Hasan Kahraman, the creator of the upcoming survival game Abandoned, has stated that the title is "not really a horror game." Circumstances surrounding Abandoned's development, along with the iconic creator's history of misleading fans, have led to rumors that the game is actually being developed by Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima. However, Abandoned developer Blue Box Game Studio has repeatedly denied these claims, going so far as to state that the rumors have had a negative effect on development.
Rumors of Hideo Kojima's involvement in Abandoned claim that the project is tied to a canceled title, Silent Hills. A short psychological horror game released in 2014, titled P.T., was unexpectedly revealed to be created by Kojima. P.T. was intended as a short prequel to Silent Hills, a new entry in the beloved survival horror series, which would be created by Kojima and would star actor Norman Reedus. Unfortunately, Kojima soon cut ties with Silent Hill producer Konami, and so the highly anticipated project never saw the light of day. New rumors suggest that Abandoned is actually a revival of P.T. and Kojima is actually behind the project.
In an interview with NME, Abandoned creator Hasan Kahraman now claims that Abandoned does not really belong to the horror genre. During the interview, Kahraman explains that leans very heavily into a unique system of survival mechanics. All of the player character's actions, from running through the forest to fighting enemies, have a very realistic effect on their body. While that system creates an interesting survival experience, Kahraman explains that horror elements are kept to a minimum. He told NME, "Abandoned is a shooter/survival game. It has some horror elements in it but it’s not really a horror game. It’s not what people think – that it’s Silent Hill."
While Hasan Kahraman has been pretty upfront that Hideo Kojima has no involvement with the project, the recent launch of the Abandoned Realtime Experience PS5 app has drawn even more suspicion from theorists. The mysterious app was intended to launch on August 10, although developer Blue Box failed to explain exactly what the app would do. However, an apparent technical issue led to a delay in the app's launch, leading to much skepticism from those who still believe in Hideo Kojima's involvement. After three days the Abandoned Realtime Experience app was launched on PlayStation 5, but the results were underwhelming. The app simply repeats a short trailer clip of a man walking on a hardwood floor, leaving many of the game's followers disappointed and fed up.
The truth behind Abandoned is still quite unclear. Many believe it is a new horror game from Hideo Kojima, while others believe that the title is simply a poorly marketed independent game. In either case, Hasan Kahraman seems more than willing to speak about the upcoming title. While previous trailers and images seem to push a horror aesthetic, Kahraman's statements suggest that Abandoned will focus more on survival than horror.
Source: NME