I spent my afternoon having fun with an early press preview of the upcoming horror sport from Pulsatrix studios, A.I.L.A. I notably loved the second “expertise” or degree created by A.I.L.A., allegedly the sport’s rogue AI. This expertise, “Lady on the Highway” or WOTR, struck me as being harking back to basic survival horror franchises with a contact of creepy aliens from, you guessed it, outer area. From the second you step into Lady on the Highway, one of many core survival-horror modules in A.I.L.A., you sense that this isn’t simply the standard zombie or haunted‐home affair.
You play as Samuel, a game-tester for a revolutionary new artificial intelligence named A.I.L.A., designed to tailor horror experiences to your darkest fears. The WOTR phase particularly leans onerous on pressure and spectacular setting design.
It’s survival horror (in spirit) with the kind of pacing, environment and visible polish that followers of the style will instantly acknowledge. The sport doesn’t maintain again from its overt Resident Evil references both (the cat meals model you possibly can feed your in-game cat refers to at least one Albert Wesker himself.)
Graphically, A.I.L.A. leans into the following technology. Inbuilt Unreal Engine 5 and incorporating superior lighting (Lumen), the WOTR part delivered a standout visible expertise within the demo I performed. Scene after scene is drenched in layered realism: the headlights of your automobile glint off rain-slick pavement, the glint of a diner signal casts lengthy shadows, and inside, the décor betrays seeming normality earlier than tilting into menace.
It jogged my memory not solely of the basic survival-horror environment of the early Resident Evil video games, boasting tight corridors, restricted sight-lines, a way of helplessness, but in addition of extra trendy, cinematic horror-design, the place each nook of the setting tells a part of the story.
One location in WOTR that caught with me is the diner space. At first look it learn like several roadside cease: drained linoleum flooring, neon signage, gross espresso supplied by a tired-looking worker. It was like a calm-before-the-storm really feel, the juxtaposition of the mundane and the uncanny, and jogged my memory strongly of the echoing, wood-and-lamplight world of Alan Wake — besides right here the menace is nearer, extra intimate. The diner turns into a secure haven that isn’t essentially secure in any respect, a crucible for dread moderately than respite.
The WOTR expertise, whereas nonetheless early and topic to vary, additionally delves additional into how A.I.L.A. herself performs a job within the unfolding story. You’re not merely navigating environments — you’re testing the situations she has generated. She adapts, she learns. What precisely her agenda is stays unanswered throughout this preview. Is she the benevolent overseer or one thing way more ambiguous? That ambiguity works within the sport’s favor, as a result of the unknown is frightening.
The truth that A.I.L.A. crafts the horrors you’re pressured to outlive elevates the setup, as this isn’t simply monsters, it’s machine-driven dread designed particularly for you and talking to our present, technologically-driven world.
The survival mechanics lean on exploration, resource-management and environmental puzzle fixing moderately than nonstop gunfire, although fight does have its place, notably towards the alien enemies you’ll encounter right here. Within the WOTR module you’ll end up coming throughout an unexplained crater, a dilapidated farmhouse, and the unusual thriller of a pregnant girl who misplaced her child in an accident. The pacing is extra slow-burn in comparison with pure motion horror, which is a plus for my part, as a result of horror is commonly simpler whenever you’re unsure and remoted.
The overt comparisons to Resident Evil are inevitable, and so they really feel applicable, even when a bit on-the-nose. The structure of environments, the strain of encountering one thing you don’t count on, and the interaction between secure areas and hazard zones are hallmarks of basic survival horror. Pulsatrix appears to have included them with a extra trendy twist. But it surely’s not spinoff, because the setting, the techno-horror twist, and the AI-driven narrative all give it contemporary identification. On high of that, the high-fidelity visuals, spectacular in high quality for an indie developer, increase the bar.
For indie horror followers who like a narrative component, the unanswered questions round A.I.L.A.’s function add an additional layer of intrigue. Why is the AI producing these test-scenarios (and what occurs when the road between the checks and “actual life” blurs?) The WOTR module provides hints however holds off on full solutions, which in a preview sense is precisely what you need.
Regardless of my questions largely going unanswered, I discovered the WOTR expertise genuinely enjoyable. The environment isn’t simply oppressive for oppression’s sake, as there are moments of reduction, exploration, dread, and reward. Parking your automotive within the rain, getting into the diner, noticing a element on quite a few lore recordsdata, feeling the glint of one thing within the dimness of the farmhouse, all of it was constructed right into a package deal that I loved.
A.I.L.A.’s “Lady on the Highway” module delivers a compelling slice of what’s to come back, with a mix of survival-horror construction, high-end visuals, curious narrative hooks, and an odd, uncanny environment. Whereas the total sport stays unreleased, and lots of questions stay (not least: what precisely A.I.L.A. desires and the way far the experiences will department), this preview provides me confidence that Pulsatrix Studios are delivering a horror title value your wishlist.
