When we talk about liminal space horror games, The Backrooms often takes center stage. However, there’s a new horror game that recently entered Early Access that’s ready to change up the standard settings. This indie game challenges The Backrooms’ dominance in the liminal space horror genre.
New Indie Game Wants the Horror Genre Throne and Could Challenge The Backrooms
Meet ATTA, a spot the oddities game set in a hotel. You wake up in Room 1028 of a hotel that’s a tourist attraction for guests to find supernatural anomalies and point them out. However, that might mean that you die as a result. But if you die, you end up right back in Room 1028, healthy and whole.
The More Involved Gameplay of ATTA
It’s a short game right now, although that can change during its time in Early Access. However, I love the design of the hotel and how it feels full of objects versus the rather empty style of spaces that are contained in most Backrooms games.
The gameplay also goes for a more involved type of liminal space game. Instead of heading through spaces that slightly—or drastically—change as you progress, you have to pay more attention and pick out the details that are changing. This means you better be paying attention in this test of your observational and memory skills.
Clear Tasks and Memory Challenges
While there’s some interactivity in most Backrooms games, I find it refreshing to have a direct task as you explore. It’s also difficult to go through areas that are so similar, but know that you have to try memorizing as much as possible in order to pick out any changes later. I’d love to see this type of gameplay make it into more Backrooms-style games. It feels like an I Spy book, but upgraded and more interactive.
As such, it looks like the indie game ATTA is challenging The Backrooms’ dominance in the liminal space horror genre. But that’s not a bad thing. I hope this style catches on, and I can’t wait to see how the game develops in Early Access. From here, check out more horror content like the 10 best horror game stories or 10 best puzzle-based horror games.
