Skip to main content

Change your pants when real-world horror maze Hyde launches next year

Hyde is coming
Video games might be one of the greatest inventions in the history of mankind, but sometimes, they just aren’t immersive enough to give you the pants-soiling scares you require. That’s where the U.K.-based developer Slingshot Effect and its new game Hyde come in: The developer is now seeking funds on Kickstarter for the “bio-activated” horror game, which will task players with not only completing a terrifying real-world maze, but staying calm while they do it.

Taking influence from the show The Crystal Maze as well as Portal, Hyde is “based loosely on the story of Jekyll and Hyde,” and fits participants with biosensors to control their heart rate and breathing — certain locks and obstacles in the maze can only be conquered if players are able to trigger them through their biosensors.

As you can see in the above teaser video, Hyde looks to offer something far more terrifying than a traditional haunted house — it will only be available to those over 18, and Slingshot Effects doesn’t recommend people with health conditions participate. Should you meet these requirements and live in the Cardiff or London areas, backers can take part in testing sessions to fine-tune the experience.

Currently, Slingshot Effect plans to open Hyde as a ticketed experience in London if the Kickstarter campaign reaches its goal of $78,047 by July 17. Should the campaign reach approximately $120,000, there are plans to bring the game to New York City as well. Other stretch goals include additional rooms and even walls that move in response to your breathing. If all goes according to plan, Hyde will open in spring 2016 in the U.K. and will run for at least six months. Should the stretch goals be reached, the New York City experience will begin in early 2017. I already have a fresh pair of pants ready to go.

Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
Is Minecraft cross-platform?
The cover art for Minecraft.

Minecraft has long reigned as one of the most popular games available thanks to its nearly endless possibilities, regular updates, and charming vibes. If you're one of the millions of players who has invested thousands of hours into the game, you've almost certainly been rewarded with limitless excitement, laughter, and fun, But what about co-op? Playing with friends is one of the greatest ways to experience Minecraft after all. But in today's gaming landscape, there is a wide variety of platforms on which people play the game, which may lead you to wonder if you can join in on the fun with pals on other hardware. Below, we'll tell you what you need to know about cross-platform play in Minecraft.
Is Minecraft cross-platform?
The short answer is yes, Minecraft is cross-platform across PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch, PC, iOS, and Android. However, there are a few limitations we'll get into below.

Firstly, only Minecraft: Bedrock Edition supports cross-platform play. If you're using Minecraft: Java Edition on PC, you won't be able to play with friends on other platforms.

Read more
Is Stardew Valley cross-platform?
Stardew Valley Multiplayer Fishing

Stardew Valley is a game made by just one person, but it has seen more success than most games made by dozens, or even hundreds, of people. It's even one of Digital Trends' top 50 video games of all time. Since its release in 2016, the game has been updated regularly with new features and content to keep its avid fans coming back. This includes an online multiplayer component that allows you and up to three friends to hang out on each other's farms. And with the recent trend of games allowing players on different platforms to join together, you may wonder if Stardew Valley offers cross-platform functionality. Here's everything we know about cross-platform support in Stardew Valley.
Is Stardew Valley cross-platform?
Stardew Valley does not offer cross-platform support, meaning you can't play online multiplayer between any of the systems the game is on. So if you want to team up with some friends, make sure you all are playing on the same platform, such as the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch, or PC. Also be aware that whoever starts a multiplayer game is saving that shared world locally, meaning no one else can reenter that world without the host present.

The sad fact of the matter is there doesn't seem to be any indication that crossplay will come to Stardew Valley. The game's official Reddit still lists it as not being supported, and there was only one mention of it by the developer on Twitter back in 2018, when he responded to a question asking if crossplay would come to the game. He replied, "Unfortunately, there will not be crossplay. Apparently, the technical barriers are very high. It's still something I really want to add and I promise to look into it more closely, but first priority is getting the update out there." This was many years ago, and there has been no further information about cross-platform play since, so it seems very unlikely that we will see support for this functionality come to Stardew Valley.

Read more
3 things I want in Fallout 5 after watching Amazon’s Fallout series
Lucy enters a house in Fallout.

Fallout has been the watercooler TV show this month, an impressive feat for a video game adaptation. Although Bethesda doesn't have any new Fallout games to release alongside it, the Amazon Prime series has reinvigorated interest in Fallout, with all its titles seeing notable player count increases. For now, we’ll have to be content with a Fallout 4 current-gen upgrade, but I’ll admit that my mind is drifting to thinking about Fallout 5.

Bethesda’s Todd Howard has teased that Fallout 5 will be the next project Bethesda Game Studios works on after Elder Scrolls 6. While that likely means its release is at least a decade away unless Bethesda fast-tracks it, I still find it fun to theorize about where a true single-player Fallout 5 could go next. These three particular things are what I want to see the most.
Set it somewhere new

Read more