Cursed Companions Screenshot
Image: Crimson Forge Studios

We love to showcase the big indie hits, but part of our mission here is to spotlight games that you might have missed that we just think are neat. Cursed Companions from indie outfit Crimson Forge Studios is one of those. A proximity voice-chat horror comedy game (no, really - it's different!) that quietly left early access last week after a well-regarded stint of public development.

While the general flow of the game—go out, gather treasure, evade weird monsters and hit an ever-increasing quota—is very Lethal Company, what sets this one aside from the crowd is that you both NEED to use the in-game proximity chat and really watch your words. Each player begins with a cursed word assigned that, if they ever say it, they deal damage to the team. Of course, when this is a very common word, even basic conversation can get tricky.

Of course, this quickly evolves into slapstick comedy when you've got a chatty group of friends. Better yet, every item and enemy has interaction phrases which are randomized each run. Telling a clingy ghost to back off with a casual "I think I'll pass", for instance, or curing your buddies with a quick "Feels good, man" gives this one a real distinct feel. Especially when a phrase you really need to say happens to include someone's forbidden word.

Being a lesser-known game, you'll probably need to rustle up your own group to play with, but that always seemed to be the intent of the game's design anyway. While Meccha Chameleon might work with a crowd of strangers trying to out-think each other, this one seems geared towards a friend-group already operating on the same wavelength, and confident enough to say silly things to each other.

So, perhaps it'll never be a massive viral hit (unless we make it one), but Cursed Companions seems like a good way to spend an evening with pals at a reasonable price. It's out now on Steam for £7.49/$10, with a 30% launch discount running until July 23rd. The game supports co-op for up to eight players and the competitive Traitor mode for up to sixteen.