Macabre machinations: The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is revealed

A few of the former employees of People Can Fly (Bulletstorm), including Adrian Chmielarz, have reformed into the brand new studio The Astronauts, with plans to release a game inspired by early 20th century tales of the macabre: The Vanishing of Ethan Carter.

I guess we may be talking about the cusp of late 19th century, as that would include Lovecraft, Poe and Bierce (none of them strangers to the macabre short story.)

“It’s a game about exploration and discovery. We’re not abandoning the gameplay – on the contrary: we’re trying to strip it down to the bone and make sure it’s always meaningful and truly makes the experience better,” says Chmielarz, looming ominously out of the shadows.

You’ll play a detective, in search of a young, kidnapped boy named Ethan Carter. Handily, you have “the supernatural ability to visualize scenes of lethal crimes.” Less handily, your initial investigations lead you to the mutilated body of one of the kidnappers. Uh-oh.

Watch a gentleman burning some items in a not at all creepy manner, below.