Out of nowhere like a horror movie jump scare, Saber Interactive (the developers behind Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2) has announced a brand-new horror game titled Clive Barker's Hellraiser: Revival, and it's coming out for Xbox Series X|S and PC.
As the title suggests, this game is based on Hellraiser, a horror movie franchise created by Clive Barker that centers around an ancient puzzle box capable of summoning sadistic monsters known as Cenobites.
Here's everything announced so far for this unexpected but welcome upcoming Xbox title/upcoming PC title.
Clive Barker's Hellraiser: Revival has you playing as Aiden, a young man living a happy life with his girlfriend Sunny. But Aiden's happiness comes to an end when, during a night of passion with Sunny, his girlfriend pulls out an ancient artifact called the Genesis Configuration.
Upon solving the mystical Puzzle Box, a cohort of demons called Cenobites drag Sunny into a hellscape called the Labyrinth, and Aiden chases after them to rescue his girlfriend from being tortured for eternity.
According to Saber Interactive (via Xbox Wire), Hellraiser: Revival will be an original tale set in the Hellraiser universe. That means, newcomers who haven't seen any of the Hellraiser movies can jump into this game without needing to do lore homework to understand the plot.
Additionally, Saber Interactive has confirmed that Clive Barker, the creator of Hellraiser, will be heavily involved in the development of this game, so that its gameplay, story, and presentation will remain faithful to the Hellraiser universe.
On a side note, this will be the third video game Clive Barker will be involved in. His previous video game works include being the writer and a voice actor for Clive Barker's Undying and the producer of the cult-horror game Clive Barker's Jericho.
Gameplay-wise, Clive Barker's Hellraiser: Revival is a first-person, survival-horror game with action elements. The player must traverse the nightmarish realm of the Labyrinth while harnessing the power of the Genesis Configuration to solve puzzles and fight enemies.
You will be forced to fight cults and monsters that worship the Cenobites, avoid getting into fights with Cenobites themselves as they are invincible, and preserve your mind and soul from succumbing to madness.
Hellraiser getting a horror game was not on my bingo card for 2025, but I'm all for it
My personal experience with the Hellraiser franchise is from watching the original 1987 movie at a young age that I 'definitely' should not have watched it at.
The grotesque Cenobites, the haunting voice of Pinhead (the most recognizable of the Cenobites), the disturbing imagery, and grindhouse-levels of gore gave me nightmares for weeks as a kid.
As an adult, I can now safely look back on this movie more fondly (thankfully without any more nightmares) as its special effects are still incredible to this day, and its hellish atmosphere and scares still give me shivers down my spine.
Not to mention that this movie served as a major inspiration for some of my favorite franchises like Warhammer 40,000 and Berserk.
As for the game itself, Clive Barker's Hellraiser: Revival looks promising so far, and I say this as someone who's not usually into horror games unless they involve copious amounts of combat like Resident Evil and Dead Space.
The visuals look deliciously nightmarish, it's dripping with dark atmosphere, and the combat system looks absolutely brutal with buckets of gore to drench yourself in if you like your action games filled with blood and guts.
However, will the final product live up to Hellraiser's vaunted legacy and become one of the best horror games on Xbox and PC? Stay tuned in to find out as we keep an eye out for the release date of Clive Barker's Hellraiser: Revival and let you know when you can take a crack at the Genesis Configuration for yourself.
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