Gamescom's Opening Night Live may have been a blur of similar fantasy action games, but Frictional Games' Ontos stood out with its distinct and unsettling imagery. A new 10-minute gameplay demonstration offers a deeper look into the horror adventure, elaborating on its mechanics and the existential narrative that drives it.
The extended showcase follows the player character, Aditi, as she navigates the hospital wing of a repurposed 'Moon Hotel' called Samsara. Her exploration involves tactile environmental interaction, uncovering text logs from computers, and a particularly gruesome sequence where she removes electrodes from a live rat's exposed brain. The gameplay also incorporates stealth elements, as demonstrated by Aditi evading a security camera by throwing a box, which the camera tracks with notable precision.
Central to the narrative is Crombie, a scientist whose consciousness has been accidentally uploaded into a rat serving as a makeshift computer's RAM. Speaking through this "rat server-rack," Crombie tasks Aditi with helping him transfer his consciousness back into his comatose body, which is present in the same room. This setup echoes the philosophical dilemmas that made Frictional's previous title, SOMA, so compelling.
While the voice acting for Aditi is noted as perhaps too cheerful for the grim circumstances, the overall presentation of Ontos has generated significant interest. The game is slated for a 2027 release. Other notable games shown at Opening Night Live included a promising sequel to Alien Isolation and a new adventure for Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher 3: Songs of the Past.