TL;DR: The Occultist launches April 8 on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. You play a paranormal investigator on an abandoned island with nothing but a mystical pendulum. No guns. No combat. Three endings. 8-12 hours. Free demo on Steam right now.

Tomorrow, a horror game releases that does something most developers are too scared to try.

This game takes away all your weapons.

Not "limited ammo" or "here's a flashlight, good luck." Nothing. No firearms, no melee, no panic button. Just you, a haunted island, and a pendulum swinging between you and whatever's left on Godstone.

That game is The Occultist. And it drops tomorrow.

And if the pre-release buzz is anything to go by, it might be the most interesting horror release this year.

What's the deal?

You play as Alan Rebels — paranormal investigator, clearly terrible life choices — who shows up on Godstone Island looking for his missing father.

The island has been abandoned since 1950. Before that, a cult ran the place. Rituals, experiments, the whole thing. They're gone now.

The things they left behind? Not so much.

Alan's only tool is his mystical pendulum. That's it. No weapon upgrades, no hidden arsenal. The pendulum lets you read Ethereal Echoes — basically glimpses of how people died and what happened on the island — and manipulate the environment. Snuff out candles. Activate ancient wards. Trap spirits long enough to breathe.

Some souls on Godstone can be reasoned with. Others are just looking for something to destroy. Figuring out which is which before they figure out you're there — that's the whole game.

It's a slow burn. It's tense. It's the kind of horror that actually gets under your skin because it never lets you feel safe.

Who's behind it?

Developed by DALOAR, published by Daedalic Entertainment. Small team, ambitious game.

One thing worth knowing — Daedalic is owned by French publisher Nacon, who've had some financial turbulence recently. Whether that affected development in any way, we'll find out tomorrow when the full game is in people's hands.

What we do know is the pre-release material looks genuinely solid. One preview called it something that "feels like a true triple-A game." That's a big swing for an indie-adjacent project. We'll see if it sticks the landing.

Oh, and Geralt voices the main character

Not a drill. Doug Cockle — the voice of Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher series — plays Alan Rebels.

It's a weirdly perfect fit. Alan is quiet, worn down, and slowly losing his grip the longer he stays on Godstone. Cockle brings that same tired-but-still-standing energy Witcher fans know well.

Just in a much smaller, much creepier world.

How long is it? Any replay value?

Main story runs 8-12 hours. Longer if you're hunting collectibles and lore, which there's apparently a fair bit of.

Three different endings depending on how you handle the island's spirits. So there's a real reason to go back.

Try it before you buy it

The demo is live right now on Steam and covers the first 30-60 minutes. Your arrival on Godstone, intro to the pendulum, first taste of what the game actually feels like.

If you're even slightly curious, play it tonight. You'll know within 20 minutes whether this is your kind of horror.

Available tomorrow on:

Digital Deluxe Edition is up on console already. PC players, keep an eye on the Steam page.

Full reviews drop tomorrow. We'll be covering The Occultist properly once it's out — walkthrough, all three endings, every secret Godstone is hiding. Stay tuned.