Hi, I’m Emil Esov from Saber Interactive, and we are excited to have Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival coming to PlayStation 5 on October 8, 2026! The team has been hard at work over the past 4+ years creating a game that brings life to Clive Barker’s unique style of horror and we’ve got the first look at an exclusive behind-the-scenes developer diary to share with you that covers what building this game has been like for us:
Hellraiser separates itself from other pieces of horror media by having villains, the Cenobites, who aren’t so easily viewed as being morally bad. As the Hell Priest (aka Pinhead) explains in the original Hellraiser movie, they are “Explorers in the further regions of experience. Demons to some, angels to others”. We like to think of them as monks – whether it comes to extreme pain or pleasure, they are interested in exploring sensations and pushing the boundaries of what is possible.
Your Hellraiser: Revival experience will come from the perspective of Aidan Lynch, our story’s protagonist. He first encounters the Cenobites after his girlfriend Sunny activates the Genesis Configuration, a mysterious puzzle box with unknown power and purpose. The Cenobites appear and unceremoniously tear Sunny in half. At first this seems like some kind of fever dream to Aidan, but he quickly comes to learn that Sunny’s soul can still be saved and that the Cenobites are integral to accomplishing that goal.
While Cenobites exist as godlike explorers of experience from another realm, there are people in the real world who are seeking that same kind of enlightenment. This is where one of the groups of enemies that you’ll face in Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival come in… the members of the Scarlet Church. Led by a charismatic figure named Marlowe, this cult is working to establish contact with the Cenobites and seeks to use the Genesis Configuration in order to create a debauched paradise for themselves.
But the cultists of the Scarlet Church aren’t the only people that will stand in Aidan’s way. There are people, maybe now better described as wretches, who once sought out greater experiences but were denied by Leviathan, the creator of the Cenobites and ruler of the otherworldly Labyrinth. We call these creatures, who are essentially Hell’s rejects, the Unworthy. They are drawn to the Genesis Configuration as a potential path to redemption, and will instinctively seek out Aidan in an effort to obtain it.
You’ll be able to fight back against the cultists of the Scarlet Church and the Unworthy by attacking while dual-wielding weapons (R2) and Genesis Configuration powers (L1). Aidan’s journey fighting against these groups will be full of pain, pleasure and everything in between. In a way, this mirrors our experience developing the game over the past few years. Some of us have even uncovered our own fears and phobias through the development process. I found out that I suffer from trypophobia, a condition where you feel sick from looking at clusters of holes or bumps!
Luckily, if you run into anything you find too disturbing or find yourself needing to make a quick escape away from a certain Cenobite, you can either turn your Flashlight off (R3) and hope the problem goes away… or make a quick 180 degree turn (Left Stick + L3) and run for your life!
If you’ve made it this far into the blog, congratulations! You might be exactly the type of person who will enjoy exploring that which Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival has to offer. But I’m not one to pass judgment – Leviathan is the ultimate decider. Will you be worthy? We’ll find out on October 8 when Hellraiser: Revival launches both digitally and on physical media.
