David Gaider — he of Dragon Age fame — recently observed that most RPGs could rightly be called “home invasion simulators.” Dynamic Pixels’ Hello Neighbor isn’t an RPG, but it does take the concept of home invasion to its logical extreme, turning a midcentury suburban home into a disorienting maze as you square off against your menacing, AI-controlled neighbor — who might just be locking people in his basement.
Don’t expect to go in guns blazing, though. Though we only see the player character’s silhouette in the trailer (above), it’s clear you’re playing as a kid, armed only with found objects and a preternatural predisposition toward mischief. It’s like an anti-Home Alone, via Amnesia: you can’t fight, so hiding and misdirection are your only options. Coupled with some appropriate music cues and a Laika-esque creepified cartoon look, Hello Neighbor appears capable of just the same taut horror feel as any ‘conventional’ entry in the genre.
After an unsuccessful Kickstarter in 2015, developer Dynamic Pixels has teamed up with tinybuild, which revealed today’s announcement trailer via the publisher’s official Youtube channel. Hello Neighbor is currently soliciting sign-ups for alpha testing, with an eye toward a Spring 2017 release date on Steam. You can learn more on the official website.
