Hollowbody

Hollowbody is a psychological horror action adventure game by Nathan Hamley, a solo developer leading Headware Games. It's his second 3D project after Chasing Static, a 2021 adventure game.

Plot

The game is set in a dystopian near future. The protagonist is Mica, an unlicensed Shipper employed by a group of black market freelancers. One day she heads out to take care of a routine delivery job - fly within radar range while avoiding electrical discharges. Not all goes according to plan though, as the drop-off point she was directed to has been inactive for ages. Tired and disappointed, she heads back home,

but her hovercraft starts disobeying her, gaining altitude. After a sudden blinding flash, the vehicle crashes down into deserted city streets. After regaining consciousness, Mica realizes she's been trapped in the exclusion zone, surrounding by naught but ruins.

Mechanics

Hollowbody is a third-person survival horror game inspired by the genre's greats released in the 2000s, such as Silent Hill 2, Silent Hill 3, Kuon and Rule of Rose. Our objective is to escape the exclusion zone while avoiding and fighting off dangerous creatures.

Along the way we'll gather valuable though rare items useful both in combat and for survival. Mica can wield both melee weapons (like 2x4s) and guns (like pistols). Though there are plenty dangerous monsters, there are also plenty of accessibility options for players who'd rather explore than fight.

Aside from monsters there are also various environmental puzzles and the way we solve them affects the story. To increase the tension, we can only save the game at special, pre-set save points.

The game has several endings depending on the choices we've made throughout.

Technical aspects

Hollowbody features 3D graphics reminiscent of early Silent Hill and Resident Evil games. The game uses a faded, grim color palette, limited lighting, dynamic and fixed camera angles.