Directive 8020: Release date, platforms, gameplay, & everything else we know about Supermassive's sci-fi horror game

Lead art for Directive 8020, an upcoming sci-fi horror game from Supermassive Games. — (Image credit: Supermassive Games)

Jump to:

Release date
Platforms
Trailers
Plot
Gameplay

If you've already burned through all the best space horror games available at the moment, don't worry, as The Dark Pictures Anthology: Directive 8020 is entering our orbit in the not-too-distant future.

First unveiled in 2022 with a post-credits teaser at the end of The Devil in Me, Directive 8020 will be the fifth installment of the Dark Pictures anthology series and marks Supermassive Games' first venture into outer space. It seems greatly influenced by horror classics such as The Thing and Prometheus, and while there's a real risk of it turning out a bit too derivative, we're excited to see what Supermassive can pull off with this sci-fi horror adventure.

Recent updates

Feb 11, 2026 - Added the release date, pre-order information, and updated the trailers and gameplay sections with new info.

Directive 8020 release date

A woman in a space suit looking up at the camera, with a worried expression on her face. — (Image credit: Supermassive Games)

Directive 8020 will launch on May 12, 2026.

As far as we know, Directive 8020 has been in development for over three years, with full production likely kicking off after The Devil in Me launched in late 2022. It was originally.

The waits between past Dark Pictures installments were noticeably shorter, but Directive 8020 is meant to start Season 2 of the anthology series and introduce a more ambitious approach to the moment-to-moment gameplay — on top of a switch to Unreal Engine 5 — which explains why Supermassive is taking extra time with this one.

Directive 8020 platforms

An alien planet scene showing a webbed growth and a pink mist, with a beam of light shining through a gap in the canopy. — (Image credit: Supermassive Games)

Directive 8020 is confirmed to be releasing on PC (Steam), Xbox Series X|S, and PS5.

Directive 8020 — and season 2 of The Dark Pictures Anthology as a whole — will be leaving the past generation of consoles behind as it finally transitions into Unreal Engine 5, which allows for denser visual details and improved illumination across all characters, objects, and locations, but also far more complex level structures and overall game design. That means it won't be showing up on the Xbox One or PS4.

Pre-orders are live now for both physical and digital versions, with early adopters getting a free upgrade to the digital deluxe edition, which includes:

The Dark Pictures Outfit Pack
The Dark Pictures Collectables
Cinematic Filter Pack
Digital Soundtrack
Digital Artbook

Pre-order details for Directive 8020 — (Image credit: Supermassive Games)

Directive 8020 trailers

The first Directive 8020 trailer was released on August 20, 2024, during Gamescom 2024, and it introduced both the game's protagonist and the basic premise (as well as the spooky tone). Watch it below:

Directive 8020 – Announcement Trailer - YouTube

Watch On

We were reintroduced to Directive 8020 at GamesCom 2025 with the "Trust No One" trailer, which gave us more insight into the alien nasties that we'll be contending with and the paranoia that spreads between the crew.

Directive 8020 | Trust No-One Trailer - YouTube

Watch On

There was also a hefty gameplay reveal, showcasing the first 13 minutes of the game:

Directive 8020 | 13 Minutes of Prologue Gameplay [Gamescom] - YouTube

Watch On

On Feb 10, 2026, a pre-order trailer was revealed to coincide with the release date reveal. This focuses on the decisions that you'll be forced to make during the game:

Directive 8020 - Comply | Pre-Order Trailer - YouTube

Watch On

Directive 8020 plot & setting

A dimly lit room, with a human silhouette under a red light. — (Image credit: Supermassive Games)

Straight from Supermassive Games and physical distributor Bandai Namco, here's the official plot synopsis for Directive 8020:

"Hunted by an alien organism capable of mimicking its prey, the crew of the Cassiopeia must outwit their pursuers to make it home alive. To help them survive, the choices you make are more important than ever! Evade real-time threats where any step could be your last. Decide who to trust in a world where anyone could be a deadly alien impostor."

The developers have described the new game as "The Thing in deep space" in the past, which signals the studio is wearing its influences proudly rather than shying away from space-themed horror movies we all know and love. As for the setting, the main location is Tau Ceti f — a real exoplanet in the Tau Ceti star system (coincidentally also the setting for Bungie's Marathon).

In an interview with FandomWire, we learned that in the timeline of the game, the Earth is dying, and the Cassiopeia is a reconnaissance ship sent out to explore potential new homes for humanity. "Of course, as this is a Supermassive Games story, things don't go to plan, and your crew ends up crash landing. This is where their expertise, relationships, and trust are truly tested." Creative director Will Doyle also teased that all characters can die, with the story moving forward in a similar fashion to what happened in previous Dark Pictures entries.

Lashana Lynch (Captain Marvel, 007: No Time to Die) will star as Brianna Young, an astronaut and pilot, alongside four other protagonists: Stafford (Ladi Emeruwa/Danny Sapani), Eisele (Avital Lvova/Lotte Verbeek), Cooper (Jess Khan-Lee), & Cernan (Philip Arditti).*

*Some cast members are motion-captured and voiced by different actors.

Directive 8020 genre & gameplay

A human with an alien growth coming on the side of their head. — (Image credit: Supermassive Games)

While past Dark Pictures installments already gave players some degree of direct control over the characters, Directive 8020 plans to take things a bit further, giving players total control. That means fewer 'quick-time events' to get out of dangerous situations and more abundant 'hands-on' sections that land closer to classical survival horror titles than the studio's past narrative-centric games.

"That said, it is still very much a narrative game! Everything you love about Dark Pictures is still present: cinematic sequences and pacing, QTEs, meaningful choices, secrets to find, and narrative branching," said Doyle.

Past Dark Pictures games (as well as several other Supermassive-developed titles) were defined by their unique brand of flexible and highly replayable cinematic storytelling, ideal to approach as an 'interactive horror film night' with friends, and Directive 8020 thankfully isn't dropping all that despite its evolution.

We had the chance to check out Directive 8020 at GamesCom 2025 and loved the style, but had concerns about the gameplay additions to the classic SuperMassive formula, which felt like a slog. Still, we're hopeful that the additional polish time afforded to the team by the delay out of 2025 has tightened up the gameplay sections.

Fran Ruiz is our resident Star Wars guy. His hunger for movies and TV series is only matched by his love for video games. He got a BA of English Studies, focusing on English Literature, from the University of Malaga, in Spain, as well as a Master's Degree in English Studies, Multilingual and Intercultural Communication. On top of writing features and other longform articles for Space.com since 2021, he is a frequent collaborator of VG247 and other gaming sites. He also serves as associate editor over at Star Wars News Net and its sister site, Movie News Net.

With contributions from

Ian StokesEntertainment Editor

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.