In Slitterhead’s twisted world, unsuspecting gamers become unwitting pawns in a devious game of cat and mouse, caught up in a tangled web of parasitic proxy wars.

Keiichiro Toyama is a true giant in the gaming industry. You may not recognize his name right off the top of your head, like that of Shigeru Miyamoto or Hideo Kojima, but you’re likely familiar with some of the numerous video games he’s directed, such as God of War, The Last of Us, or Uncharted. The latest creation from this veteran game developer resembles a culmination of nearly three decades’ worth of experience: a heart-pumping, spine-tingling blend of action, horror, and stealth strategies that pits two rival groups of parasitic beings against each other in a desperate struggle for dominance over the fate of humanity. As players navigate the realm where objective truth becomes a subjective experience, they oscillate between multiple personas in their quest to grasp the intricacies and conviction behind the sport’s relentless struggle.

In this game, players take on the role of a Hyoki, an anonymous, ethereal being with the ability to possess unwitting dwelling creatures and control their bodies at will. At the outset of this sports game, you find yourself in the body of a stray dog roaming the backstreets of Kowlong, a fictional cityscape inspired by 1990s Hong Kong, with its densely populated Kowloon Walled City a primary influence? With no recollection of your past, present or potential, how did you arrive at this uncertain point in time?

In the depths of uncertainty, one unsettling truth persists: humanity is unwittingly hosting an insidious alien species, Slitterheads, which feed on human brains and assume their hosts’ personas with calculated precision. As the last line of defense against the malevolent Slitterheads, you are tasked with a monumental mission: relentlessly hunt down and eradicate every last one of these abominations, scouring the very fabric of your town until humanity can finally begin to heal.

To effectively traverse the town and track down the Slitterheads, who are disguising themselves by taking on the bodies of their victims, the player must navigate through various individuals, possessing their bodies and suppressing their consciousness in the process. As a skilled manipulator, you can subtly commandeer the physical attributes of your human vessels to craft formidable armaments, capable of bludgeoning adversaries or deflecting incoming attacks with precision. When successfully deflecting an assault, a pop-up icon appears, allowing you to counterattack while restoring your weapon’s strength. If you’re unsuccessful in deflecting an attack promptly or absorb multiple consecutive blows while blocking, you risk sustaining damage and potentially shattering your weapon, leaving you temporarily vulnerable and unable to mount a swift counterattack.

Despite being outnumbered in your fight against the Slitterheads, you are not without allies. Throughout the game, players form alliances with “Rarity” characters, individuals whose minds remain intact and retain distinct personalities while under player control, offering unique blood-based abilities to aid in battles against formidable foes like the Slitterhead. The primary rarity you encounter and recruit within the sport is an aspiring actress named Julee who works at a comfort retailer, bearing a striking resemblance to Faye Wong’s character in Wong Kar-wai’s iconic 1994 film “Fallen Angels”, which Toyama has cited as one of many key inspirations for the game’s setting. Hyoki’s abilities when possessing Julee exhibit a range of capabilities, including both offensive and defensive skills. In an aggressive vein, he can summon talon-like claws that flow with blood, as well as projectiles composed entirely of blood, which he can hurl at foes. Conversely, Hyoki can also employ defensive strategies, such as recovering health or drawing nearby allies to the player’s side, thereby allowing them to outnumber and overpower their adversaries. As you progress within the sport, a new layer of complexity emerges: the ability to allocate two Rarity attributes to a single quest, rather than just one. This added nuance necessitates thoughtful deliberation on how best to leverage each skill synergistically during combat.

All combat encounters follow a predictable pattern: you confront a Slitterhead, exchanging blows with dodges and blocks as it unleashes relentless assaults; wait for brief openings to strike when its guard falters; and rapidly switch between the possessed host’s body and nearby human hosts to catch your opponent off guard, ultimately delivering a decisive blow.

Subtle variations on Slitterhead’s primary mechanic emerge, much like the ability to detach an opponent’s limbs and recoup health, or experiencing brief incapacitation when one’s own limbs are severed. As combat unfolds, be prepared to dart seamlessly between allies’ positions to stay alive – every step counts when survival is at stake.

While you can switch between your bodies during battles, it’s not as straightforward as that. To fully tap into Hyoki’s abilities, you’ll need to utilize its capacity to possess others, seamlessly traversing Kowlong’s labyrinthine streets and assuming the identities and personas of innocuous onlookers as well as rare, high-ranking individuals, should you wish to uncover all of Kowlong’s hidden secrets and ultimately thwart the Slitterheads’ sinister campaign against humanity.

One of the most unconventional yet pivotal features of is the ability to “sight jack,” allowing players to peer through the eyes of a sneaky Slitterhead just before it prepares to attack someone, granting them a crucial tactical advantage. By oscillating between your protagonist’s and the Slitterhead’s viewpoints, you’ll require inferencing skills to pinpoint the Slitterhead’s location through contextual hints within its line of sight.

Initially introduced by Toyama in 2003, sight jacking became a hallmark of the Siren series, solidifying its place within the franchise’s narrative framework from the onset. Through the lens of their incorporation of “sight jacking,” the sport’s ethos is fully illuminated, revealing its underlying character. Here is the rewritten text:

This marks the culmination of Toyama’s professional endeavors to date, plus his inaugural unbiased project since departing from Sony Interactive Entertainment following the shutdown of Japan Studio in 2021. Here is the rewritten text:

The game’s unique blend of diverse mechanics is likely a reflection of Toyama’s desire to create a chaotic yet engaging experience that showcases his profession up until this point, as well as an opportunity to experiment with new concepts and mechanics he may not have been able to explore while working at Sony.

A peculiar sport indeed, which deftly weaves together disparate elements, successfully integrating a multitude of concepts into its fabric. Despite occasional frustrations with platforming, a dynamic fight system, and ongoing tutorials introducing fresh mechanics, the game is a captivating amalgamation of ideas that rivals the survival horror genre’s equivalent of multi-perspective gameplay. While its quirks might deter some players, overall, this game offers an engaging and innovative experience that only gets better with time.

Slitterhead