Kickstarter Shout-out: Project Scissors: NightCry

I was originally going to talk about three different sprite-based video games on Kickstarter, but when this one, Project: Scissors: NightCry popped up, I had to talk about it first because of the people behind it. So, yeah, expect the pixel-based one in the near future. In terms of how the horror-survival genre is doing right now, I think they are in another rut. It isn’t because the horror genre is trying to be the next big Resident Evil or Silent Hill game-changer, but it’s because of an oversaturation of garbage. I think the problem is that now every game wants to be like P.T., Alien Isolation, and Amnesia: The Dark Descent and be this first-person horror experience that they think people will love. Sadly, this has led to a major boatload of poorly put together titles, where every game feels the same. The sad fact is that most, if not 98%, of horror games that are developed end up being made solely and soullessly for the big YouTube personalities. They know the personalities will talk loud, act goofy, and scream at jump scares, which will hopefully make the millions of viewers that watch them go and buy the game. By the way, it doesn’t really work! Even when we get big horror-survival titles like The Evil Within, it feels like it’s more gory than scary. The atmosphere of that game was done well, but it isn’t because the monsters and the scenarios were scary, it’s because of the sound design. I don’t mean to rail on the whole horror-survival scene and how big YouTube personalities work, but I am getting tired of it. That is why I am happy to see this project, Project Scissors: NightCry. It’s by the same creator of the original Clock Tower. It also has the talent of the Japanese director of “The Grudge,” and monster designer of the original Japanese-made Silent Hill games. How about we dive in and see why Project Scissors: NightCry is getting a Kickstarter shout-out!



The story will put you onto this cruise ship called the Oceanus. The Oceanus is on route to the Caribbean Islands. Some of the passengers are a group of American college students with the main character being Monica Flores. Of course, this being a horror survival game, things goes wrong on the ship, and you and the other passengers are stuck there. Not only that, but there is a killer with a huge pair of scissor stalking you. Can you survive? Or will the killer get you and cut your life short? So far, I like the setup. Since they are on a cruise ship with really no way to escape, and if the killer is smart, he will cut the ship’s communication to the outside world. However, I am expecting great things since the director of the Japanese version of “The Grudge” is one of the many bigwigs attached to this project. Plus, the creator of the original Clock Tower games wears his love of horror films on his sleeve, and will use what made the first PlayStation entry in the Clock Tower franchise so creepy and atmospheric to put them into this Kickstarter.



If it is any surprise, Project Scissors: NightCry is a point-and-click-adventure game with heavy horror survival elements. However, you won’t be fighting creepy monsters. Yes, like most horror games, good and bad, that are released, you will want to instead look for clues, and solve puzzles while avoiding the unknown psycho that stalks the cruise ship. On top of that, apparently, if you stay alive long enough, the psycho will gain new powers. So yeah, while everyone who is making horror games who think they are being unique by having a stealth/hiding system, Hifumi Kono, the creator of the Clock Tower series did it first! If you have played the original Super Famicom version of Clock Tower or the game’s sequel, Clock Tower 2 (or as it’s known here in the states as Clock Tower), you will know that the game will sport multiple endings depending on what you do in the game.



Of course, since this game is in development, the footage shown so far isn’t perfect, but let’s face it, in the end, it will look good for a 3D indie game. Some of the screenshots look promising. Dark hallways, limited lighting, and no horror game is complete without blood splatter in some areas. I think for early development footage, it doesn’t look bad! The music will also be outstanding, since the team behind the sound and music are Nobuko Toda and Michiru Yamane. These two female composers’ work include the Metal Gear Solid series, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, Halo 4, Halo 5, Suikoden III, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Castlevania: Bloodlines, Castlevania: Curse of Darkness, and Skullgirls. Not only that, but you have creature designer Masahiro Ito, who is most famous for creating Pyramid Head from Silent Hill 2. The big names don’t stop there, as you have Shinji Aramaki, whose design work includes the “Bubblegum Crisis” anime series, Steel battalion 2, and Tekken. The community management, and in charge of this Kickstarter is Playism. If you backed La-Mulana 2, then you would have seen this company’s name.



So even with this huge amount of talent behind such a project, I have some concerns. First off, I hope the items that you need for this adventure game aren’t obscurely hidden like they are in games like King’s Quest V or the original Super Famicom Clock Tower. Nothing kills the flow of an adventure game with horror elements than missing an item because the game designers hid it too well for the players to find. I also hope they take notes from the PlayStation 1 Clock Tower game, and let you experiment a little since there were a few deaths that are from the PlayStation 1 game that were silly and fun to see. The best part of it was that it didn’t punish you at all for finding them. I also hope that while your main character is vulnerable, that I don’t get killed or injured because of some kind of shenanigans, like controls. No one likes getting hurt in a game unless it’s their fault.



Other than that, I have a lot of faith in this project. Sure, its $300K funding goal is only at over $38K as of right now, but I think if more people go and check out the Kickstarter page, you might find what you like. Plus, the original “The Grudge” director made a short film to help the game out. The game is set to come out for mobile, PlayStation Vita, and PC. If you love the original Clock Tower games, and want something a little different than what you are getting with horror games of today, then check out Project Scissors: NightCry! Congrats to Mr. Hifumi Kono and everyone who is working on this game! You all get my Kickstarter Shout-out!

(If you want to support this project, go to this site!)