Hellraiser: Revival Targets Extreme Discomfort, With 25% Set in the Labyrinth

2 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 26

Mad Head Games built Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival around sustained discomfort rather than jump scares, using drawn-out interactions and grotesque imagery to make play feel physically uneasy.
Director Emil Esov said research into disturbing visuals revealed his own trypophobia, and the team then folded clusters of small holes and other hard-to-watch details directly into the game.
Aidan Lynch uses the Genesis Configuration to rescue his girlfriend from the Labyrinth, where Pinhead, the Cenobites and a cult close in; about a quarter of the game unfolds in that realm.
Clive Barker helped shape the story, characters and rules before staying on as an adviser, while Doug Bradley returns as Pinhead for the first time in roughly 20 years outside a brief Dead by Daylight appearance.
The developers say the Cenobites cannot be beaten like ordinary enemies, underscoring a broader aim to preserve Hellraiser’s mix of power, beauty, pain and dread for a new audience.