Virginia, a silent, Twin Peaks-esque indie adventure, coming September 22; play the demo

A cinematic, thrilling, sublime experience introducing a crime story to a vibrant countryside while constantly reminding the player of TV shows such as Fargo? Meet Virginia, an interactive, independent thriller that’s coming out on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on September 22.

Virginia doesn’t only look like Twin Peaks – it feels like it.

Virginia takes you on a trip across small town America to an idyllic city of Kingdom, VA, where people forgot what it feels like to fear anything but fear itself. But the idyllic day-to-day existence gets sidetracked the day Lucas Fairfax disappears from his bedroom and is nowhere to be found. That’s where FBI comes in, and the ‘FBI’ consists of Anne Tarver, the game’s protagonist, and her partner, Maria Halperin. As the investigation carries on, more and more details surrounding Fairfax’s vanishing unfold, tossing in unexplainable and even – in many instances – supernatural pieces into this already puzzling case. Now – True Detective, anybody?

Magic realism of Virginia is deepened by its aberrant design.

The game uses silent storytelling – it’s the music that builds up the atmosphere, dictates the pace, and teams up with sound effects to set a gripping event off. Putting the score on the pedestal comes as no surprise, for it has been composed by Lyndon Holland and performed by the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra – the musicians behind Mulholland Drive’s OST. But that lack of voice acting is just one of the many curiosities Virginia throws at the player. The developers themselves call it ‘a game without mechanics,’ perhaps because they believe ‘wandering around and clicking things’ doesn’t make a game a game. And while it’s true that the setting’s ambiance is what tops Tarver’s adventure off, gameplay-wise speaking, Virginia doesn’t differ from what Gone Home or any modern “walking simulator” has to offer, with promising content tying up any loose ends (for instance, it is meant to be enjoyed in 30 FPS, and even warns you that changing the limit can negatively impact the experience. You can still do it nonetheless, but for some reason I can hear your triggers going off, PC Master Race noblemen.)

Nothing buffs up the scene’s tension like silence.

If the vague description above feels like a bundle of empty words and didn’t manage to make the game worthy of your attention, maybe you should just give Virginia a try. Fortunately, you can do so right now, for the game’s demo hit Steam today, and can be downloaded right here. Now get down there and solve the case.