Revealed during Sony's recent State of Play showcase, the atmospheric Hell is Us is due out on PS5 in 2025. Jonathan Jacques-Belletete, both creative director and art director at developer Rogue Factor, takes us through an extended gameplay trailer.
Centred on the hermit state of Hadea, a nation in which no one enters or leaves, players are cast in the role of Rémi. Born in Hadea but smuggled out at a young age, Rémi takes advantage of the ongoing civil war to return and seek his birth parents, finding a bizarre, modern-seeming country full of nightmares and monsters.
Jacques-Belletete goes to lengths to describe the philosophy of exploration in Hell is Us, which is very much put back on the player. The player must follow directions and pay attention to NPCs; there are no map markers here. He also stresses that despite virtually all of its onscreen visual indicators and a focus on stamina-based, melee combat, the game is not a Soulslike in the style of FromSoftware's games. It is described as "mid-core, have fun, get in it, hack-n-slash. It doesn't mean it's easy; it's not overly hard."
What do you think of Hell is Us? Does this look like a strange journey worth undertaking? Let us know in the comments section below.
