Shades of Sanity seeks Kickstarter support group for Sanitarium “spiritual successor”

Written by Jack Allin — August 13, 2013 at 16:41

It's been 15 years since the bandages came off in Dreamforge's memorably disturbing Sanitarium, and at long last the key developers from the 36th best all-time adventure game are back with a "spiritual successor", a new psychological horror game called Shades of Sanity that is now seeking support through Kickstarter.

Shades of Sanity casts players in the role of Joseph Springer, a "schizophrenic patient who skips out on his therapy sessions, and drives down to Virginia to repair his estranged relationship with his wife." What could go wrong? Just about everything, it seems, because "as Springer nears the house, he blacks out and wakes up in a strange environment filled with conflicting clues and disturbing visions."

As teased in the early screenshots and video teaser, Shades of Sanity is not a third-person isometric adventure like its popular predecessor, but rather a first-person, free-roaming adventure in realtime 3D. Promising to be steeped in story and atmosphere, this "puzzle/adventure game" will also include a few action sequences. However, adjustable difficulty settings for both puzzles and action will let players tailor the challenge level to their own preference and ability.

Spearheaded by former Dreamforge designers Rob Seres and Keith Leonard, a new indie team called Sword and Spirit are hoping to release the game on PC by October 2014, but in order to do so they'll first need to raise $200,000 through Kickstarter by September 27th. A limited-time "early bird" pledge of $15 will get backers a downloadable copy of the game, after which time the minimum jumps to $25.

To contribute to the campaign and learn more about Shades of Sanity, visit the Kickstarter page and official website for complete details.