"Enter the Hibernaculum" (opens in new tab), first introduced in Gaming on Linux (opens in new tab), is one of the "two tastes that taste good together" in video games and strikes me as one that really should have been done by now: " combines the essential claustrophobia and challenging navigation of older first-person dungeon crawlers like Eye of the Beholder with the atmosphere of industrial science fiction and the sensibility of gruesome biological horror.

The result is truly fascinating: Hibernaculum's UI is ancient and mondo chunky, taking up half the screen. There are no abstract white lines or tasteful transparencies; instead, it is rendered as if it were a tactile piece of metallic technology. Think of the various tastes of the Pip Boys in the "Fallout" series or the menus in "Baldur's Gate" that all look like they were carved out of stone. The gameplay screen is shoved into the upper left corner, which seems to add to the claustrophobia originally inherent in Hibernaculum's rusty corridors and other more esoteric-looking environments.

Hibernaculum's Kickstarter trailer shows off some old-school, stiff, seemingly grid-based gameplay, but the real highlight for me is the array of pixel-art horrors on display. It reminds me of the work of Zdzisław Beksiński (open in new tab), a master of surreal horror painting and one of the major influences on last year's underrated masterpiece "Scorn" (open in new tab).

It's hard to pick a favorite from Hibernaculum's squishy lineup, but the simple, silent horror of the empty space suit, its visor just a black void, really struck me. The sickening red flatworm with its seemingly ejaculating primary attack is another favorite from 2023!

I'm not much of a fan of jump scares, but since falling in love with "Scorn" last year, I found myself craving a game that would lock me in a thoroughly unpleasant and surreal dream world for 5 to 30 hours. The game is fast approaching its initial funding goal of $48,000 on Kickstarter (open in new tab) in 25 days, with initial stretch goals including a robot companion, a commitment to a simultaneous Nintendo Switch release, and a "mystery goal" included!