Frogwares and Bigben Interactive’s upcoming AA-horror mystery game is already one of the most highly anticipated games of the year among core gamers, despite having an almost non-existent marketing presence and not being produced by one of the big AAA publishers. The reason that The Sinking City has already garnered a cult following is because it’s trying to do something new, something different. The period-piece horror title recently received a new gameplay trailer that showcases more of the combat, more of the horror elements, and some of the cool, spooky ways you can traverse through an alternate reality of 1920s America.

The new gameplay video for The Sinking City gives gamers four minutes worth of gameplay while scoping out the the detective mechanics and traversal systems. You can see what it looks like in the trailer below.

The game follows private investigator and war veteran Charles W. Reed, as he begins to lose his mind and suffer from delusions. He attempts to find a cure in Oakmont, Massachusetts, the sinking city.

The place has become flooded – water fills the pathways that used to be streets, while monsters and other unspeakable horrors roam the land like lost specters.

The real highlight to The Sinking City is that Frogwares has designed the game based around a detective noir experience, with zero hand-holding.

As they explain in the video, there are no navpoints on the hud telling you exactly where you need to go, and there are no giant glowing blips on the map showing you where your next quest objective is. You’ll have to manually scour the city, talk to NPCs and use intuitive problem solving skills to figure out how to complete your objects, which is like the complete opposite of how every single other AAA game is designed.

The video explains that as you explore the city and take on tasks, solving crimes, and investigating misdeeds, you’ll need to pick up clues, keep track of your notebook and sometimes utilize special powers to uncover more hidden pieces of evidence.

The game is very similar to Frogwares’ previous Sherlock Holmes outings. You can most certainly see the DNA from the detective games seeping through the mechanical infrastructure of The Sinking City’s gameplay.

Very much like Focus Home Interactive’s Call of Cthulhu, you’ll be able to utilize paranormal abilities to look beyond the veil and piece together scenarios that may not be readily understandable with just a few trinkets and some testimony.

Frogwares is also utilizing a feature called Mind Palace, which is borrowed from the Sherlock Holmes games where you take the clues and evidence that you have and attempted to finalize your investigation, either accusing someone of a crime or absolving them of accusations.

The detective aspects of The Sinking City definitely look on point. The fact that Frogwares is also putting time and energy into a robust exploration system set within a city teeming with aesthetic lore, and a combat system that seems to hearken back to the old Silent Hill games, definitely gives me vibes that this might end up being a surefire sleeper hit of 2019 if the gameplay holds up and there are no game-breaking bugs or glitches upon release.

The Sinking City is due out for the Xbox One, PS4 and on Steam for PC.

(Thanks for the news tip TriHelix)