The Medium (XSX|S & PC) - Psychological horror. Free with Game Pass. Gamespot 9 & IGN 8. Out 3rd Sep on PS5.

There are more sides to the mystery of The Medium. A new character, whose appearance is based on Polish actor Marcin Dorociński and whose name will be made known when the time is right, enters the stage and ups the stakes, while The Maw turns out to not be the only bloodthirsty monster out there. The Medium launches January 28, 2021.

Take an extended look at the gameplay of The Medium, a one of its kind horror game where you can play in the real world and the spirit world at the same time. Travel to an abandoned and haunted hotel resort to discover a mystery only a medium can solve.

Coming to Xbox Series X|S and PC on January 28th, 2021.

Discover a dark mystery only a medium can solve. Explore the real world and the spirit world at the same time. Use your psychic abilities to solve puzzles spanning both worlds, uncover deeply disturbing secrets, and survive encounters with The Maw - a monster born from an unspeakable tragedy.

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From my first impressions of the game in action, The Medium shares a remarkably similar vibe to Konami's Silent Hill series, particularly in its handling of atmospheric horror within mundane locations. The game's musical score is even co-composed by Akira Yamaoka, who was a composer for most of the music in the Silent Hill series. This is actually all intentional, as it turns out. According to the developers, the Silent Hills series was a significant source of inspiration for The Medium's creators, and according to them, the game is a tribute to the franchise.

"The Silent Hill series, particularly the second game, is our inspiration. Not just for The Medium, but for our company and how we create horror games. With The Medium, we see it as a love letter to the series and to Silent Hill 2," said producer Jacek Zieba.

While the devs aren't shy about sharing their influences, The Medium goes beyond just being a homage.

What I found interesting about The Medium is that it focuses more on emotional storytelling rather than the simple scares and grotesque imagery. In many ways, the developers see The Medium as a culmination of the talents fostered over the years. What's particularly fascinating is that this game has been in the works for some time, and it had a significant change in perspective in the past.

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The Medium reminds me of Alan Wake, if Wake leaned a bit harder into its horror side. Bloober Team’s upcoming Xbox Series X and S exclusive – that’s right, it’s not coming to Xbox One when it gets released on January 28, which I’ll explain shortly – thoroughly impressed me in a 20-minute demo that skipped around to a few different areas. It’s moody, it’s cinematic, and like any good horror game, it’s got a creepy little girl that sends shivers down your spine. And it’s literally two games running at the same time.

If the rest of the game is anything like my demo, The Medium will be oozing with tension and atmosphere, and hopefully a bit more challenging puzzle-solving. To that end, the developers say you’ll spend about a third of the campaign each in the real world, the spirit world, and the split-screen dual-world scenario.

Despite months of comparisons, The Medium is a much different game from Konami's hit horror franchise.

But after an extended preview last week, I feel safe in saying that any coincidences between the two are superficial. The Medium is a much different kind of survival horror title, and one that's decidedly more modern than some may have expected. This isn't a revival of classic horror gaming - it's the next generation borrowing something from their predecessors, then infusing it with a bit of new-school pizazz.

If you're in the market for a Silent Hill re-do, you might be tempted to pass on this one, but you really shouldn't. The Medium is shaping up to be a real knockout - the kind of fresh and innovative horror release we don't get much of anymore. It's pretty clear why Microsoft is putting a lot of trust in this release, from what I've seen, and I'm excited to see how it pays off for them.

Game Rant got to see some of The Medium in action, and it’s not too soon to say that players definitely have something to be excited about.

It’s easy to see how The Medium draws inspiration from past cult-classic horror games like Silent Hill and Resident Evil, especially because its soundtrack was created with Akira Yamaoka, a composer who is most known for his work on Silent Hill. The fixed camera angles that players must navigate are also very reminiscent of early Resident Evil games, but past horror influences aren’t the only thing players have to look forward to, though.

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What does a medium do? How do they use their psychic abilities? We take a closer look at Marianne, the protagonist of The Medium, who is blessed - or cursed - with the gift to exist in two realities at the same time. Check out how else she can use her powers. The Medium launches January 28, 2021.

