Developed by Pulsatrix Studios, Phobia - St. Dinfna Hotel is a promising Spanish game that will be released for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and PC. You can even download a demo on Steam to test the title at this link.
Inspired by franchises such as resident evil, and even others from different media, the title promises to be a great horror experience, being one of the most interesting games that will soon be released in our scenario.
Check the game description.
"Phobia is an immersive journey of suspense and investigation that begins in a rundown hotel dominated by a technologically advanced cult. This cult preaches the union of science and religion, secretly conducting human enhancement experiments involving genetic modification and parallel realities.
Past, present and future collide in a scenario full of puzzles, mysteries and conspiracies. In this journey in search of the truth, the player will need to explore the different worlds using a camera, he will have to defend himself from the monstrous creatures that lurk in the hotel corridors and fight for his survival."
Talking to Fabio Martins, COO and Art Director at Pulsatrix, we found out a little more about the game and its inspirations. In addition, Fabio also talked about how it was to develop the game for different consoles, gave the green light for possible DLCs and more.
Interview with developer of Instinction, spiritual successor to Dino CrisisInterview with Pulsatrix Studios
Inspiration from Resident Evil and PT
With a focus on environment exploration and puzzle solving, Phobia - St. Dinfna Hotel is a game that draws on the source of already established franchises, including P.T. e Resident Evil as two great inspirations.
Asked how much the Spanish game is inspired by these names and how much the balance weighs for each side, Fabio Martins stated that Resident Evil is the biggest reference, but also mentioned that there are several important inspirations for the title.
"They are two great inspirations, but they are not the only ones. Resident Evil is certainly our biggest reference, both in terms of visuals and gameplay. We try to differentiate ourselves in some points, such as being less focused on action and combats, and more aimed at solving puzzles and exploring the scenario. PT has a much more present psychological terror, and we tried to base our setting on it, creating the same kind of feeling of fear, confusion and also interest in finding out more about what is happening At the end of the day, I think the balance is a little balanced, as we try to take strong aspects of various titles to create a different experience."
Still talking about inspirations, Fabio commented that Phobia uses known mechanics and features in the genre as few weapons and scarce ammo, stating that the game can be considered a traditional title.
However, the camera was cited as a differential of the game, being something original.
"Phobia can be considered a traditional game, we are trying to make a global product with outstanding features of several titles. Few weapons, scarce ammunition, puzzle solving and scenario exploration. Investigation plays an important role, as the story is not simply delivered to the player, he needs to analyze the information collected and gather the clues to solve the story. The camera is our original mechanic, because with it you can interact with two completely different scenarios, expanding the amount of interactions present in each place."
When asked about the possibility of having any Stalker enemy in the game, like Nemesis e Mr.X, Fabio said that while some opponents can be faced, the option on other occasions is to run. However, he did not go into more details so as not to compromise the players' surprise and experience.
"These are epoch-making enemies and they are certainly inspirations.
As we have a low number of enemies, we try to value the unique characteristics of each one. There are enemies that can be faced, and there are times when the best thing to do is just run. That's all I can say at the moment."
Inspired by The Shining
In addition to inspirations from other games, Phobia - St. Dinfna Hotel also has as a reference movie names and hit series. The illuminated, a film starring Jack Nicholson, is one of the great inspirations.
Fabio mentioned that success is a reference for setting visual and sound of the game. In addition, other titles were also mentioned.
"In addition to games, we have been inspired a lot by movies and series. These are media that have worked on horror in an exquisite way for much longer than games, so we tried to seek to build that sense of fear and how to maintain it over time. The Shining creates this environment very well, being a reference for the sound and also visual environment. The game takes place in a hotel exactly because of this movie. But we always like to mention other names that create this horror in different ways, and are also references for us, like IT, Rosemary's Baby and the Dark series."
action and plot
With Phobia focusing on exploration and puzzle solving, the developers don't want action to be one of the main features of the title, but it will be there for break the monotony and remind players that the danger can arise at any point in the journey.
"Action is important to break the monotony and create a real sense of danger, where at every corner you can find something that will attack you, but Phobia is definitely not an action game, there are weapons and combats, but we don't want to let that be the focus. There will be few monsters, ammo scarce, working more as a defense mechanism than an attack."
Speaking about Phobia's plot, Fabio stated that the team doesn't want the game to offer only fear, without context or explanation. Asked about plot elements, the art director stated that it will be important use investigation to assemble the puzzle.
"The story is a very important point in the game, we don't just want immersion and fear without context, we want to work on the details so that everything makes sense, and player, as you go along, put the pieces of the puzzle together and realize that nothing is happening by chance. As you play as a journalist, it can be important to use this investigative skill to connect the dots."
Although the story does not present many variations, Fabio said that the players should pay attention to not allow details to go unnoticed.
"The story will be told from beginning to end, without many variations. What changes may be how much the player goes deep into the events, as the secondary puzzles, which are not essential for the development of the game, will tell more details and detail events that may have gone unnoticed."
Planning for DLCs
When talking about planning to release DLCs after the game is available, Fabio revealed that the team has a story to feature in more content, but everything will depend on how the game will be received by the public.
"We have a story for possible sequels. DLCs can be an option to expand the game world, but it all depends on a successful launch."
Different platforms and release forecast
Talking about which platform proved to be more complicated during development, both for bureaucratic issues and for other elements, Fabio Martins stated that each console has its own difficulties, but said last-gen consoles present a greater challenge.
"Both consoles have their difficulties, and bureaucratic issues, each in its own way. Perhaps the main challenge is the performance on the last generation consoles. Because as we are in this generational transition we have to work with more consoles than usual, and making a game with today's technology perform well on consoles from 7 years ago takes a lot of work."
Commenting on a possible chance of Phobia reaching the Game Pass, Fabio liked the idea.
"We would love to, but this decision is more up to Microsoft than to us. And also the negotiation of a possible Publisher to help in this process."
About game launch, it was revealed that the team already have a date in mind, but intends not to announce yet to avoid possible disappointments.
"We've already worked with a date in mind, but we can't reveal it publicly yet, as unforeseen events happen, and we don't want to create false expectations in our players, or launch an unfinished product."
