Directive 8020 Reviews

The Dark Pictures franchise has always touched on supernatural horror, but has remained ultimately grounded in the modern (or not-so-distant) past. This has changed with Directive 8020, a science fiction tale set a dozen light-years from Earth. After dropping the Dark Pictures anthology branding for the new title, has Supermassive Games truly brought something new to the medium, or is this an all-too-familiar take?

Directive 8020 is the latest from Supermassive Games, the studio most famous for interactive horror titles including Until Dawn and The Quarry. This one, however, sits within Bandai Namco’s Dark Pictures anthology, and as such was teased way back in 2022 at the conclusion of The Devil in Me.

Supermassive Games has been honing their The Dark Pictures Anthology horror formula since 2019, each entry sharpening the balance between cinematic storytelling and player-driven horror. Directive 8020 feels like the next evolution of that template, taking a step away from the anthology branding entirely to deliver a standalone experience, albeit one that’s still sprinkled with references for long-time fans.

Directive 8020 feels like Supermassive Games has finally rejuvenated after the disappointing The Devil In Me. With this being the start of season two, this is a great showing, and I can’t wait to see what horrors they bring us next

It's dingy and it's not without some mutations, but Directive 8020 is definitely worth exploring - just expect the mundane along the way.

Directive 8020 is arguably Supermassive's best game since Until Dawn. The wait was well worth it. Here they have crafted a fun and intense sci fi space horror game. I immediately wanted to play again as soon as it was over.

Directive 8020 is by far one of the best games Supermassive has made, with an engaging story and characters and choices that carry a lot of weight.

Directive 8020 does some things very well and others with less grace, delivering a thought-provoking interactive story game that struggles with pacing. Though the characters are worth following, the atmosphere can be pleasantly creepy, and it’s easy to rewind to try new routes, the plethora of bloated stealth sections makes replaying the game a bit less appealing.

Directive 8020 represents the best that The Dark Pictures games have had to offer thus far, proving that Supermassive Games is right at home within sci-fi horror. If you’re a fan of the studio’s previous games, this is an absolute must-play.

Directive 8020 is a love letter to the space horror that looks beyond just going bump in the night. The distrust sown across the small team, the dialogue choices, and the interactions all craft a game that feels like it belongs on the shelf alongside titles like Dead Space, Sunshine, Event Horizon, and even The Thing.

Directive 8020 is a good addition to the Dark Pictures anthology and a solid start to its second season. Its story ranks among Supermassive Games’ best work, marking a much-needed step forward for a studio that has struggled to release standout titles in recent years. The decisions players have to make carry real weight, significantly shaping the outcome of the story and adding a ton of replay value for players who want to uncover every consequence of their choices. However, while the stealth sequences can be tense and are well-designed, they appear way too frequently and make it surprisingly easy to kill off characters you dislike, weakening some of the emotional impact. This is an issue mainly because there are characters that are boring and uninteresting due to mediocre voice acting, potentially leading the player to want to eliminate them. Still, even with a couple of shortcomings, Directive 8020 remains an engaging narrative-driven adventure that Dark Pictures fans should not miss.

There's a lot to like about Directive 8020, as the sci-fi horror video game is a nice departure from Supermassive's previous titles.

Directive 8020 is a welcome evolution of Supermassive’s The Dark Pictures Anthology survival horror series, offering a more forgiving gameplay experience, improved visuals, and new stealth elements. While the core of the gameplay remains, fans may feel divided on these new additions, as the game leans into more traditional survival horror elements than previous titles, but doesn’t quite hit the mark when weighed up against other heavyweights in the sci-fi genre.

When Until Dawn was released in 2015, it felt novel. Telltale had popularized a specific formula of interactive narrative, but Supermassive’s teen-slasher horror game took its ideas and applied an impressive layer of creativity and production value on top of it alongside casting choices that only look more brilliant with time. Successive entries in the The Dark Pictures Anthology series, however, have increasingly failed to live up to the promise of Until Dawn, and Directive 8020 is the lat...

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The standouts are Lashana Lynch and Danny Sapani, who steal the scene anytime they’re onscreen. The only issue with the story is the length. Directive 8020 jumps straight into the action without letting the gamer get to know the cast. It would have been more effective if I understood the crew dynamics. Granted, they do have an explanation for why they’re not together at first, but having everyone together would have been more effective.

Supermassive goes sci-fi horror, with a refreshingly cerebral, slowburn take on its usual popcorn thrills. It's let down by perfunctory stealth and an overfamiliar plot, but a stellar cast helps make it all worthwhile.

Directive 8020 is the start of a new season for the Dark Pictures anthology, and it’s's off to a good start. The massive leap from Earth to space effectively gives us a way to experience terror and mostly works. Still, it's often undone by dreadful stealth sections that quickly scuttle the tension due to overreliance on staying quiet. However, for the things I don't enjoy, Supermassive Games delivers a great game with a vital sense of tension.

Directive 8020 is Supermassive Games doing what it does best: making a horror adventure out of genre fiction. In this case, it’s body-snatching, Alien-hunting sci-fi and a diminishing crew under increasing pressure. Both its setting and time-jumping narrative construction make it unique, but it never strays very far from the constraints of its inspirations. Impressive visuals, effective performances and generally polished mechanics are countered by a muted tone, some dull exploration sequences and stealth. The game’s pacing and momentum sometimes feel out of whack. Still, both fans of Supermassive’s approach to storytelling and classic sci-fi will enjoy their time on Tau Ceti f.

Directive 8020 is a step in the right direction for The Dark Pictures, giving its choices more weight, its cast stronger performances, and its horror more room to breathe. While the later episodes drag and a few clichés and visual issues hold it back, the journey aboard the Cassiopeia is still worthwhile.

Directive 8020 is everything you could want from a sci-fi horror game: Body horror aliens, the unwavering dread that all of us are insignificant when set against the great expanse of the universe, and fun QTEs.

Supermassive Games takes the Dark Pictures formula beyond Earth, into paranoia, mimicry, and real-time survival horror on the Cassiopeia.

Directive 8020 does a lot correctly, but tends to get in its own way instead of letting the player sit in the uncomfortableness. The new Turning Point system makes exploring new outcomes a breeze.

Supermassive Games takes the Dark Pictures series into space with Directive 8020, and with the introduction of new gameplay elements such as stealth, you're more immersed in the action than ever before. Add in its brilliant presentation and gripping story and you have one of the best Dark Pictures games yet, and a must play for fans of space-horror.

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