Darkwood - PC (Steam)

Survive the horrors of the Darkwood as you explore the ever-changing world by day, and seek shelter to survive the night. Scavenge for vital resources, build your defenses, and pray for the morning light.

How you came to this ruined land is a mystery, but now your determination to escape is set. But to leave, you must first survive. Explore multiple dense biomes as you make your way from hideout to hideout, while accumulating the resources, allies, and information you need.

• The locals of the woods have a variety of dark quests and rewards for those brave enough to indulge their requests. However, the twisted inhabitants of the forest are often at odds with each other, and hard decisions will need to be made. The story will change based on your choices as you slowly uncover the mysteries of the Darkwood. Would you doom an entire village in hopes of reward from a creature, or try to assist what pockets of humanity remain?

• From festering catacombs to fetid swamps, Darkwood’s landmarks, quests, and encounters are all carefully hand-crafted. However, with each new game, the woods and places of interest will rearrange, ensuring that you’re never quite certain of your path in the woods while also giving new opportunities with each playthrough.

• Rather than momentary startles made to jolt you in your chair and then be forgotten, the most terrifying moments are designed to linger in your memories long after your journey ends. Some threads of terror will be immediately clear, but others may not be obvious without careful analysis of your discoveries in the world and your conversations with its inhabitants. This is a slow burn, atmospheric horror game with no jumpscares.

Your best hope of survival is in careful planning, and taking advantage of the many resources offered by the woods. Roam freely in a wide world, decide when to move on and when to fortify up, and weigh the risks and rewards as you balance escape against fleeting safety.

• There are no quest markers or hand holding, and you’ll need to learn and experiment on your own. Continued exploration and understanding of the ever sinister woods and its denizens will be critical to your survival, and other characters and groups may have goals at odds with your own. Remember – don’t trust anyone.

• Gather strange mushrooms, meat, and other oddities of the woods, and bring them back to your hideout for refinement. Choose to unlock powerful mutations like invisibility when holding still or the ability to regenerate by devouring wood, but embracing the power of the Darkwood will bring vulnerabilities as well.

• From desperately swinging a plank to firing assault rifles, defending your life from the Darkwood will only become more challenging the deeper you delve. There are a myriad of weapons to both find and craft, and the less hungry residents of the forest may be willing to engage in trade. Your hideout will offer upgrades and enhancements to your weaponry, along with allowing you to produce less conventional solutions like molotov cocktails. Of course sometimes the best defense is one you may not need to be present for, and chain and bear traps or exploding oil drums may protect you best as you fortify your hideout for each night.

• Adjustable difficulty settings will allow you to tailor the play experience to your preferences. Experience the story with unlimited lives, or embrace permadeath on Nightmare difficulty. Regardless, planning and patience will be paramount, and careful observation of your surroundings will serve you better than the most rugged shotgun.

When the sun sets, the hostility of the woods cannot be survived, and you must seek shelter in one of many hideouts you discover in your travels.

• Even these makeshift bases will leave you vulnerable in their broken state. Seek out resources to repair what you can before carefully barricading the doors and windows to board yourself up and survive the night.

• Secure fuel and keep the generator running to power what electrical fixtures remain. Though you may ward off many creatures that stalk the night, some cannot be defeated with your conventional weapons, and a flicker of light may be all that can save you from what dwells in the shadows.

• No two nights will be the same as your base may be assaulted by creatures of the woods, become the site of bizarre rituals, or experience other unsettling events that leave mysteries to pursue when the sun rises. As your journey continues the line between dreams and reality may begin to blur. Experience disturbing vignettes that may conceal more beneath their grim portents and seek to unravel their mysteries in the waking world.