I’ve been captivated by the idea of wrong-footing an audience ever since playing Faith: The Unholy Trinity. That game presents like an 8-bit horror, then proceeds to bend the rules of what an 8-bit game can do – or perhaps what you remember they could do – in order to surprise and scare you. Tenebris Somnia is very similar. Indeed, it’s executive produced by the developer of Faith, Airdorf Games, so the connection runs even deeper. Tenebris Somnia utilises the same retro aesthetic with its grinding chiptune music, its pixelated graphics, and old-school presentation. But the difference is it takes the rule-bending a step further, essentially welding two very different experiences together: a retro-styled 2D adventure and a full-on live-action film. And it’s horrific, in all the right ways.
