The recent Day of the Devs digital showcase revealed several intriguing upcoming titles, but one especially has captured the imagination: UN:Me. Developed by Historia and Shueisha Games, this solo experience seems to blend the dread-filled setting of a Silent Hill game with the paranoid deduction heart of Among Us.
"It's a distinctive experience where a girl harboring multiple personalities within her must escape from a maze of the psyche," explains developer Yasukazu Kawai.
In UN:Me, players assume the role of an unnamed heroine seeming to be of teenage years. Within her reside four separate personas, all possessing unique anxieties and drives. These souls can take over spontaneously, releasing their deep-seated terrors upon her without warning.
Judging by revealed gameplay, much of the action unfolds within a creepy hospital, while additional clips depict the protagonist exploring a desolate church.
"What are you fearful of? What makes you uneasy?" poses game director Shun Sasaki. "High places. Confined spaces. People in power. Elements that seem trivial to others can trigger a deep instinct within us. This game explores that concept — fears that are specific to each person."
The core mechanic involves managing whichever soul surfaces at any given moment. However, these souls will switch against your will as you play. During exploration, every persona's fears become amplified and assault the protagonist one after another. As the persona shifts, so does the particular terror the player encounters.
At first glance, UN:Me shares noticeable visual similarities with the Silent Hill franchise. The hospital is filled with nurses all sporting the identical visage, with unnervingly wide grins. Patients in the waiting room have enormous flowers where their necks are. Flowers are an ever-present theme, contrasting natural beauty with supernatural dread.
Yet, UN:Me introduces a unique twist. Players are tasked with deducing which of the four entities haunting the heroine is the "real" one. "Each of the souls asserts that the body is rightfully them," notes a creator. "Throughout the game, you need to figure out who is authentic."
Once players have deduced a persona is an impostor, they must eliminate it. However, because each soul can deceive or hide the reality, it is incredibly simple to choose incorrectly.
"Maybe you've already eliminated the real [soul] by your own actions," a voice suggests. "The last one remaining could be a fraud. Either way, your decisions are irreversible."
UN:Me currently lacks a confirmed launch window, but it is available to wishlist on digital storefronts.
