The next entry in the Dark Pictures Anthology story has finally arrived and shows there’s so much more story to tell. Keep reading to learn more.
After a delay, Directive 8020, the fifth entry in the Dark Pictures Anthology series of games has arrived and is by far the most terrifying entry yet. The game takes place in the near future aboard the spaceship Cassiopeia, which is en route to the distant planet Tau Ceti f as part of an exploratory mission.
Directive 8020
Developed by: Supermassive Games
Platform: PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S
Release Date: May 12, 2026
What should be an exciting leap forward for humanity quickly turns into a nightmare as the crew comes to realize that something is lurking among them, and it isn’t human or friendly.
For this review, I played the Playstation 5 version of the game on the easiest difficulty setting.
The Story
Directive 8020 represents a massive change for the overall Dark Pictures series. While the first season of games took place on Earth, more or less in the present day, Directive 8020 takes place almost fifty years in the future in a star system about 12 light-years from Earth. As with past entries, the game features an ensemble cast, though Brianna Young (Lashana Lynch) is the central protagonist to the story.
The overall story of Directive 8020 can be described as a twisted combination of Alien and The Thing (1982). As with all of the Dark Pictures games, this isn’t a story for the squeamish or those who scare easily. The developers do temper the scares with a number of quieter moments, where you get to know the various characters better, but the terror never completely fades away. Please be warned, there is a heavy amount of body horror featured in this story.
There’s quite a mix of interesting characters. I like how, depending on how the story goes of course, each character gets their moment to shine. It’s also interesting to see how a scenario can change depending on who is still alive at that point in time.
I found myself liking how the story reveals itself over the course of each episode. Instead of a single storyline, the action jumps forward and backward in time, with the details of what’s happening slowly coming together with each episode. This is the type of story where you think you know what is happening, and in very short order you realize no, no you really don’t know at all, and it’s terrifying to realize you don’t know.
The Gameplay
There are a number of gameplay changes in Directive 8020 compared to the previous Dark Pictures games. Along with the usual methods of exploration, players can scan the area when needed, creep through vents and maintenance tunnels, and utilize power cells to lock/unlock doors as needed. When crouching through vents, the game flips to a first person POV which can ratchet the tension up even more, particularly in the latter stages of the game.
The biggest gameplay change in Directive 8020 are the stealth sections peppered throughout the game. In previous installments, particularly in The Devil in Me, characters might have the option to hide, but never to outright sneak around and evade detection from an enemy.
Well let me confirm for you that Directive 8020 goes all in on this feature.There are multiple segments where the player must sneak around and evade detection in order to complete a task or otherwise move the story forward. It sounds simple, but thanks to the delightfully twisted musical score, these sections feel absolutely terrifying. And if you’re a gamer like me who struggles with stealth in video games, these sections will likely take some getting used to, even on the easiest gameplay mode that I used.
Aside from the general horror atmosphere, the stealth sections become progressively difficult the further into the game you go. Which is to say if you’re not careful, the enemy will catch you like that and then it’s light’s out for whichever character you’re in control of. The Dark Pictures games have always been on the brutal side when it comes to character death, but this is on a whole different level.
The good news is, the developers were kind enough to include some accessibility features to help with this. Getting caught in a stealth section on the easiest difficulty (and on that setting only) doesn’t mean game over. There are measures in place to fight off the enemy and keep going. The worst that may happen then is a storyline opportunity may be lost, and thanks to the new Turning Points feature, even that can be worked around.
Turning Points, which lets the player go back to a pivotal moment to try for a different outcome, is an interesting tool to have. It certainly makes it easier to reach a desired outcome, but in my opinion it is still better to do a straight play through once without going back. Once the game has been experienced all the way through, then, I believe, it is more fun to play around with Turning Points. But as always with video games, to each their own.
I found some of the puzzles frustratingly difficult to solve. As great as the game is, I lost count of the times I entered a puzzle room and spent a number of minutes trying to figure out what I needed to do to proceed. For example, I would know I would need to pass from Door A to Door B, but what the game wouldn’t communicate is that I needed to search for a power console to make Door B operate. It’s not the biggest issue in the world, but it did bother me more than once.
Finally, speaking of accessibility features, one that I took full advantage of is the ability to turn the game’s music off. I found this made it easier to focus during stealth portions of the game, and made the game less stressful in general.
To conclude, Directive 8020 is another strong entry in The Dark Pictures Anthology. The stealth sections will be off putting for some, but the story makes the struggle worth it. Definitely check this game out as soon as you can.
