on Steam, concerns a boy who's risking life and limb to break into some kind of facility where (you find out rather quickly) some kind of experiments are being conducted on humans. You won't get a whole lot more insight into the plot than that---this is a total pantomime, and there's no writing save for a few dilapidated letters and numbers on formerly legible signs.
You'll be using your imagination to fill in the rest---the darkest parts of it. From the off, Inside sets a beautifully horror-tinged mood as you avoid the headlights of oncoming trucks, or just barely dodge the snarling jaws of an attack dog. Within a minute, you feel like you're really being chased.
Playdead
