There's been a recent spate of 'creepy-cute' games, where you're surrounded by strange and horrible monsters, but they're actually just weird lil' guys. Whatever the opposite of that is, Fright Train–out today from indie studio WildArts–is one of them. It puts a cast of cute Animal Crossing-esque characters into a nightmare Resident Evil-inspired survival roguelike horror scenario, as you fight for precious resources through a freezing, monster-infested Antarctic train. And judging by the demo that I played earlier this year, it's something quietly special.

It feels like Fright Train is a mash-up of a half-dozen different horror game ideas. Yeah, there's Resident Evil-esque third-person combat where headshots are king. But there's also complex inventory and magazine management similar to Escape From Tarkov. Doors and systems aboard the train can be unlocked with money, giving it a bit of a CoD Zombies edge as well. Plus, there's actual survival mechanics!

The train itself can be damaged by enemies or the environment, and if any of the cars break down, the train stops, forcing you to do repairs outside, where REALLY nasty things lurk. If windows are broken, then the freezing winds will blow in through the train, causing your vision and body to become increasingly covered in ice. There are supernatural storms that spawn monsters onto the train - it's a whole bunch of plates to spin, and because it's a roguelike, it's never quite the same challenge twice.

It's just a thrilling blend of familiar elements put together in a way I've never quite seen before, and despite the cutesy aesthetic, the monsters are an excitingly weird bunch of creatures, with train parts seemingly getting fused with enemies at random. This is especially stressful when it starts throwing ice-zombies at you with rusted iron wrapped around their heads, meaning that you have to dump bullets into other parts of their bodies.

WildArts were kind enough to send me a key for the full game while writing this piece, and I'll be digging into it tonight for sure. With a little luck and a following wind, I'll have further thoughts on this one sometime in the coming days. But if you want to judge it for yourself, that demo is surprisingly beefy.

Fright Train is out now for £15.25/$16, with a 10% launch discount and some extra savings to be had if you own creepy incremental game Horripilant, or WildArts previous horror game, the extremely creative alchemical hand simulator (go check it out) Caput Mortum. As mentioned, there is a demo too, which, if it gets delisted on Steam, will remain available on WildArts' Itch page here.