Final episode of liminal space horror game Dreamcore is available now
Dreamcore closes out with Dead Mall, a sprawling abandoned shopping plaza that pushes the game further toward open-ended exploration over puzzle-solving.
Dreamcore. Credit: Montraluz / Tlön Industries
The final episode of Dreamcore is available now on Steam, Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, bringing Montraluz’s surreal liminal-space horror project to a close with a new map called Dead Mall.
Dreamcore remains one of the best liminal-space “backrooms” horror games I’ve played because it understands how unsettling empty space can be when you’re left alone inside it long enough. Dead Mall sounds like it’s pushing even further in that direction by stripping away more of the friction between the player and the atmosphere.
Set inside an abandoned 1980s shopping plaza, Dead Mall moves away from the heavier puzzle focus of previous episodes in favor of freer exploration. Players can wander through an eerie food court, arcade, parking lot, and maze of isolated storefronts without objectives interrupting the atmosphere.
“For this new Dead Mall map, I decided to go in a pretty different direction compared to the previous ones,” said Valentín Iribarren, Game Creator at Montraluz. “After going through a lot of community feedback, it was clear that many wanted a much more open exploration experience without so many hurdles, and that’s exactly what this update is about. In this map, we're moving away from puzzles. There are no complicated riddles or mandatory objectives to break your flow.”
Iribarren added that the goal was to let players “fully soak in the atmosphere of the mall without any pressure,” allowing them either to search for the exit immediately or spend time exploring every corner of the map freely.
Since launching last year, Dreamcore has also added expansions The Playrooms and Liminal Hotel, while maintaining a “Very Positive” Steam user rating across more than 1,500 reviews. Developed in Unreal Engine 5, the game leans heavily into VHS-style found footage aesthetics and nonlinear exploration inspired by internet “backrooms” horror.
