Swery65 details the development of Hotel Barcelona’s unique Slasher Phantom system
In a recent Famitsu interview, Hidetaka Suehiro (also known as SWERY or Swery65) talked at length about his and Goichi Suda’s (Suda51) work on the upcoming side-scrolling action game Hotel Barcelona. One of the game’s core mechanics, the Slasher Phantom system, allows players to fight alongside up to four of their deceased past selves to overcome obstacles and enemies that would otherwise be too much for them to handle solo.
According to Suehiro, the Slasher Phantom system came about as a way to increase Hotel Barcelona’s replayability. In addition to the stock knowledge players receive when they play and replay parts of a video game, Suehiro wanted a tangible show of progress; one that allows players to “bring the timeline you played to the next round.” The Slasher Phantom solved this problem, providing players with the most reliable backup: themselves.
Creating multiple versions of the same character and putting them onscreen at the same time is easier said than done, as Suehiro discovered when developing Hotel Barcelona. Slasher Phantoms would activate platforms before the player-controlled character, causing unintended deaths. While Suehiro and the rest of the Hotel Barcelona developers at White Owls Inc. eventually solved these problems by limiting the number of objects the Slasher Phantoms could affect, it was still a difficult task to undertake.
Hotel Barcelona still has an unknown release date but its premise is quite unique. As rookie federal marshall Justine, players must navigate an isolated hotel full of the country’s most evil serial killers. Justine also seems to be possessed by a serial killer herself, as the insane Dr. Carnival allows her to create Slasher Phantoms that act as allies and decoys. Hotel Barcelona contains elements of Metroidvania and roguelike titles, and Suehiro mentions that the game will be difficult in its own right as well, although, it will come with an easy mode for for those who want a more forgiving experience
