It’s always fun when a game can sneak up on you out of nowhere, and I think it’s fair to say that The Medium was one of those titles. Being unveiled at May’s Inside Xbox event, it was one of the next generation only titles that was unveiled. The trailer was a spooky one, and developer Bloober Team aims to use next generation hardware to create some disturbing stuff. But what’s it about? Well, it seems they aren’t quite ready to get into the details on that just yet, but in some ways, it might be what’s not about that’s interesting.
In an interview with Edge magazine, who was kind enough to post part of it in their Twitter below (issue 347), Lead Game Designer Wojciech Piejko spoke briefly about the game’s plot and theme, but not enough to give any in-depth details. He says it’s about how nothing is black and white, and using the ability of a spiritual medium will open up new perspectives, and that nothing is exactly what it seems to be in the end. Something they hope to translate to plot and gameplay.
“Nothing is simple, nothing is black and white,” he said. “Playing as a medium gives you a unique vantage point beyond the reach of ordinary people. So the story is crafted in a way that you reveal more and more information, and hopefully it will change your point of view about other characters and events.”
Producer Jacek Zięba also took part in the interview and mentioned the game’s influence. Specifically, he talked about one influence that many people picking up on immediately from the iconic Silent Hill franchise. He was open to say that the game, as well as all of their previous games, take a lot of influence from the series, but does say he doesn’t want The Medium to just be a copy, but he wants the game to be seen in a similar vein to how some action RPGs are Souls-likes and borrow form Dark Souls, even cheekily calling it a Hills-like, but that will stand on its own.
It’s not the first time the comparison has been made, as the its been said the gameplay is also similar to Silent Hill and other similar horror games of the time. Not to mention, composer Akira Yamaoka will do some music for the game, who is closely associated with Silent Hill. You can see this part of the interview below.
The Medium will launch this year for Xbox Series X and PC.