Playable prologue switched on for Tuned In

• Announcements by Sam Amiotte-Beaulieu
• Published:

TV-based “shifting anthology of nightmares” revealed for Steam on Windows PC

They say that too much television can rot your brain, but in the case of Tuned In, by indie Spanish developer Vercors Games, we had best be prepared for a whole lot worse in store.

June Zann has spent five years away from “the blood, the screams, the meltdown” at her family home of Blackwood Manor. Now on her 18th birthday, June is alone, with her stepfather Arthur dead and her brother Josh “missing since the incident.” As she returns to the place where all the chaos erupted five years ago, June finds herself in a room clean of bloodstains, and without the slightest inkling that anything horrible happened there. Most importantly, where there was once a busted old television, there is now a “new TV set, one that June doesn’t remember.” Acting against her best judgment, June turns it on…

Unfortunately, as soon as she does, June “becomes glued: unable to blink, to speak,” or to do anything at all except watch. Tucked in amongst channels of static, dark broadcasts showing twisted memories from June’s past now flicker on, and an evil presence known only as “the Showman” begins stalking her from within, before placing her in a life or death trivia game dredged up from her nightmares. Now June must figure out how to escape the demonic forces keeping her there, or forever be trapped rewatching the most painful memories from her past again and again.

Created by a new indie development team made up of veterans from Tequila Works, Airship Syndicate and Blizzard, Tuned In is a unique psychological thriller that promises a “sinister lineup of puzzles, layered with multiple shades of horror.” It is externally controlled by keyboard/mouse or gamepad but is set entirely within the “cursed” TV set and played by “manipulating virtual TV dials and buttons.” Simply to find the relevant, ever-changing broadcasts, you must repeatedly navigate through channels and tune frequencies to dissipate static, while volume settings can be changed within them to zero in on hidden sounds.

The broadcasts themselves represent a diverse range of gameplay styles, portrayed through a cel-shaded “graphic novel aesthetic” that reflects the various subgenres of horror on display, from “the gritty, heavy-inked shadows of a slasher to the muted, grainy textures of atmospheric folk horror.” As you find new memories, you will partake in various high-stakes challenges that correspond with past experiences. One minute you’ll be seeking out cryptic code clues to unlock a safe made of flesh, and the next you’ll be fleeing a pursuer in a chase through the forest, or sneaking and ducking your way through a dramatic stealth section without being detected. You’ll also encounter other characters to control along the way, and “every survivor’s fate rests in your hands,” as your choices “carve diverging paths through a branching narrative” with eight unique endings. 

A playable prologue for Tuned In is now available on Steam for Windows PC. There is no release window announced for the full game just yet, as it will depend in part on the upcoming Kickstarter campaign to help finance the remaining production.