Frogwares has revealed The Sinking City 2, and this time, the studio is going all in on horror for its Lovecraftian sequel. While 2019's The Sinking City was an action-adventure game with mystery elements and a constant sense of dread--and an infamous dispute with Nacon--The Sinking City 2 is taking on a darker and more aggressive form according to the studio.

"The Sinking City is one of our most successful titles, because of our stronger horror genre leanings and the setting," Frogwares Head of Publishing Sergey Oganesyan said to Xbox Wire. "For us, it was kind of a breakthrough, and we are super excited to work on a full-scale horror game."

Detective work isn't being thrown out, as you will still be able to use your cunning to solve optional puzzles and investigate your surroundings in a world of decaying mansions and abandoned hospitals. There'll be an emphasis on combat as you scrounge for resources and use an arsenal of 1920s-inspired firearms to defend yourself from Eldritch monsters, and Frogwares is aiming to create a "morally grey" story inspired by HP Lovecraft's work.

Due to Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine, the Ukrainian-based developer is launching a Kickstarter campaign again--it did so with Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened--to help create a safety net for the studio. If certain goals can be met, the developer will be able to add more additional features to the game, which targets a 2025 release window.

"Through Kickstarter and our supporters, we built ourselves a safety net that saved us more than once," Frogwares CEO Wael Amr said in a press release. "From power cuts as our electrical infrastructure was targeted for months to the need for team members to relocate at very short notice, this financial safety net proved invaluable to us. So we need to do the same now with The Sinking City 2 as this game is vastly bigger and more complex."

For more from the Xbox Partner Preview, you can check out new games like Sleight of Hand and Creatures of Ava, as well as a fresh look at upcoming titles like The Alters, Frostpunk 2, and Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess.