The Dark Pictures: Directive 8020 Preview: A different look for Supermassive

There are only a handful of major developers that do horror better and more frequently than Supermassive Games. Every year, we can expect the British studio to produce at least one project that makes our hair stand on end, with 2024's offering being The Casting of Frank Stone and 2025's being the beginning of a second season of The Dark Pictures. This first instalment into the horror anthology's return is known as Directive 8020 and it's a massive detraction from what Supermassive has done before for a multitude of reasons, and yes, before you ask... this is a reason to be excited.

First of all, Directive 8020 is set well into the future. Like hundreds (maybe even thousands) of years into the future. Humanity has long ventured into the cosmos aboard powerful and grand spacefaring vessels and it's on such a ship that our story takes place. It revolves around Lashana Lynch's Brianna Young, a British astronaut tasked with leading the colony ship Cassiopeia to the Tau Ceti f star system in the hopes of ensuring humanity's survival during Earth's dying days. Is there anything particularly special about that idea? Not really, but it is new ground for Supermassive as the developer has never explored such a setup before, never mind as part of The Dark Pictures Anthology.

The second reason to be excited about Directive 8020 is down to the gameplay. Yes, it's still a narrative and linear experience laden with choices and branching dialogue that can twist and turn the story and lead to a multitude of endings. Yes, there are a collection of differing and interweaving characters to play, opening the door to great local (and online) cooperative options. And yes, as the latter point implies, it's a very character-driven story, one that focuses on its stars and details how they attempt to survive in the harsh environment of space while being hunted by shapeshifting and vicious creatures that can take any form, even that of your closest ally. So, before I get onto why the gameplay is exciting and different, you can be reassured that the core Supermassive framework is very much still present and at the heart of what the team has built this time.

What is significantly different is how the gameplay actually works in practice. Directive 8020 has taken a more survival horror approach than former Supermassive games, meaning it's more hands-on, gives the player more freedom and agency to define their own path and explore as they see fit, has deeper and more complex puzzles and challenges to overcome, and more frightening and immersive enemies that require actual attention and focus to evade or overcome. There are sneaking sections to conquer, side tasks and objectives off the beaten path to take on, a variety of tools and gadgets to put to your disposal in an effort to survive, and all while using an improved control scheme that is more responsive and player-friendly than the quite rigid and stiff controls from past Supermassive projects.

As an example of how things are changing here, the player can now manually activate a flashlight to illuminate the dark corridors of the Cassiopeia but at the risk that the light attracts the alien terrors. The Scanner can be used to highlight objects and even outline enemies and the direction they are facing, while the Wedge can be used to pry open steel doors and to fight off enemies, albeit only frequently as it has a cooldown mechanic. The Messenger is the last item to find itself on your Utility Belt, with this being a way to contact and swap between the other four characters also fighting for their lives.

This change of direction is a massive choice for Supermassive, as it shows that the team can lean into more complex gameplay without it coming at the expense of their narrative excellence. I'll also add that it seems like a big amount of effort has been placed on improving the appearance and visuals in Directive 8020 too, as it feels like a step forward and an actual evolution from the last season of The Dark Pictures.

The main catch with everything I have told you so far is that I'm yet to spend any time hands-on with Directive 8020 or see any significant and extended gameplay. I was only privy to around 12-15 minutes of action, which was enough to see these sweeping and major changes but not quite enough to see whether they will be enough to see Directive 8020 stand out in an increasingly cramped horror space. But, regardless of whether these changes will stick the landing is irrelevant as you can be assured that this return of The Dark Pictures will present a thrilling and complex story that thanks to its branching design will provide pretty broad replayability to boot. Supermassive is back, not that it ever really left...