Carrion

Carrion is a horror action game in which you don't flee from a monster, but control the monster yourself. As a red, shape-shifting creature, you break out of a research facility and fight your way through its rooms. The unusual perspective on horror combines pixel graphics, exploration, combat and puzzles.

Carrion was released on Jul 23, 2020 for PC, Nintendo Switch and Xbox One. The PlayStation 4 version followed on Oct 22, 2021, and a PS5 version on Apr 27, 2023. The game came out for iOS and Android on Oct 31, 2024.

Carrion was originally released for PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. Versions for iOS and Android are also available. On PC, the Steam version supports Windows, macOS and Linux.

The creature moves through shafts, rooms and corridors with its tentacles. It grabs people, pulls itself along surfaces and destroys obstacles. As it escapes, it gains new abilities that let it open other routes and overcome more dangerous enemies.

Greatest Time of Year adds an extra, festively designed level to Carrion. The free expansion first came out for PC at the end of 2020 and was later made available for consoles too. It is a permanent addition to the main game.

On PC, Carrion requires at least a dual-core processor, 1 GB RAM, a graphics card compatible with OpenGL 3.0 and 500 MB of free storage space. Windows, macOS and Linux are supported. The current Steam client requires at least Windows 10 on Windows.

In Carrion, you are the threat inside a guarded building. This changes the usual roles of the genre: instead of seeking protection from an unknown creature, you try to overpower the people in the facility and escape.

The creature has no rigid body. It pulls itself along walls, ceilings and ledges with its tentacles and squeezes through narrow openings. The direct, fluid movement is a central part of both combat and exploration.

During the adventure, the creature grows and develops different traits. Some abilities help in attack, others in reaching new routes or dealing with security measures and obstacles. Which options are open depends on your progress.

Guards and other armed forces try to stop the creature from spreading. Open attacks can escalate quickly. Sometimes it helps to ambush enemies or choose other entrances. Security devices make escape harder.

Not every area can be forced open. Doors, switches, barriers and the layout of the facility require you to use abilities purposefully and to spot connections between rooms. New movement and attack options open up previously locked routes.

The story takes place in a branching research and security complex with labs, corridors and technical facilities. The level design combines combat with finding routes through the building. The story is conveyed largely through the environment.

Carrion uses detailed two-dimensional pixel graphics. The constantly moving red creature stands out clearly against the metallic rooms. The presentation relies on graphic violence and physical horror.

Carrion is a single-player adventure that you can play offline. You control a single creature through the facility, rather than splitting up into teams.

The mobile versions came out on Oct 31, 2024. You can try the beginning for free. The full adventure and the extra content are then unlocked with a one-time purchase. The version is designed for control with a smartphone.

Carrion was developed by Phobia Game Studio and published by Devolver Digital. The action game first came out in summer 2020 for PC, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. Versions for PlayStation and smartphones followed later.