Kafka-Inspired Metamorphosis Gets New Trailer

Today we got a look at what we can expect from developer Ovid Works’ title with a CG trailer. Metamorphosis, in what seems a mix between Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis and Pixar’s A Bug’s Life, puts the player in an unusual situation from the start.

In Metamorphosis, you take the role of Gregor, a man who has the unfortunate realization that he’s transformed into a tiny bug. Admittedly, that’s about where the similarities to A Bug’s Life end, as the tone in the trailer seems much more Kafkaesque.

Inspired by Kafka’s The Metamorphosis

The game is directly and outwardly inspired by The Metamorphosis, Kafka’s 1915 novella in which the main character (yes, also named Gregor) wakes up having turned into a giant insect. To avoid spoiling the plot, let’s suffice it to say it is not a happy story by any means.

The new trailer for Metamorphosis captures the horror felt by the book’s character well. Starting in what appears to be a torture chamber, viewers find themselves watching the action from the first-person view of a bug strapped into a chair. As the equally horrendous torturer debates the best tool to use for the job, we realize many of the objects in the room are huge. Nails make up many of the torture devices, and a giant playing card adorns the wall.

As we get threateningly questioned again, the ceiling of the room opens up. As a hand reaches in and plucks up our captor, we quickly realize objects in the world aren’t huge, we’re just tiny. Falling from our matchstick chair, we untie our limbs and crawl up the wall to escape through where the ceiling was. End trailer.

While the trailer does a great job at conveying the tone Ovid Works is going for with Metamorphosis, as with most CG trailers we didn’t get much of an idea of how the game plays or the story itself. The game’s Steam page promises to present players with environmental puzzles and unique movement mechanics as Gregor tries to save his friend from arrest.

Metamorphosis is set to release on PC, Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One this year. Of course, with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, it’s possible Metamorphosis will be another game pushing back its release date.