'When you look at horror franchises or movies or games, the sci-fi space is huge' — Directive 8020 executive producer says the simple reason for the game's space setting was because it's 'just fun'

• Directive 8020 executive producer Dan McDonald says Supermassive Games also knew its next game would be set in space
• McDonald says the reason for the game's setting is because it's "fun"
• He adds that the anthology series allows the team to "do something different from the other big franchises"

According to Directive 8020 executive producer, Dan McDonald, Supermassive always knew that it would make a Dark Pictures game set in space.

In an interview with TechRadar Gaming ahead of the game's launch on May 12, McDonald revealed that the "quick, easy answer" for Directive 8020's space setting was simply because it's "fun", and that the team always knew what the fifth game in the Dark Pictures anthology would be.

"From the moment we started the series, we knew we were going to space, and we initially started off with eight ideas, which turned into the first five games, and, you know, we've got more in progress," McDonald said. "Game five was always going to go into space. We always knew we were going to go there."

Every Dark Pictures title is different, and as McDonald goes on to explain, this allows Supermassive to explore other horror concepts, whether it be the witch trials, a ghost ship, a group of friends stranded on a mountain with cannibalistic monsters, or, in Directive 8020's case, a sci-fi story featuring a terrifying creature that can mimic anyone.

"We do something different from the other big franchises. You know, we love Silent Hill, we love Resident Evil and that kind of thing. And their games are different every time, but they sit on Earth, it's similar locations and stuff. We get to change it up every time," McDonald said.

"When you look at horror franchises or movies or games, the sci-fi space is huge. Obviously, there are games like Alien Isolation and Dead Space. And we've all been talking about the Alien: Earth TV series, and there's just so many different places we can go. And that's why I say it's fun. It's really fun and also challenging for the team."

With that being said, the developer explained that Directive 8020's new direction, this meant the developers couldn't reuse assets from previous games, and they had to redesign most things.

"There are no trees in space for example," he said. "There is one tree on this ship, but there were no trees in space. There are no trees on the planet they go to. So there's a whole bunch of new skills that people working on the game have to express and learn.

"There are also new situations for us to do. If you think about the spaceship, when the journey first starts, you've got this big ship, but it's basically a tin can, and the only thing outside of that tin can is death. It’s a vacuum of space and it's isolating and there's a whole bunch of things you can play on and do differently. So yeah, that's why we've done it."

In the same interview, McDonald also revealed that Supermassive added the game's Turning Points system, a feature that allows players to rewind their decision mid-game, for fans who feel "disheartened" when they're unable to keep every character alive.

The fifth game in the Dark Pictures Anthology will be available next month for PS5, Xbox Series X and Series S, and PC.

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