Labyrinth of the Demon King Navigates Onto Major Platforms
PSX-inspired first person survival horror, Labyrinth of the Demon King, hits PC, Nintendo Switch (for US players), and PlayStation 4 and 5 on May 13, 2025. It’ll appear on Xbox One and Series X, plus the Switch (for UK/EU players) later this year.
Developed by J. R. Hudepohl and published by Top Hat Studios, Labyrinth of The Demon King is inspired by feudal Japan, as players trek through grimy catacombs on a quest to slay a demon. True to its survival horror roots, supplies are limited and terror lurks around every corner.
“Deceived by a powerful demon king, your lord led his army into an ambush. All perished except for you. Against your wishes your lord sacrificed his life to aid your escape from the battle,” Top Hat Studios said on its official site.
“You have made a vow to track down the demon who betrayed your lord and end its life. You take what could possibly be your final breaths on this mortal plane, and prepare yourself to enter the Labyrinth of The Demon King.”
Lo-Fi Spookiness
Labyrinth of The Demon King is a callback to the Playstation One, but filtered through a lo-fi aesthetic closer in tone to contemporary Haunted PS1 titles. These types of games employ a retro style partly through reverence and also to help create a very specific type of spooky mood, through additional scuzzy CRT filters and nostalgic “jitter”.
The PS1 couldn’t accurately translate 3D graphics from one point to another, so they appear to jitter and jump whenever there’s player or camera movement (sometimes referred to as dithering). This is one reason why games such as Resident Evil used pre-rendered backgrounds to improve graphics and relieve strain on the game engine.
Modern game engines don’t have this issue so a similar effect is coded in, often through the use of a shader (an overlay that can directly affect a specific part of a game, or the entire screen). Labyrinth of The Demon King looks to go all-in on the retro effects; one of the game’s selling points is even “loading screen doors.”
Survive a Cursed Dungeon
Labyrinth of The Demon King owes a clear debt of inspiration to Silent Hill, as well early FromSoftware titles like King’s Field. Players will need their wits about them to survive in the dank, fetid dungeon as monstrous enemies can appear from anywhere and resources are limited.
“Revel in accomplishment and extreme satisfaction as you take down various Yōkai from ancient myth, and other horrific abominations that dwell in the labyrinth.”
Players will be able to find various period-appropriate weapons on their journey, from bows and arrows to vicious katanas and naginatas. Plus, not everything encountered in the Labyrinth is out for blood: some characters can be interacted with for a moment of peace or even help. However, the developer warns players to be careful who they trust as it can affect the overall narrative.
“Some offer things you might need, others a simple moment of respite, but be careful who you decide to trust – it could affect your fate.”
From Out of The Darkness it Came
The developer, J. R. Hudepohl, is based in New Zealand and Labyrinth of The Demon King is his first game. An initial trailer was first released in October 2021, which was also the first major news released about this game. However, in an interview with DreadXP in November 2022, Hudepohl gave a bit more background on the game.
“So back in 2020 I was planning a trip to China, but then, of course, Covid hit, so I had to go to Japan instead, and when in Japan I went to this island called Kitagi Island, and when I was there it was like the middle of winter so there wasn’t a lot of people there, it kind of looked a little bit run down, almost abandoned, and the buildings there, and the atmosphere kind of gave me an idea that it would be a really good place for a horror game.”
He also namechecked Fatal Frame 2 and Condemned: Criminal Origins as additional inspirations, plus expanded on how the full game is set to features puzzles akin to the ones in Silent Hill and Resident Evil.
“It’s kind of like the puzzles are the same way as your Silent Hills or your Resident Evils where it’s a lot of exploring and you’ll come across a puzzle that unlocks a key or a door or things like that. Like 75% exploration and combat, and then 25% puzzles.”
The publisher, Top Hat Studios, is the New York-based company behind well-received titles such as Frogun, Crypt Custodian, and SteamDolls: Order of Chaos.
