Before the Silence Claims: In Absentia

About the Game

The abyss never frightened me... but your silence...

"The abyss never frightened me... but your silence...

Hannah? Why am I here again?

I feel the weight... every memory failure stings like a cut.

I know something terrible tore us apart... and I am back...

This time... History shall be different.

I must find you... before the silence claims you.

Before... I lose your note."

Before the Silence Claims: In Absentia is a diegetic psychological horror about Ecmnesia: the inability to distinguish the present from a traumatic past. The truth is not what you see, but what remains when reality fails.

Tune into the Past. Survive the Present.

In Before the Silence Claims: In Absentia, you take on the role of Anton Bormann, an elderly and lonely scientist in his decaying mansion in 1984, on the outskirts of East Berlin. After a mysterious event, you find yourself back in the somber Eisenschall of 1930, your homeland. Is this your chance to mend your past, or to face your sins?

Explore the Duality of Two Eras

Navigate the melancholy of 1984 and the echoing memories of 1930 across various settings in Eisenschall—stages for the stages for the dilemmas that shaped your destiny — and you are about to discover that the past was never truly buried.

Frequency and Tension Mechanics

• Single-Use Save Mechanic: Every time you save your progress, the city of Eisenschall suffers irreversible degradation.

• Diegetic Horror: The menu, settings, and the radio are physical extensions of Anton's world.

• Revisit the Trauma: Explore a city reconstructed through a lens of guilt, where every stuttering shadow hides a secret from this dark period of history.

• The Galena Radio: Your tool and your only defense. Tune into specific frequencies to hear dialogues from the past and solve environmental puzzles.

• EMP Defense: Use electromagnetic pulses to repel invisible specters that manifest through audio interference. Manage your cooldown wisely; silence is your greatest ally, but the radio is your life.

• Zero HUD & Binaural Audio: No health bars or floating icons. Total immersion. Use your ears to locate threats and clues through a 3D sound design engineered for headphones.

A Noir Psychological Horror Atmosphere

Inspired by expressionism and classic mystery, the game features a Realistic Noir visual style that emphasizes shadows and silhouettes. Feel the weight of Anton's grief in a mature narrative where every decision can lead to different conclusions about his fate.

Highlights:

• Non-Linear Narrative: You decide how to tune the story.

• Object Physics: Tactile and realistic manipulation of the radio and world items.

• High-tension Stealth: Hide from threats you cannot see, but can certainly hear.