The recent Day of the Devs online presentation revealed a number of intriguing upcoming titles, but one especially has seized attention: UN:Me. Created by Historia and Shueisha Games, this solo experience seems to blend the dread-filled setting of a Silent Hill title with the paranoid deduction heart of Among Us.
"This is a unique experience where a girl containing several personalities inside her needs to flee from a maze of the mind," explains producer Yasukazu Kawai.
In UN:Me, players take control of an unnamed heroine who appears to be of teenage years. Within her exist four separate souls, each with their own anxieties and drives. These entities can take over spontaneously, unleashing their innermost phobias upon her suddenly.
Judging by revealed gameplay, much of the narrative takes place within a creepy medical facility, though other scenes show the main character navigating a abandoned chapel.
"What are you fearful of? What causes you uncomfortable?" poses game director Shun Sasaki. "Heights. Confined spaces. People in power. Things that appear minor to others can activate a deep instinct inside us. This game delves into that idea — fears that are unique to each person."
The core gameplay loop involves controlling whichever soul surfaces at a particular moment. However, these identities will change against your will as you play. During exploration, every persona's anxieties become amplified and attack the protagonist one after another. When the soul shifts, so does the specific fear the player experiences.
At first glance, UN:Me shares noticeable aesthetic parallels with the Silent Hill series. The setting is populated by nurses all sporting the same face, with unnervingly wide grins. Patients in the lobby have enormous blooms growing from their heads are. Flowers are an ever-present theme, contrasting natural beauty with supernatural dread.
Yet, UN:Me presents a unique mechanic. Players must determine which of the four entities inhabiting the heroine is the "real" one. "All four souls asserts that the physical form is rightfully them," notes a developer. "During the game, you must determine who is real."
Once players believes a soul is fake, they are forced to destroy it. However, because each soul can lie or obfuscate the reality, it is incredibly simple to make a mistake.
"Perhaps you've already destroyed the real [soul] by your own actions," a voice suggests. "The last one remaining could be a fake. In any case, your decisions are irreversible."
UN:Me does not yet have a publicly announced release date, but it is available to follow on digital storefronts.
