Summary
Horroris one of the most beloved genres in storytelling. One of the biggest reasons the genre is so popular is due to the diversity it allows in its concepts and themes.Horrorcan be based around nearly any idea. From a slow-burn psychological thriller, likeLonglegs, to the more grotesque and horrifying, likeAlien: Romulus, the flexibility of horror continues to draw people in.
One of the best places for horror to be explored is through video games. These stories are just as versatile, if not more so, than their film or television counterparts.FromThe Last of UstoResident Evil,the landscape of horror in gaming is incredibly vast. Occasionally, parallel ideas will arrive around the same time, which can often create trends to form. Two upcoming horror releases seem primed and ready to do just that. BetweenZoochosisandReanimal, it looks like the horror genre is getting ready to evolve body horror in a more animal-centric fashion.
Zoochosis and Reanimal Aim For Animal-Focused Scares
Subverting Body Horror Expectations
When it comes to body horror, it’s usually focused on humans who have come to a horrible fate. Games likeDead SpaceandThe Evil Withinexperiment with what horrible transformations can be done to the human body. Through the years, body horror has become quite common in the genre, simply because it is so versatile.The Last of Us' cordyceps-infected humansand the mutilated residents ofOutlast’s Mount Massive Asylum showcase unique ways humans can become horribly deformed.
Now, animals are getting the brunt of body horror experimentation.Zoochosiskickstarted this new body horror approach, as it was first announced at the beginning of the year. The bodycam horror game requires players to protect zoo animals from a mysterious ailment that is morphing them into grotesque monsters. A game that is half zoo management, half body horror showcase doesn’t seem like it would be a good fit at first, but early footage of the game proves otherwise.
Reanimalis equally exciting, as it’s thefirst game from Tarsier Studios sinceLittle Nightmare 2. The artwork and aesthetic ofReanimalis practically identical to theLittle Nightmaresfranchise, but the main difference is that this upcoming title seems to be diving a lot deeper with its horror elements. Although the trailer forReanimalshows plenty of the grotesque human-like characters thatLittle Nightmaresboasted, this spiritual successor also showcases an array of spin-chilling animal hybrids that look like they have stepped straight out of a nightmare.
Reanimalfollows a brother and sister as they try to escape a nightmarish version of their home while searching for their friends.
Setting the Stage For Other Horror Games to Follow Suit
It may not be possible to predict an outright surge in creepy animal body horror, but if bothZoochosisandReanimalprove to be successes, it would be surprising if there wasn’t an influx of titles following in their footsteps. WhereZoochosisseems to offer the jump scares,Reanimalaims to crawl under the player’s skin. This is another demonstration of just how versatile horror and its many subgenres can be. Both titles revolve around animal body horror, but they go about it in completely different ways. It seems as though animal-focused body horror is a rich untapped resource that could provide years of inspiration for other developers to experiment with.
Zoochosisis single-player, whileReanimalis two-player co-op.
As the release dates for these games draw closer, it will be exciting to seehowZoochosisandReanimalrank among other body horror titles. Body horror lends itself to a wide range of possibilities, and it’s surprising that it has taken this long to bring animals into the mix.
