Slitterhead is an upcoming third-person survival horror action title that looks to be taking inspiration from a range of genre games both old and new. First announced in 2021, Slitterhead recently received another spotlight at the Summer Game Fest, where more of its characters, setting, combat, and other mechanics were shown in greater detail. The game appears to be channeling familiar vibes from recognizable franchises like Resident Evil while putting its own surreal stamp on them, promising players an unnerving adventure through a version of Tokyo seemingly overrun with supernatural and grotesque monstrosities.

Based on the above and other elements seen in Slitterhead's gameplay trailer, it also displays some strong resemblances to 2022's paranormal FPS, Ghostwire: Tokyo. Developed by Tango Gameworks (founded by Shinji Mikami, Resident Evil Creator and Director), the studio had previously produced two horror entries in its The Evil Within IP. Last year, Tango was recognized and praised for its action rhythm beat-em-up, Hi-Fi Rush, hailed as one of the best games of 2023. Despite this achievement and acclaim, though, to the shock and disappointment of many fans and fellow developers, Tango was recently closed by Microsoft Studios in May 2024, highlighting some of the disheartening instability in the present industry climate. With the hope of a Ghostwire followup sadly not looking likely due to this, at least at this time, fans who were wishing for more games in Ghostwire's vein may yet get an experience closely adjacent in the form of Slitterhead.

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Slitterhead Could Be a Spiritual Successor to Ghostwire: Tokyo

Slitterhead and Ghostwire: Tokyo's Horror Stylings and Designs

Slitterhead is the latest creation by Keiichiro Toyama, known for Silent Hill1 and Gravity Rush. It will be the debut title developed by his newly-founded Bokeh Game Studio after departing Sony. Among the number of horror games shown at the 2024 Summer Game Fest, Slitterhead's vision of a surreal story set in Tokyo brings to mind many of Ghostwire: Tokyo's flavorings. While Slitterhead certainly seems to differ in other aspects, the two do appear to share some broad parallels, which may pique players' interest who enjoyed what Ghostwire offered.

Ghostwire: Tokyo centers on a sort of paranormal invasion, with the city suddenly under threat from supernatural monsters and psychological terrors shaped by traditional Japanese folklore and modern urban legends, producing an arresting array of fantastically terrifying and creepy creatures that players have to deal with while uncovering the mystery of what caused the event. Entities like demons, specters, and other mythological figures flooded the streets of the city that were otherwise eerily empty of humans. Leads Akito and KK must use their combined physical and psychic powers to overcome the hordes of these "Visitors" pouring into the earthly realm and besetting Ghostwire's haunted world. Similarly, Slitterhead's depiction looks to be infested with all manner of otherworldly abominations, whose appearances at times cross over into the Lovecraftian realm of cosmic horrors.

How Slitterhead May be Shaping Up to be the Next Best Thing to a Ghostwire: Tokyo 2

Ghostwire: Tokyo was essentially a first-person shooter, though with magic spells instead of firearms, in a fairly large open-world map comprising a version of Tokyo's Shibuya section and surrounding areas. Slitterhead, as mentioned, will be third-person survival horror action that also looks to focus heavily on a possession mechanic, as can be gleaned from the gameplay footage. But the foreboding atmosphere present in both, particularly with their unsettling enemies and the oppressive design of the city itself, make them appear closely linked in terms of story setup, world building, and artistic vision.

Given the unfortunate situation around Tango, and Slitterhead's inspirations and other design pedigrees, it could fill the space left by the loss of a potential Ghostwire: Toyko sequel. Slitterhead might thus end up feeling like a closely related and enjoyable spiritual successor to Ghostwire in many ways, and provide a similarly satisfying horror gaming experience with complementary vibes for fans who wanted to see more from the latter.