The Casting of Frank Stone Preview: Supermassive Games Doing What They Do Best

I had the chance to play a preview build of The Casting of Frank Stone, an interactive horror game developed by Supermassive Games. Set within the Dead by Daylight universe, the demo took around 45 minutes and left me with the impression that Behaviour Interactive has given Supermassive the freedom to do what they do best. The game echoes their previous work, both in gameplay and in how choices and events shape the overall story.

The demo begins with you playing as Sam Green, a police officer investigating a child's disappearance, which leads him to a steel mill in the dead of night.

Nods to Dead by Daylight

This brief introduction effectively sets the stage, featuring a few nods to the Dead by Daylight universe with plenty of Easter eggs for dedicated fans. However, The Casting of Frank Stone is primarily played like any other Supermassive Games title, where you make choices that influence key events and outcomes, with quick-time events adding further nuance, from subtle shifts to severe consequences.

The demo offered a glimpse of the various possible outcomes. Dialogue choices are limited to two options, a similar approach to titles like The Quarry as multiple A or B choices lead to a web of possibilities.

Choices and Outcomes

In terms of gameplay mechanics, Supermassive stays within their comfort zone. You explore areas in a third-person perspective and control multiple characters throughout the story. In the demo, you only play as Sam, exploring the mill, examining key objects, climbing fences, and squeezing through tight spaces to progress. Quick-time events are present, and the first one caught me by surprise. The game has integrated Dead by Daylight’s Skill Check system, where you must press a button to spot the dial to land on the right spot of in the dial. I wasn’t expecting this Dead by Daylight-inspired twist, and I failed to press the button at the right time, resulting in Sam injuring himself and losing his flashlight.

This injury didn’t affect much, as it only slightly altered how one scene played out. On a second playthrough, I discovered that if Sam hadn’t been injured and still had his flashlight, he could have used it to try and blind the threat, a slight change that didn’t completely change the outcome, though it does hint at the potential for varied experiences in the full game, making the player second guess whether their success or failed attempts are either major or minor changes.

The demo also showcased various quick-time events, none too complex, which is expected as the fun in these games lies in shaping the story.

Overall, the demo gives just a glimpse of how the game will play out. It’s another story-driven game with the classic Supermassive touch, which is a win in my book. I’ve always appreciated their approach to horror storytelling, even when it veers into typical clichés or B-movie territory. Some of their games are so bad they’re good, delivering humor and entertainment. As for The Casting of Frank Stone, it’s hard to tell if it will evoke the same feelings with less than an hour of content to sample, but knowing that Supermassive is doing what they do best is a promising sign.

Based on my experience with other Supermassive Games titles, I expect The Casting of Frank Stone will follow a similar pattern — offering a mix of major and minor consequences that shape the narrative, encouraging multiple playthroughs for different outcomes.

At most, this preview suggests that Supermassive isn’t attempting anything new or groundbreaking with this title. The difference here is the game’s setting within another developer’s established world.

The Connection to Dead by Daylight

The real question is whether The Casting of Frank Stone will add meaningful context to the Dead by Daylight universe. Behaviour Interactive has been steadily expanding the lore with each update, giving us more insight into the Entity, the Survivors, and the Killers. Will this game provide new lore for Dead by Daylight enthusiasts, or is it simply a spin-off filled with Easter eggs for dedicated players? It’s hard to tell if this game is more for Dead by Daylight fans or Supermassive Games fans, but hopefully, it strikes a balance between the two.

It’s also worth noting that The Casting of Frank Stone will feature a couch co-op mode for 1-4 players, where each participant controls the actions and decisions of one character. This feature adds an extra layer of unpredictability and replayability to the experience and is how I prefer to play games like it as I’ve done this even way back in 2010’s Heavy Rain, my first introduction to games like these.

The Casting of Frank Stone is set to launch on September 3, 2024 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC.

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