Deadlane: Survival-Horror Racer chases Kickstarter funding

The popularity of asymmetric horror isn’t going anywhere, and a deadly new challenger has decided to join the race. Vscape Studios has launched a Kickstarter campaign for Deadlane, a horror-survival racing game that creates an entirely new arena for the killer-survivor dynamic to play out.

Deadlane pits The Chaser against The Chased, with The Chased trying to escape The Chaser before a curse can be passed onto them. As it might get a little confusing if I keep switching between the two, I’ll separate out the two roles below:

The Chaser: This player has increased speed and immunity to the dangers of other spirits around the track, making it seem like an enticing role, but if they aren’t able to pass on their curse by the end of the lap, they’ll be eliminated.

Passing on the curse puts the newly-cursed racer to the back of the pack, once again trying to pass on the curse before they’re eliminated. This adds an interesting risk-reward tactic in which it makes sense to move up the ranks before passing on the curse, or else you'll be first in line to get the curse right back.

Rick Alcala, Co-Director, explains that "our goal for the game was to have an advantage quickly turn into a disadvantage at any time. Both racing and horror focus on building the player's adrenaline, so the idea of going all-in on that made the entire team very excited."

The Chased: These racers must be hyper-vigilant, taking the most efficient routes to outsmart and avoid The Chaser – not to mention the “malicious spirits” waiting around the track to harm you and slow your progress.

The most terrifying of these is a vengeful female ghost called Telly, who lurks around the track to find and attack her next victim. She’ll quite literally have you on the edge of your seat, as her procedurally-generated attacks could come at any moment. It’s no wonder that Alcala compares the game to the “thrill of riding a roller coaster. It's a ton of fun but it can be really horrifying, too."

In addition to multiplayer races, which are naturally the focus of Deadlane as an asymmetric multiplayer, there are a number of single-player modes in development:

• Single-player races
• Time trials
• Outrun, a single-player and PvP survival mode

Deadlane is aiming for a goal of $30,000 (approx. £22,374) by 24 September, with backer rewards including access to the game’s Beta, new racers, karts, and skins, and even a personalised in-game billboards at the top tier. See all the details for yourself on their Kickstarter campaign.

I’ll certainly be keeping my eye on Deadlane’s progress as a long-time lover of asymmetric horror, and I’m personally excited to see such a unique take on this sub-genre of horror gaming. Are you itching to be on the track already? I know I am.

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