Now available on consoles, Hollowbody is a survival horror set in an abandoned British city

If you love survival horror games, you might already be aware of Hollowbody, which released on PC back in 2024. Created by a solo developer trading as Headware Games, this title, which pays homage to genre classics such as Silent Hill and Resident Evil, particularly stands out due to its style and setting: how many other tech-noir games are there set in an abandoned British city?

Love lies at the heart of Hollowbody, with Mica seizing an opportunity to fly into an exclusion zone to find her missing partner, Sasha, who’s been missing for nearly two weeks. But disaster strikes as soon as she gets there, with her vehicle crash-landing. So, trapped in the exclusion zone, she now needs to not only find her partner, but also a way out. That’s not an easy task considering the horror she’s soon going to find herself up against.

This is your classic survival horror experience, with visuals somewhat reminiscent of the PS2 era. Making your way through multiple areas, including an apartment block, a sewer, and even the city streets, you’ll need to solve puzzles and track down items to allow you to progress. Along the way, there are countless monstrosities for you to either evade or combat, too. If you do choose to engage them in combat, firearms are a good option, but a range of melee weapons are available, including an electric guitar.

By default, Hollowbody employs a combination of fixed and dynamic camera angles, just like the classics, but you can opt for a more modern third-person camera if you wish. It’s perhaps the best option, too, because the default camera can lead to some frustrations. Melee combat here can also be little troublesome at times – don’t be surprised if you sometimes command Mica to strike and she completely misses. Add in some other control issues, and Hollowbody certainly isn’t without its problems.

There’s something about Hollowbody that makes it very likeable, even with its issues, however. It’s intriguing and genuinely tense at times, and with a running time of around four to five hours, it doesn’t outstay its welcome. There are reasons to return, too, with multiple endings to discover, and additional content and features on higher difficulty levels.

Having played through the new PS5 version on PS5 Pro, I’m also happy to report that it plays flawlessly. And with it arriving on console some time after the PC version, the tweaks and additional content added to the game since its original launch are included here, improving the experience to a small degree. If you a fan of survival horror games, then, you really ought to give this a chance. And if you do jump in and find yourself stuck, we’ve got a handy walkthrough to help you through.

Hollowbody is available on PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.