Supermassive Games' The Quarry is tentatively looking like another horror hit for the developer, taking the series back to its Until Dawn roots.

Announced earlier this year, Supermassive Games’ The Quarry is tentatively hoped by many to be the true successor to Until Dawn, the blockbuster horror that has impressed - and scared - countless players since its launch in 2015. Until Dawn offered a type of horror experience that was unknown to many, providing a scare-fuelled narrative-driven venture with gameplay focused on exploration, decision-making, and quick-time events. Its story, which is inspired by the poor choices young people make when faced with threats in the hammy horror movies of the slasher genre, appeals to many in its theatrical presentation. The gameplay style continues across Supermassive’s later releases within The Dark Pictures Anthology, but moves away from its reliance on cheesy horror tropes. Dark Pictures releases have seen mixed reception, with many believing they fail to capture the teen drama, schlocky horror, and B-movie action that made Until Dawn so unique. The Quarry is set to change this, taking the beloved summer camp setting, a stereotypical collection of teenagers, and introducing mysterious - and very deadly - threats.

Keeping spoilers to a minimum, The Quarry preview offered 45 minutes with the characters of the upcoming release, beginning somewhere towards the end of Chapter 2 and ending in Chapter 3. As expected from a Supermassive game, this time was spent moving between the main characters who, just like in Until Dawn, appear to be heavily inspired by horror movie character tropes of the late 1980s to the late 2000s. This includes the jock-type Jacob, the shy Abigail, the oozing-sex-appeal Emma, and the headstrong Kaitlyn. While the characters are archetypical, the decision fits well with the game’s plans to emulate early horror movies. Adding to this is the characters’ surprising likeability, with lots of cringe-worthy jokes, vulnerabilities, and silly moments that will make it a little harder to stomach should a player end up making a wrong decision that leads to their demise.

Graphically, The Quarry looks just as impressive as Supermassive’s last launch, House of Ashes, if not more so. Using the full potential of new-generation hardware, Supermassive has crafted what could well be one of the most movie-like experiences seen in the industry so far, with its character models, environments, and lighting all far surpassing last-generation’s Until Dawn. It’s very easy to be taken aback by just how realistic The Quarry can look at times, and a slight redesign of prompts for QTEs, VHS tape-style filters used to convey decision making, and a slick menu all help to improve the player experience compared to previous Supermassive titles.

Arguably the biggest challenge The Quarry faces is its story. While Until Dawn widely impressed players with its supernatural and human threats, The Dark Pictures games have been a mixed bag, with many endings not quite living up to expectations or story twists failing to land successfully. Of course, a 45-minute preview didn’t divulge enough of the story to attest to how well The Quarry may pan out, but it did serve to offer a tantalizing taste, revealing its B-movie action and stereotypically teenage reactions. Characters seem well-fleshed out, and mysterious goings-on tease a very curious wider plot. The ingredients for an impressive new horror game are certainly contained within The Quarry, though the final meal may yet disappoint should its story miss the mark.

While The Quarry seems very comparable to Until Dawn, the preview perhaps raises more questions than it answers. Many of the concerns players have over previous Supermassive titles - including story pacing, narrative choices, and of course, whatever the monster is - could hamper what’s looking to be a promising new addition to the series. Inspecting its style, performance, gameplay, setting, and characters, The Quarry is indeed shaping up to be the “new Until Dawn” many have been waiting years for, but as with all narrative-driven games, its success is dependent on the story as a whole. With The Quarry releasing in just a few weeks, fans won’t have long to find out if the long wait for Until Dawn 2 has finally paid off.

Next: Why PlayStation Should Acquire Supermassive Games

The Quarry releases on June 10 for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Screen Rant was provided with a PC download code for the purposes of this preview.