Sometimes a family photo album holds more than just memories. Sometimes, they hide dark secrets some would rather remain untouched, unseen, and unspoken.

Welcome to CORPOREAL, a haunting photographic mystery developed by Cold Out Interactive. Set in New Zealand during the late 1990s, this chilling narrative-puzzler invites players to piece together a cursed family album while unraveling the mysterious events that have left you as the sole surviving member of your family. Your search for answers leads you to an archive of family photos rescued from the ruins of your childhood home. Through them, you are able to revisit memories in the most literal sense. Manipulate the past and discover the secrets and specters that lay within.

CORPOREAL immerses players in a dark and enigmatic narrative, featuring tactile analog-inspired puzzles. Its stunningly atmospheric presentation is enhanced by naturalistic live-action photography, lending a documentary-like authenticity to the experience.

As Cold Out Interactive is based in Auckland, New Zealand and is developing their debut game CORPOREAL with financial support from the NZ Film Commission and the NZ Centre of Digital Excellence, one wonders how much of the game’s events will line up with real history. There are a number of unsolved mysteries that have happened in New Zealand, and numerous crimes or natural disasters that could be the culprit that destroyed the main character’s family. It’s hard to pin down with as little information as we have, but it’s possible the game is based on a horrifically tragic real-life event.

The Horror is Reality

On November 13th, 1990, the small seaside township of Aramoana faced a deadly massacre. One man, a resident named David Gray, shot and killed thirteen people in a blind rage after a neighborly dispute. Gray massacred his next door neighbors, the Holdens, with a semi-automatic before setting their house on fire. He even shot bystanders who came out to help before he raided another neighbor’s home in his rampage. After Gray killed a police Sargent, the Anti-Terrorist squad led a manhunt for the murderer that ended in a Western-styled shootout. Gray did not survive the trip to the hospital, dying of his wounds. Young Chiquita Holden was the only survivor of the Holden family.

The Aramoana Massacre was the deadliest mass shooting in New Zealand’s history until the Christchurch Mosque shootings. It left deep scars on the country and led to massive gun law reforms. Given that the house was destroyed, and there was a young child survivor who would have grown up by the late 1990’s, it’s possible that Cold Out Interactive will be exploring this horrific incident through her eyes. Or, at least the events in CORPOREAL will be an allegory for the massacre.

CORPOREAL hasn’t been given an official release date as of yet, but you can Wishlist the game on Steam. Follow Cold Out on Twitter and Bluesky to keep up with the latest developments.