Silt (video game)

The player begins their exploration of the two-dimensional, black-and-white oceanic environment chained up for unknown reasons.[3] From the start, they will encounter different types of fish with varying abilities which can be used to traverse levels of increasing difficulty, including piranhas which can bite through restraints, or hammerhead sharks who can smash obstacles preventing progression.[4] Continued exploration eventually leads to uncovering more and more eerie mysteries in the ocean depths.[5]

Silt is the debut game for developer Spiral Circus.[6] The inspiration for both the art style and the oppressive, isolating atmosphere of the game came from one half of Silt’s development team, Tom Mead's own watercolour paintings of characters in vast, empty abysses. This is also the origin of the game's title.[6] The team attended Stugan Summer Camp, a non-profit accelerator program for game developers,[7] after which they were able to produce their first demo.[6]

The game was announced at the PC Gaming Show at E3 2021.[4][8] It is the first title published by Fireshine Games since their rebrand from Sold Out.[9][10]

The game is currently still in development, with only a demo available on Steam.

The demo has received favourable reviews from several publications, including Eurogamer's Christian Donlan, who compared its haunting yet minimalistic, monochromatic art style to the caricatures of Ronald Searle.[11] Others note the occasional difficulty in distinguishing between background objects and key pieces of the environment the player is expected to interact with, with the caveat that the game is still in development.[3]

Since its announcement, Silt has been featured on several lists of 2022's most anticipated horror and indie games, including Polygon, Screen Rant, and Rock Paper Shotgun, amongst others.[2][12][13][14]

• Spiral Circus Games