Frictional Games, developer of 'SOMA' and the 'Amnesia' series, has revealed new gameplay footage for its upcoming title 'ONTOS'.

Frictional Games showcased new gameplay for 'ONTOS' on August 25 (local time) during Gamescom 2026 Opening Night Live (ONL). Positioned as a spiritual successor to the 2015 sci-fi horror game 'SOMA', 'ONTOS' expands upon its predecessor's philosophical questions regarding human consciousness, existence, and reality through a new story and gameplay systems.

The setting is 'Samsara', a hotel built on the Moon that was later repurposed. Players take on the role of engineer Aditi Amani, visiting Samsara to pursue riddles left behind by her father—a once-brilliant scientist who later became a prophet. The search for answers gradually escalates into events that cause her to question reality itself, leading players closer to the truth surrounding her father's past and the essence of existence.

The new video directly introduced an unsettling and bizarre experiment reminiscent of 'SOMA'. The protagonist discovers a facility where a human mind has been uploaded to a server, but the server is not a standard machine—it is a biological device constructed by connecting numerous live rats. A situation unfolds that poses the question of whether the human mind or body should be considered the true self, leaving players to decide how to handle it.

Rather than traditional horror based on being chased by monsters, 'ONTOS' focuses on psychological discomfort and philosophical questions. Players investigate strange experiments throughout Samsara, directly manipulate surrounding environments and machinery, and choose how to resolve each problem. There are no clear right answers, and the consequences will vary depending on those choices.

Frictional Games has been developing 'ONTOS' for over 10 years since the release of 'SOMA' to evolve that core experience. Creative Director Thomas Grip previously stated upon revealing the title that their goal was to take the gameplay, scale, and philosophical themes a step further than any of their previous works. The developer describes 'ONTOS' as its most ambitious project to date in terms of scale, production value, and thematic scope.

Actor Stellan Skarsgård is also attached to a major role. While details about the character played by Skarsgård—known for the film 'Dune' and the HBO drama 'Chernobyl'—remain limited, Frictional Games highlighted his involvement as key information from the game's initial reveal last year.

'ONTOS' is scheduled to launch on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S in 2027. It was originally targeted for a 2026 release, but Frictional Games delayed the launch window to 2027 last July to fully realize the game's scale, story, and gameplay.