Upcoming first-person horror game Among the Sleep has garnered a lot of attention from PC gamers, as its setting places players in the role of a two-year-old child, alone in a dark home. The game's Kickstarter campaign is set to finalize in just four days, but developer Krillbite Studio is hoping that one last push from fans (and perhaps converted skeptics) can push the game over its desired goal of $200,000.
That push comes in the form of a free public alpha. The alpha testing will launch on May 14, according to an email sent to Polygon. The alpha build will be available for anyone interested in the title, and not just those that have previously backed the project. A longer alpha test is scheduled for later this summer for those that have pledged at least $100 to the game.
Among the Sleep shies away from traditional horror mechanics, as the expected combat system is nowhere to be found. Instead, players must find hiding places for the child, like under furniture or in cabinets. Puzzles may be available in the final build of the game, but Krillbite wants to focus more on "exploration, atmosphere and horror" as the game's main elements.
As expected, the world of Among the Sleep will look quite skewed since you're seeing the world with the eyes of a two-year-old child. Players will be able to interact with the environment by pushing and pulling objects, climbing onto objects or stairs, carrying items and so on. All the while, the game will examine the imagination of children as a way to add even more fear and even some surrealism to the experience.
Krillbite has recently announced Oculus Rift support for Among the Sleep, with a stretch goal of $225,000 that would allow the studio to provide full implementation for the device. Either way, players will be able to use the Oculus Rift (a head-mounted display) in a basic implementation even without that stretch goal being met.
If Among the Sleep reaches its goal within the next four days (the game currently sits at around $181,000), it will eventually launch on PC, Mac, and Linux in Q4 of 2013.