Wronged Usis an upcoming survival horror game set in a twisted world inspired by notable games such asDark Souls, Resident Evil 2,andSilent Hill.While the game draws inspiration from these classic titles for its world and mechanics, Delusional Studio takes these features and adds to them to create a unique, open world survivalhorrorexperience. The game does not yet have a release date, but it’s expected to release on both PC and consoles in the future.
Game Rant spoke with solo developer Sohail Khan about the inspiration he drew fromDark Souls, Resident Evil 2 Remake,andSilent Hillas well as how he iterated on those games' mechanics to craft the grim world and characters seen inWronged Us.
RELATED:How Wronged Us is Inspired by Dark Souls, Resident Evil, and Silent Hill
Wronged Us Builds on the Worlds and Mechanics of Dark Souls, Resident Evil, and Silent Hill to Encourage Immersion
Wronged Usis Delusional Studio’s first game that started back in 2017 as a simple walking simulator. Though as Khan got more experience under his belt, it quickly began to grow into a larger, more ambitious project that aims to deliver a “slow-burning horror experience.” In order to achieve this searing gameplay,Khan turned to several classic games for inspiration.
He drew on two notable horror games to help build the environment—Silent HillandResident Evil 2 Remake. Silent HIll’sdark and often surprising storytelling approach is what kept him invested in the game and would hold his attention, eager to keep unraveling its unique story. This quality is, in part, what Khan hopes to instill in the narrative ofWronged Us.
“Silent Hill games have a knack for telling engaging stories with unexpected twists and turns that slowly unveil throughout the game. This storytelling approach is what keeps me invested in the game, eager to uncover what comes next.”
When designing certain mechanics outside of storytelling, Khan looked toResident Evil 2 Remakefor guidance on how he wanted to craft his game’s inventory system, puzzles, and combat.He also noted thatResident Evilinformed the world in the way that players would be rewarded for exploration, citing that often inResident Evilgames the player is encouraged to roam, and in doing so they are rewarded by uncovering valuable loot, ammo, and healing items that are otherwise scant during gameplay.
Resident EvilandSilent Hillaren’t the only games Delusional Studio draws upon for inspiration, either. Khan also noted the importance ofDark Soulswhen it came to NPC and quest design. He believes immersion is key, and by letting the player loose in a world with no map and no quest markers, they are forced to navigate the town of Lowell to complete quest lines solely based on word of mouth from NPCs scattered throughout the decaying town.
“The quest system in the Souls games is a refreshing departure from the typical hand-holding found in many modern games. The feeling of accomplishment when finding or completing something specifically requested by an NPC is truly rewarding, especially given the lack of help from the game.”
These games were a great starting point for Khan when designingWronged Us,however he had no desire to simply copy and paste their features into his own game. Rather, Khan expanded on each of those inspirations to provide an experience that is truly unique toDelusional Studio’s first game. Take the free-roaming nature ofResident Evil, for example. Khan makes a point to mention that unlike those games where players can freely barrel through the front door of anyone’s house and steal their belongings, players inWronged Uswill only be able to freely enter homes that are abandoned. Otherwise, they will have to peep through windows, knock on doors, and find other ways to get inside.
A consistent through line in Khan’s development ofWronged Usis the idea of immersion. Returning to the above example,it would have been easy to just allow players to barge into strangers' homes at will, however Khan argues that his approach to thisclassicResident Evilmechanic allows players a more realistic, immersive experience—after all, one is more likely to knock on someone’s door than to break their window and vault their way inside. He further builds on this by denying the player a map of the town and instead forces players to explore, finding items and completing quests simply by word of mouth. All of these features, and more, are what allowsWronged Usto be a truly unique open world survival horror experience.
Wronged Usdoesn’t have a release date at this time, but the game is slated to release on PC and consoles in the future.
