In the horror game genre there are names that have become legends and have influenced countless other titles. Resident Evil, Silent Hill, Amnesia, and a few others. There’s one, however, that has influenced more than almost any other, which is doubly impressive as it has never seen an official release outside of Japan. That’s about to change, as Clock Tower: Rewind will bring the legendary first game to Steam.
It would be understandable if you’d never heard of Clock Tower as it was a SNES only game which was released nearly 20 years ago. Even if you don’t know it you’ll know its influence, as it is considered to have defined what a survival horror game is. It is responsible for inspiring an entire genre of games, both directly and indirectly, making it one of the most influential titles ever created. Now with the upcoming Clock Tower: Rewind we’ll all be able to get the chance to see what makes it tick.
It doesn’t take long with Clock Tower to realize just how innovative it is. On the surface it’s a horror themed point and click game but it’s spiced up by having you constantly being hunted by a mysterious killer known as Scissorman. If you couldn’t tell by his name, this murderer wields a truly colossal pair of scissors and is only too happy to use them to end your life. Add exhaustion mechanics into the mix meaning you can’t run away forever and you can see how Clock Tower is a game which laid out the map for all the survival horror games that would follow.
Despite never being released outside of Japan or translated into other languages, fans have long since fixed that with their own versions of the game. For almost two decades Clock Tower has been available on various sites of dubious legality which has meant those who wanted to check it out enough have been able to. Now a true official edition of the game is coming to PC with a brand new translation as well as a few optional improvements.
There’s no release date for Clock Tower: Rewind yet but it is scheduled to launch during 2024. You can check it out for yourself and add it to your wishlist over on Steam.
If you’d like to check out something similar, our guide to the best adventure games will see you pointing and clicking with the best of them, or you could take a peek at our best classic PC games guide for something with a more mature flavor.
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