There have been plenty of attempts to take the asymmetrical multiplayer horror formula and turn it into the next big thing. The problem, of course, is that very few have managed to stick around. Dead by Daylight remains the undisputed king of the genre, while countless others have arrived with plenty of promise before disappearing just as quickly.
SAW: Genesis has the advantage of being built around one of horror’s most recognisable franchises, but after sitting down with the game at Gamescom, it’s clear that developer Anshar Studios and Bloober Team aren’t simply trying to make a Saw-flavoured version of Dead by Daylight.
I sat down with two other players, taking on the role of the Accused, while one of the developers played as the Judge. Our goal was simple: escape. Actually doing that was another matter entirely.
Each match sees three Accused working together to complete a series of tasks and find a way out of a maze filled with traps. The level we played had us searching for four valves that would eventually open the path ahead, but getting to them required us to work together and, perhaps more importantly, trust one another.
At one point, one player had to turn off a series of flames blocking a corridor, allowing another to make their way through and retrieve the next valve. There are also shortcuts available if you’re willing to pay the price. A small gap filled with barbed wire, for example, could get you where you needed to go quicker, but not without costing you some of your health.
That idea of sacrifice runs through pretty much everything in SAW: Genesis. Running out of time? You can sacrifice some of your health to buy yourself a little more. Find yourself caught by the Judge? You might be able to escape a trap early by sacrificing a body part, or you can wait and hope your fellow Accused come to rescue you.
It’s exactly the kind of horrible decision-making that you’d hope to find in a game based on Saw, and the developers have even talked about eventually introducing more opportunities for conflict within the group once players are familiar with the game’s systems.
When I asked the game’s Creative Director, Damian Kocurek, what changes when Saw’s audience stops watching people make impossible choices and has to make them themselves, he explained how this was one of the central ideas behind the game.
He said, “That is the exact idea we are trying to explore, give you the fantasy, what would you do if you have to sacrifice your own hand? Would it be that easy? And of course you’re not sacrificing your own hand but there are gameplay consequences. How long do you wait, do you do it instantly? I would do it instantly because why not. And even in the game we see, no you want to wait, you want to have other people help you, and sometimes you risk too much and you die. So that fantasy is definitely something we are exploring and that was one of the original ideas.”
I didn’t get to see a huge amount of the Judge in action during my session, largely because the developer controlling them was taking it relatively easy on us, but they would occasionally appear from behind and attempt to abduct one of us and take them away for what the game refers to as “rehabilitation”. The Judge is designed less like a traditional slasher-style killer and more as the person pulling the strings behind the scenes, setting traps and attempting to separate the Accused from one another.
Matches last just 15 minutes, but those minutes are intense. Things can go sour very quickly, particularly as the timer begins to tick down and you’re forced to decide whether to play it safe or take a risk. The fact that levels are procedurally generated also means you won’t simply be able to memorise the quickest route to freedom after playing a map a few times.
There’s progression beyond the individual matches too, with a perk system that gives you a reason to experiment with different characters and discover their unique starting abilities. That’s something I didn’t get to explore in great detail during my hands-on, but it’s an encouraging sign that there could be plenty of longevity here. The game’s developers have also confirmed that progression and personal perks form part of the wider experience, with different characters offering their own options as you progress.
The obvious comparison is The Outlast Trials, another multiplayer horror game built around a group of players attempting to survive increasingly unpleasant situations, but SAW: Genesis has something that feels distinctly its own. The constant push and pull between cooperation and self-preservation is a perfect fit for the Saw universe. You need your fellow players to escape, but when things start going wrong, how much are you really willing to sacrifice for them?
That’s where SAW: Genesis feels most promising. It’s different enough from Dead by Daylight to stand on its own rather than simply chasing the same audience with a familiar licence attached. The multiplayer horror genre is a notoriously difficult place to survive, but after just one short session, I came away wanting to play more. More importantly, I really want this one to succeed.
With some closed alpha tests currently underway, SAW: Genesis is currently planned to launch in Early Access, with the developers intending to build on the game with community feedback.
