E3 2013: Come Watch Two Guys Talk Over The Evil Within

The Evil Within, brainchild of Shinji Mikami's studio Tango Gameworks and Bethesda Softworks, has had a very secretive development cycle, and even its presence at E3 2013 has been rather mysterious. With gameplay footage and screenshots in short supply, here we turn to this interview with Bethesda's Pete Hines, which manages to squeeze in a little bit of the game around two people talking.

Their constant talking is annoying because it keeps us from achieving any sense of atmosphere while playing the game, though the lighting and enemy design certainly lead one to believe that the game isn't quite a walk through Disneyland. It's sharp-looking, and I don't just mean protagonist Sebastian's cool suit.

The Evil Within's plot is being kept under wraps, but the setup is Sebastian and his partner going to an asylum to investigate a murder and coming upon much more than they bargained for, as is always the way with horror games. (One can draw connections between this and Mikami's original Resident Evil, in which a squad goes to a forest to investigate a murder and comes upon much more than they bargained for.) Sebastian is sent on a horrifying journey that will make him question what is real and what isn't, which while terrible for him is just awesome for me because I love those kinds of horror games.

The interview itself is worthwhile, however much it gets in the way of the gameplay, as Hines' emphasis on the player's scarce resources is promising. His best example is that the player will be dropped into situations where he'll have three bullets but will be facing eight enemies, and must use his wits to survive. Sebastian's options are a bit open, as he can use his matches to light enemies on fire, but there is a constant balance of risk versus reward in play: yes, lighting an enemy ablaze will put him down, but such a close-range attack is as risky as they come. And, as Hines says, enemies who go down aren't always dead.

There's a lot to process here and a lot which sounds like exactly what a good horror game needs, so check the interview out.

The Evil Within releases in 2014 for the PS3, PS4, 360, XBO, and PC.