It has been a long time since the spotlight shined so prominently on sci-fi and horror games as it did at Summer Game Fest 2022. In recent years, the two genres have taken a back seat to battle royales, expansive RPGs, and narrative-heavy action games as the talking points of prominent gaming showcases. However, at Summer Game Fest 2022, horror and sci-fi came together and dominated all corners of the two-hour-long presentation.

With both genres taking up over a quarter of the time slots, Summer Game Fest demonstrated that there is plenty of space for sci-fi and horror in gaming and a lot on the way for enthusiastic fans. Today’s showcase saw a new take on the Alien franchise, gruesome footage from The Callisto Protocol, a re-reveal of Routine, a highly-anticipated survival horror remake, and more.

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Aliens Dark Descent

Summer Game Fest kicked off to the delight of sci-fi horror fans with the reveal of Aliens Dark Descent. The last time fans stood toe to toe with a Xenomorph was 2021’s Aliens Fireteam Elite, and it looks like Aliens Dark Descent is giving a new twist to the franchise. Developed by Tindalos Interactive and published by Focus Home Entertainment, Aliens Dark Descent is a single-player real-time strategy game pitting a squad of Colonial Marines against waves of Xenomorphs.

The RTS genre is a new frontier for the Alien franchise but will contain all the staples of the series. Facehuggers, Praetorians, Alien Queens, and more will be at the forefront of Aliens Dark Descent when it launches in 2023.

The Callisto Protocol

The Calisto Protocol carries the legacy of Dead Space with Glen Schofield as the creative lead at Striking Distance Studios. Set in 2320 on a Jupiter moon, The Callisto Protocol is upping the ante for horror games in 2022 with its visceral brutality and ominous setting. While previously showing brief snippets of gameplay and hints at the story, fans finally got to see The Callisto Protocol and all of its uncut gore at Summer Game Fest.

Today’s gameplay trailer hinted at psychological horror elements such as Jacob’s “savior” toying with Jacob as he confronted increasingly disturbing alien monsters. Additionally, the trailer ends with Jacob brutally getting his head bitten off by one of his adversaries. At Summer Game Fest, Schofield emphasized the survival horror nature of the game, stating that “ammo, health, and weapons are precious, and players will need to scour Black Iron for any advantage they can find.” The Calisto Protocol launches on December 2, 2022, and will likely be everything a Dead Space fan could wish for.

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Fort Solis

Fallen Leaf’s Fort Solis is an indie game packing a AAA punch. Starring Red Dead Redemption 2’s Roger Clark and The Last of Us’ Troy Baker, Fort Solis is setting the stage for some of the most prominent voice actors in gaming to terrorize fans. Throughout the brief demo showcased at Summer Game Fest, Fort Solis presents itself as a sci-fi horror game set on Mars and appears to be taking heavy inspiration from the critically-acclaimed Alien Isolation. Troy Baker plays the lead, Wyatt Taylor, a medical officer stationed at Fort Solis, uncovering the mystery at the center of the base.

At Summer Game Fest, Baker and Clark stated that players will be “exploring and discovering” inside of the very “tight thriller” that is Fort Solis. Fort Solis doesn’t have a release date yet but will be a game to watch in the coming months.

Routine

Initially part of Steam’s now-defunct Greenlight Program, Routine has returned after almost a decade since its initial reveal. Set inside an abandoned retro-futuristic Lunar base, Routine’s re-reveal trailer is creepy in every sense of the word. Dim lighting and vacant corridors appear to be at the core of Routine’s sci-fi horror setting.

Notably, Routine’s soundscapes throughout the trailer are as eerie as the imagery, ominously filling the desolate setting. Routine’s impressive sound work should come as no surprise as Mick Gordon, best known for his work in Doom (2016) and Doom Eternal, is spearheading sound design for the reinvigorated Routine. Sci-fi horror fans on Xbox are also in luck; when Routine launches, it will be coming to Xbox Game Pass on day one.

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Layers of Fears

While rumors of a Silent Hill game developed by Bloober Team continue to make the rounds, the Polish studio reminds fans that its own horror IP has plenty to offer. Layers of Fears is Bloober Team’s remake of Layers of Fear 1 & 2, featuring new story elements in what the studio calls a “psychological horror chronicle.” The horror game package is being developed using Unreal Engine 5, and the trailer at Summer Game Fest showcases the terrors that Bloober is creating with the new engine.

Layers of Fears looks like a nightmare come to life, showcasing unsettling imagery and a myriad of fever dream-like settings. However, reworked graphics aren’t the only new feature coming to Layers of Fears. Bloober has stated that the package will feature a “new gameplay direction” for the series, hinted at by the protagonist wielding a knife at one point in the reveal trailer. Layers of Fears launches in early 2023.

The Last of Us Part 1

The Last of Us Part 1 was the final major announcement at Summer Game Fest 2022, punctuating the prominence of the horror genre throughout the presentation. Naughty Dog’s original The Last of Us is a widely celebrated game and one of the last decade's most successful entries in the survival horror genre. Rumors of a potential remake have swirled throughout the internet recently and have come to fruition at Summer Game Fest.

Built from the ground up for modern consoles and PC, The Last of Us Part 1 will take full advantage of today’s hardware to deliver Naughty Dog’s full vision for the seminal horror game. At the conclusion of Summer Game Fest, Naughty Dog’s Neil Druckman stated, “when you play it, when you see it in motion, it’s really night and day.” Screenshots of the remake show the game’s impressive conversion to The Last of Us Part 2’s engine, and Part 1 promises to bring all the gameplay and visual enhancements brought forward by the sequel. The Last of Us Part 1 launches on September 2, 2022.

Plenty is still to come for fans that didn’t get enough sci-fi and horror at Summer Game Fest. Details regarding various Silent Hill projects continue to surface with varying degrees of legitimacy, too, along with a rumored horror game developed by Hideo Kojima. Also on the way is EA’s upcoming Dead Space Remake, launching early next year.

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