Frictional Games, known for the Amnesia series, has unveiled a gameplay reveal trailer for its next title, Ontos, offering a darkly humorous glimpse into a future grappling with severe hardware shortages. The trailer imagines humanity resorting to unconventional methods for computing power, including the use of rats as a form of living RAM.
Set in a future where space travel has enabled a hotel on the moon, the game's premise is grounded in a stark reality of consumer hardware scarcity. The trailer depicts a man with electrodes attached to his head, seemingly interfacing directly with technology, and another unsettling figure missing his lower jaw, suggesting extreme measures taken for localized processing.
The most striking visual from the trailer is a large, wall-sized computer system where approximately 60 rats are connected in a sequential or parallel arrangement. This "rat computer" represents a bleak, yet comedic, projection of current hardware crises, driven by factors like the demand from AI datacenters.
The implications of this technology are explored through questions posed in the game's YouTube description: "Do you follow the instructions given through the rodent machine? Do you seek an alternative approach? Or simply sabotage the experiment to satisfy your own morbid curiosity?" Frictional Games suggests there is no single correct path forward in Ontos, leaving players to navigate the ethical and practical dilemmas presented by this unique premise.
While the concept is unsettling, it highlights a compelling narrative direction for Frictional Games. The studio's previous title, Amnesia: The Bunker, was highly praised, earning a 93% score, indicating a strong track record for creating engaging and atmospheric experiences. Ontos is slated for release next year, with the trailer hinting at a potentially significant and memorable new entry from the developer.