The Medium is available on both Xbox Series X and Series S as well as PC, meaning that this is the first title we've played that cannot run on prior generation Xbox One hardware - and that makes sense, factoring in the unique presentation. Resolution-wise, The Medium uses dynamic resolution scaling with a wider variation than is typical, most likely due to the dual viewport display used throughout the game. While exploring the world in full-screen, resolution tops out at native 4K on Series X and 1080p on Series S: during these segments, DRS scaling averages out to roughly 1440p on X and 900p on Series S. However, when exploring in split-screen mode, the minimum resolution drops further. On Series X, the lowest case is around 900p while the Series S equivalent is 648p. Remember, the game is literally rendering two independent scenes at the same time, explaining the drops in pixel count.

In terms of the ray tracing support, The Medium features RT reflections - but only in certain locations and only on Xbox Series X and PC - with Series S dropping back to more conventional screen-space reflections. They do the job, but simply cannot reproduce detail that isn't present in the current camera view, so detail can to vanish in some scenarios. There are other differences between Xboxes as well: shadows, for instance, are rendered at a lower resolution on Series S. All shadows in The Medium are traditional rasterised shadows, it should be noted, rather than ray traced shadows - with the exception of shadows visible within a ray traced reflection. That said, the reliance on fixed camera angles helps avoid artefacts often associated with traditional shadow maps and the result is superb. Shadows dance around as your flashlight passes across the scenery, while Unreal Engine 4 contact shadows are also used to improve close proximity detail.

And experience it, you should! While there's no doubt that The Medium is a little rough around the edges in terms of polish and its overall production values, the fact is that it's a beautiful and memorable horror adventure, and I'd rank it as the best title to emerge from Bloober thus far. It's also available on day one via Game Pass, so I'd hope to see an impressive game get a lot of extra exposure as a consequence. I do think it's worth stressing that despite being an Xbox platform exclusive for now, The Medium is not a triple-A juggernaut in the traditional sense, but it is different, it is unique, and I highly recommend checking it out.

Eventually The Medium's narrative threads begin to weave together, even connecting to the original goal of discovering Marianne's origins. The promise that everything somehow connects in some unforeseen and fascinating way is a thrilling reason to see the game all the way through. The connections to real-world events of Polish history make many of the revelations even more poignant--even if the supernatural aspects are fictional, it's deeply unsettling to think about how some of the evil present in this game did actually occur.

And to that end, The Medium's conclusion sticks with you; it's one last horrifying reminder that trauma may not define a person, but it can have consequences we can't even begin to foresee if it's not adequately dealt with and simply left to fester over time. I can't say I enjoyed the ending to The Medium, but I am deeply satisfied with how it sets up the inescapable nature of its horrifying conclusion.

The Medium uses a unique reality-shifting ability to bring a new dimension to some tried-and-tested genre puzzle-solving mechanics. It presents an intriguing mystery to unravel and adds a tangible sense of urgency to your investigations by placing a truly memorable villain hot on your heels. It isn’t able to play with perspective as effectively as some of Bloober Team’s other work, but it’s brilliantly paced and palpably tense. An absorbing and nerve-racking journey from the shriek of its first jump scare to its very last gasp, The Medium delivers a psychological horror adventure that’s all thriller and no filler.

Despite some technical foibles and the simple, unchallenging stealth and puzzle solving, I fell completely in love with The Medium. The writing stacks up to the very best in the genre with its well-crafted mystery that explores difficult, often heartbreakingly relatable themes on its way to a satisfying, though not uplifting conclusion. Top-notch actors realize complex and memorable heroes and monsters along the way, and the score, sound design, and art are gorgeous, pulling together an unforgettable, cohesive whole. The Medium is going to stick with me for a long time.

The Medium is the studio's most successful, accessible offering yet, and a sign that Bloober continues to improve, mature, and innovate. I cannot wait for its next terrifying adventure.

Marianne might be able to jump between two realities, but The Medium is trapped somewhere between being a worthy Silent Hill successor and another mediocre hide and seek horror game.

Some of the best horror games of the last decade have offered combat-free frights. After all, abandoned buildings are scarier when you can’t push back against the shadows. However, The Medium’s lack of combat highlights the challenge of letting atmosphere and puzzles carry a horror experience. The idea of exploring split realities is neat, but Bloober Team needed another gameplay hook to hang its hat on, because this horror show is a bit shallow.

Frank wrote:Anyone managed to start it yet? Mine just keeps telling me I'm too early It's out.. now, right?