Hide and Seek is Getting Scary
Japan has a special place in the horror world. Whether it’s movies and books like The Ring, video games like Siren, or manga like the beloved works of Junji Ito, the country has been responsible for some of the horrifying stories of the 20th century, often taking inspiration from myths and ghost stories, and if Yuoni’s first trailer is anything to go by we might be getting a new nightmare.
The game puts you in the shoes of an unusual protagonist – Ai, a fifth-grader – forced to play children’s games in a world of perpetual dusk, evading otherworldly horrors and phantoms all the while. Eventually, the horrors start to bleed into the real world, forcing Ai to fight for her life.
Although, fighting is a strong word – after all, Ai is only a child, so her options are limited to running and hiding as she completes her objectives.
What’s especially exciting is a brief glimpse of Ai putting a doll in a tub – given that she’s forced to play children’s games – albeit with a gory twist – it’s likely this is a reference to One-Person Hide and Seek – an alleged game which supposedly involves letting a spirit possess a doll to play with. If that’s true, we could well see other games of the like, such as the Elevator Game, come into play.
Yuoni is a sequel to the 2019 visual novel Yuoni: Rises, which explored similar themes, albeit with a very different style, as that game had you reliving the memories of protagonist Shuji from his desk in a similarly twilit classroom. We don’t know at this point how closely the games tie in, but if you’re looking for a peek at what to expect before the Spring 2021 release date, that might be a good place to look.
What’s your favorite childhood game?  Let us know in the comments, on Twitter, or on Facebook.