2024 is already following in the footsteps of 2023 in terms of providing players with new horror games to look forward to, with reimaginings of Alone in the Dark and Silent Hill 2 arriving this year to compliment last year's excellent Dead Space and Resident Evil 4 remakes. After slipping from its planned October 2023 release date into first January and then March, Alone in the Dark's reimagining will now be here soon. This series stands as one of the progenitors of the survival-horror genre, but it didn't manage to stay as relevant as the series it inspired, particularly the Resident Evil franchise.

The timing of the new Alone in the Dark is arguably one of its greatest strengths, arriving at a moment when the survival-horror genre is in the full swing of a renaissance. Still, it's only natural to draw comparisons between it and the other, more modern takes on the genre represented by last year's highlights of Dead Space and Resident Evil 4. In a recent conversation with Game ZXC, Alone in the Dark's producer Andreas Schmiedecker both acknowledges the inevitable connection between Alone in the Dark and Resident Evil, while explaining how the Lovecraftian gothic horror title is definitively still its own thing.

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Alone in the Dark Invites Comparison But Stands On Its Own Within the Genre

Originally arriving for MS-DOS computers in 1992, Alone in the Dark would end up being one of the foundational pillars of survival-horror, a genre that didn't even exist at the time of its release. By establishing the conventions of survival-horror gameplay and incorporating a wide variety of horror influences (including homage to the films of George Romero and Dario Argento), Alone in the Dark would inevitably end up being one of the primary inspirations for Capcom's spiritual successor to the Famicom title Sweet Home – the now legendary Resident Evil.

Alone in the Dark's producer Andreas Schmiedecker embraces the full-circle moment of Resident Evil potentially acting as an inspiration on the series that inspired it. That said, he's quick to point out that players should expect something unique from the newest iteration of Alone in the Dark:

We conserve the classic survival horror elements of (scary) exploration, challenging puzzles, fraught combat and a deep story (in the best tradition of Silent Hill and earlier Resident Evil games) with the presentation of a contemporary 3rd-person game. And while many other games go more into the "terror"-part of survival horror, we see ourselves more in the tradition of psychological horror - and in that regard we're lucky to have David Harbour and Jodie Comer on board, whose spellbinding performances will convince everybody who's here for the story-experience.

While the new Alone in the Dark game may borrow some of the elements and modern quality of life improvements of its survival-horror contemporaries, the tone, story, and horror atmosphere aim to deliver something unique within the genre that both call back to its origins and offer up something new for avid horror game fans.