Lakeview Cabin developer announces small-town murder simulator
Finally, a way to shut up those NPCs
You know, I always thought there was one thing Stardew Valley lacked that otherwise would make it perfect: murder. I mean, how many times can you go to the same festivals and holiday celebrations year after year with the same NPCs before you want to strangle one of them? Thankfully the newly announced Lakeview Valley will let players get away with those fleeting homicidal tendencies roleplaying games can bring out - provided they don't leave any evidence behind.
Developer Roope Tamminen revealed the trailer for his new killer RPG (in the literal sense) today. Lakeview Valley is a spiritual successor to his last anthology, Lakeview Cabin Collection, a series of similarly macabre side-scrolling sandbox survival games featuring all the campy goodness of 70s and 80s horror movies.
Lakeview Valley takes place in a town of the same name that's haunted by secrets and occasionally stabby individuals that come out when night falls. Along with renovating your new home and puttering about the town to meet your neighbours, you can get to sleuthing the case of a local's mysterious death. Or ignore it and instead listen to a talking tree that demands a human sacrifice instead.
Be wary though, Tamminen warns: "The game features a crime scene system that tracks everything you leave your fingerprints or DNA on. So if you plan to murder someone, you better know what to do. The law will investigate every night and arrest you if enough evidence is found."
Lakeview Valley's Steam page currently lists its release date as simply "when ready," so looks like I'll be stuck pining for my neighbours' untimely demises in Stardew Valley for the foreseeable future.