Jack King-Spooner, the Edinburgh-based artist and developer renowned for his singular, surrealist aesthetic, has returned to Kickstarter with his most ambitious project to date: ABIDE.
Developed alongside long-time collaborator Talha Kaya under the Talha & Jack Co banner, ABIDE is a first-person horror game that utilises handcrafted dolls, prosthetic gore effects, and stop-motion animation to create a “stomach-churningly appalling” interactive experience.
The Secrets of St Boniface
Set within the secluded St Boniface retreat – an idyllic countryside facility designed for people to “air their demons” – ABIDE features a dual-pronged gameplay loop. During the day, players engage in community work and “group therapy” sessions, gathering clues and building relationships with an eccentric cast of criminals and lost souls.
However, once the sun sets, the game shifts into a tense survival-horror experience. Players must break the house rules to explore the retreat’s dark corners, uncovering the gruesome mysteries that the residents (and the house itself) are hiding.
Advancing the Stop-Motion Craft
Having previously found success with Judero and Mashina, King-Spooner is pushing the studio’s signature style further by adopting a first-person perspective. To achieve this, the team has meticulously handcrafted ball-jointed art dolls and scanned them into 3D models.
This hybrid approach allows the game to maintain the “uncanny fun” of stop-motion while providing the mechanical accuracy required for a 3D horror environment.
More Than Games: A Thesis on Terror
The “More Than Games” DNA is woven throughout the project’s development. Drawing from the paintings of Ken Currie, 70s Giallo cinema, and SplatterPunk literature, ABIDE aims to be an experimental and dangerous piece of art.
Significantly, the developers have consulted with clinical therapists to ensure that the game’s exploration of trauma and rehabilitation is handled with the necessary depth and accuracy. This commitment to research and uncompromised creative freedom is a hallmark of King-Spooner’s contribution to the Scottish creative economy.
Support the Campaign
The Kickstarter campaign is currently live, seeking to raise approximately £26,600 ($34,149) to fund the final phases of production, including voice acting and the creation of prosthetic cutscenes. As an independent project, the campaign ensures the game can be made without the creative compromises often found in more commercial marketplace environments.
“Horror ought to be dangerous and experimental,” the developers stated. “With Kickstarter support, we will have the freedom to make the uncompromised version of ABIDE.”
Support the campaign here: ABIDE on Kickstarter
Follow the studio: Talha & Jack Co on YouTube