MMORPG specialists Funcom have revealed more details about their ominous theme park-set single-player outing The Park [official site]. Although it's the studio's first solo-playing venture in nine years - Dreamfall: The Longest Journey in 2006 being the last - The Park takes place in The Secret World's wider universe.
The latest trailer asks 'What is The Park?', before taking a behind-the-scenes peak beyond the rope barrier as it arrives at an answer.
The Park - What is 'The Park'? Watch on YouTube
Whilst Funcom note Gone Home and The Vanishing Of Ethan Carter as narrative comparisons here, the abandoned amusement park-cum-searching parent/lost child conceit very much reminds me of the Silent Hill series, which, within the bounds of a psychological horror game, is most likely a good thing.
The Park will take players an hour or two to conclude and will have a distinct focus on the emotional story arc of protagonist Lorraine as it hopes to "capture the feeling of a Stephen King novel," according to creative director Joel Bylos. He also had this to say:
For the last ten years, Funcom has been focused on making massively multiplayer online games, so 'The Park' is our first single-player experience in a long time. It has been an incredibly fun and rewarding process working on 'The Park'. What initially started out as a prototype and a way for us to learn new development tools, has evolved into a short and intense psychological horror experience which we are all very excited to share with gamers out there.
The Park has a tentative "October 2015" release date, according its website.
