Scorn

Ebb Software’s upcoming horror FPS Scorn is a fairly distinctive looking game. Whilst at times it can look like Telepath Tree’s Inner Chains, it still manages to carry its own individual style that is instantly recognizable. Biological-looking alien textures adorn the dark corridors of the levels, and help forge one hell of a charming look.

Defend Yourself

Whilst a lot of the game seems to rely on exploration, tension and atmosphere – Scorn also features visceral first-person action befitting of the mix of genres. Your arsenal also carries this alien texturing, and really booms upon firing. The alpha gameplay shown off in 2017 includes a section where the player uses a shotgun, and it really tears through enemies, accompanied by a fleshy squelching sound with each impact.

An Unsettling Feeling

Scorn is a horror game through and through. Ebb Games have put a lot of their efforts into making the soundtrack super-atmospheric, and you’d have to be a lot tougher than me to get through a level without the hairs on the back of your neck standing on end. Judging by the alpha gameplay, Scorn prides itself on making you feel very alone in an unforgiving and terrifying world.

Welcome to the Vomitorium

If I was asked to describe Scorn in just one word, it would be “Disgusting”. Ebb Games have filled the game with fleshy monstrosities, sickening sound design and a stomach-turning aesthetic. In the same way that the upcoming body horror Misshapen makes you feel a little queasy just by looking at it, Scorn is dripping in unidentifiable viscera, slopping itself over surfaces and amassing beneath the feet of the player like wading through a slaughterhouse after a busy day.

A Blend of Influences

The horror/first-person shooter blend has been around for quite a while, with titles like Condemned: Criminal Origins, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard and F.E.A.R. really making a name for themselves in the market. Scorn doesn’t really seem to take much influence from any of these, and instead seems to be very much carving its own path. It is not without its influences though, as Ebb have gone on record to state their infatuation with the works of H.R. Giger, as well as Polish painter Zdzisław Beksiński.

Giger has long had an influence on the medium, with the cancelled game Aftermath (by WhiteMoon Dreams) being once dubbed “Giger 1800”,due to the level of his influence. Seeing Giger’s concepts blended with the work of Beksiński will be very interesting to say the least.

Pros

• Disturbingly disgusting
• Carries an unsettling atmosphere
• Looks to be hyper-violent

Cons

• Seemingly a little light on the action