Netflix is expanding its interactive entertainment offerings with "Unhinged," a new first-person horror game developed by Night School Studio, the team behind the narrative adventure game "Oxenfree."
Unlike "Oxenfree's" focus on teen drama, "Unhinged" presents a more mature and unsettling narrative. The game's story follows two young women residing in neighboring houses as one attempts to survive a home invasion.
The title boasts a notable cast, featuring Sadie Sink, known for her roles in "Stranger Things" and "Spider-Man: Brand New Day," and Zoë Kravitz, who has appeared in "The Batman" and "Divergent." The cast is further rounded out by veteran video game voice actor Troy Baker.
"Unhinged" diverges from Netflix's previous interactive ventures, such as the live-action "Black Mirror: Bandersnatch." Instead, it is a full-fledged video game controlled via a smartphone and streamed to a television through the Netflix platform. Gameplay mechanics utilize the player's phone for in-game interactions, including receiving calls and text messages, and navigating the environment with a virtual flashlight. The narrative is designed with multiple branching paths, and player choices can lead to failure states, meaning characters can die.
The game is structured to deliver an experience comparable in length to a single episode of a Netflix series, with an overall runtime of just under an hour. Despite its concise duration, "Unhinged" is intended to be replayable, encouraging players to explore its various narrative possibilities.
Night School game director Sam Warner drew inspiration from earlier console innovations. "We looked deeply at the Wii [and] the Nintendo DS," Warner told Rolling Stone. "I grew up with those, and I think that focus on novel innovative play was something that we really started this game with. If you've got Netflix and you have a phone, then this is for you."
"Unhinged" is scheduled to launch on June 30 and will be accessible to all Netflix subscribers at no additional cost.