Layers of Fear will revisit the psychological horror game from a different angle, with updated graphics, fresh mechanics, and new character storylines. Layers of Fear is being co-developed by Bloober Team, known for its work on other terrifying games like Observer and Blair Witch, and Anshar Studios, which has helped produce Dead By Daylight and Observer: System Redux. Screen Rant attended a special preview presentation to learn more about the upcoming title featuring Anshar Studios' Creative Director Damian Kocurek and Bloober PR Manager Laura Bernas.

Described as neither a direct sequel nor a direct remake, Layers of Fear combines elements from the original game with retooled mechanics and plot to make a brand-new experience for players. Bloober's return to the Layers of Fear franchise will also come with highly-improved graphics thanks to the use of Unreal Engine 5, and through this process things like dynamic lighting will make for a much more visceral horror experience. Bernas described Layers of Fear as a "definitive experience" for fans of the series, and shared that the desire to return to the franchise spawned from wanting to get back to the studio's roots.

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The overall gameplay style of Layers of Fear will not be drastically changed in this new entry - the basic premise is still a first-person narrative horror experience in which art is the overarching theme. It's not a horror game about fighting enemies, but rather exploring the many unsettling environments to unravel the stories of the protagonists. Much of Layers of Fear's main story still follows the troubled artist fans of the original title will be familiar with, but it will also introduce an entirely new character and location: a writer just arriving at an old, ominous lighthouse for her job.

The in-game footage featured in the preview event featured three different sections of the game, beginning with the introduction of the aforementioned writer. This first section showed the character beginning to explore the lighthouse after a phone call with her son that sets up some expository details, and the new environment certainly maintains the deeply unsettling ambiance the Layers of Fear series is known for. Kocurek described the lighthouse as a "dark and mysterious place" where the writer "will have to face her own demons," and noted that her narrative helps to tie the others in the game together.

The next section of Layers of Fear footage centered around the painter from the original game, beginning with him in a room on fire. Just as before, the character is haunted by the fate of his family and his quest to finish his magnum opus painting, with this scene featuring disturbing dialogue about removing flesh from bone and then pulverizing said bone into paint. This scene also introduced a new lantern item that functions somewhat similarly to Alan Wake's flashlight mechanic, showing him pointing concentrated light at a mysterious black blob until it dissipates.

Layers of Fear scene showing a pile of paintings on fire from a first person perspective of someone holding a lantern.

This same lantern was featured in the third and final section of the Layers of Fear preview, which briefly demonstrated how the painter's run-ins with his wife have changed. In the scene shown, the painter is able to engulf his wife's apparition in flames utilizing the light from the lantern. Developers noted that the narrative of the painter's wife and daughter will also be expanded upon in the game, offering more of their perspective.

It looks as though Layers of Fear will deepen the in-game universe in several new and interesting ways, and developers confirmed that the title will have a longer playthrough time than the original. It's currently unknown if that also means the various possible endings in Layers of Fear will be increased as well, but regardless of how the game concludes, it's clear players will learn much more about the game's characters along the way. Layers of Fear releases this summer.

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Source: GameSpot/YouTube

Layers of Fear will be available in June 2023. Screen Rant attended a special preview presentation for the purpose of this preview.