After this year’s Summer Game Fest, I was left with a desperate desire to dive back into the fun and frightening world of horror with so many wonderful announcements about upcoming horror/thriller titles like Resident Evil: Requiem as well as one of the more intriguing and surprising reveals, ILL, the grotesque and gory FPS action-horror developed by Team Clout and published by the Atomic games powerhouse Mundfish.
The trailer shown featured tons of horrifying, fleshy abominations, dimly lit and claustrophobic environments, and a fair deal of variety in regard to the combat and weaponry, and that’s only what has been showcased so far. The devs at Team Clout come from horror backgrounds, having worked on such film and television projects as Longlegs, IT: Welcome to Derry, and V/H/S/Beyond, among others. These folks are no strangers to creating varied styles and levels of frights and frenetic horror experiences, and the founders Oleg Vdovenko and Maxim Verehin are incredibly eager and passionate about sharing their vision with the world through the medium of gaming. Verehin says that ILL will be:
“A story-driven action-horror game with visceral visuals, gruesome moments, interesting inspiration, exploration, and wild ideas — a good mix of survival horror elements and first-person 3D action. We’re working to balance the parts where players are s***ting their pants from fright with parts where players are screaming because they’re enjoying the intense action, shooting mechanics, and dismemberment.”
For the most part, the game is shrouded in mystery, though we know that it will take place in an Eastern European fort that has been taken over by monsters and more. Verehin indicated that he wants the game to remain mysterious, though he did share a vague insight into the narrative direction of the upcoming scare-fest by stating:
“ILL’s focus is on the personal story of the main protagonist. His story is deeply interconnected with what is happening in the world. Broadly speaking, the world will feel isolated and hopeless. We want players to feel how dark the mood is. I hope the audience will sympathize with the main character and his personal motivations.” going on to share, “We want ILL to make you feel like the horror is physically happening to you. Not just psychological tension or scripted scares, but a kind of grounded, body-level discomfort. The main thing that sets us apart is how we combine hyper-realistic body horror with a reactive, tactile world. Enemies don’t just die – they suffer, adapt, mutate. Your actions leave a mark, and the world responds.”
Much like the films and shows that the directors/founders have worked on in the past, it seems as if they intend to immerse the player into a truly visceral response to the horror, while maintaining a narrative-driven experience that follows the story of the protagonist. They went on to share that the name “ILL” was simply chosen because they wanted:
“a short, striking name that when you write it, it looks like a logo. The word represents something horrible, something sick, something cursed. Also, it reflects the monsters — I’m not gonna spoil our monsters’ origins, but there’s going to be a cool interconnection between the name and the story of the game.”
These monsters and their origins may remain mysterious, but the footage shared at SGF certainly garnered a tremendous amount of attention due to the horrendous representations of mutated evil that were on display. Verehin and Oleg both share a history in concept art design, and this is made abundantly clear through the twisted monsters they have brought to life. Oleg stated that the inspiration behind the creative creature concepts from ILL were inspired by,
“Mostly old horror films from the 1970s to the 1990s… Everything was done with practical effects and quality animatronics. The imperfections were hidden with smart lighting and strong direction.”
As a lifelong fan of classic horror films and practical effects in film and television, this gives me loads of faith in the team to really bring the gritty and gruesome imagery, and scare the pants off of players, including myself! The excitement continues to swell within me the more I learn about the project and the expertly talented team behind its inception and development.
When asked to elaborate on the creative process in regard to the monsters and how they will fit within the framework of the game, Verehin had this to say:
“We don’t have a set process for creating a new monster. Sometimes you have a concept drawing and say, ‘how can I make this concept art a playable character in the game?’ Sometimes you see a video online featuring a scary concept. ‘Can I make a monster like that?’ It sounds ridiculous, but sometimes it works. It’s inspiration that you got from your life experience… You also have to consider the monsters from a gameplay standpoint. They have to be fun to fight. There’s a trial-and-error process. Some designs were rejected because they didn’t work in the game… We’ve had big help from the team of Mundfish in setting up our animation department. We have a lot of experience doing animation, like making our own short horror animations that taught us how movement should work in order to scare you… We’ll have, for example, a monster that moves normally at first, but we’ll try and tweak it in ways to make it more unique and horrifying.”
If that’s not good enough for you, when asked about video game inspirations, Verehin went on to name some of my all-time favorite franchises and really hit the nail on the head in regard to what made them so special and memorable.
“In games, it’s Half-Life 2, Silent Hill, and Resident Evil series – titles where the world felt alive and dangerous, where the horror wasn’t just visual but systemic. We were especially drawn to that feeling of being trapped somewhere real, reacting moment to moment with limited resources. From the beginning, we wanted to build something that felt grounded but deeply disturbing, an experience that doesn’t just scare you, but unsettles you long after you’ve put the controller down.”
In comparison with these ultimate gaming classics, Verehin promises that the game will share many similar features but with its own unique twists and personality:
“You explore, you use resources, you find and upgrade weapons. You can use your resources to craft and update weapons. You’ll need to manage your inventory, of course, because resources are limited. There will be intense encounters — sometimes with single enemies, sometimes a small group, and cool moments when you fight waves of enemies and bosses…
There will also be environmental puzzles and interactions… For example, if you fix the electricity in the area, the environment changes — things might become dark somewhere else. We want the setting to feel believable and realistic.”
As far as weapons that have been announced, from what I’ve seen in the trailer they seem to mostly be Russian/Eastern Bloc weaponry, and Verehin shared that there will at the very least be:
“A shotgun, an AK- 47–there was like this revolver gun, a sniper rifle, all the standard things — and, not to spoil, but there will be fun, crafty weapons — and a lot of melee weapons as well.”
The devs want players to enjoy themselves, experience true moments of both terror and triumph, as well as to tell a deeply engaging story that immerses players into the world of ILL. It is my humble opinion that they will not only exceed in this endeavor but excel at introducing a new IP to the genre that will more than likely become a classic in its own right. With all of the new information and the amazing team behind the project, I am so eager to play ILL! I have my fingers crossed and I’m looking forward to learning more!
