Hell is Us drops story trailer, free prequel comic, and a limited-time demo

Why this caught my eye

Hell is Us showed up at the Future Games Show with a new story trailer, a free digital prequel comic, and-most importantly-a playable demo that’s live now until August 28. The pitch isn’t new, but it’s compelling: third-person action-adventure with melee combat, a war-torn country shrouded in secrets, and a hard stance against hand-holding. In a market drowning in map icons, a game that says “figure it out yourself” always gets my attention.

• Launches September 4, 2025 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC
• Demo is available on all platforms until August 28
• Free 16-page digital comic sets up events right before the game
• Exploration-first philosophy: fewer markers, more intuition-promising if the world design can carry it

Breaking down the announcement

This new trailer leans into the game’s central hook: Remi, a peacekeeper returning to his birthplace—a sealed-off nation called Hadea—amid a brutal civil war. He’s chasing the truth about why his parents smuggled him out as a child. Layered over that is “the Calamity,” a phenomenon that spawns eerie, monument-like creatures. It’s the kind of grounded-meets-supernatural setup that can work brilliantly if the writing respects the human stakes.

NACON and Rogue Factor also dropped a free 16-page digital comic that covers the moments right before the game starts. That’s a smart move: onboarding players into the tone and politics without a lore dump in the opening cutscene. The press blurb calls the design “Player-Plattering”—a clumsy term, but the intent is clear: cut the intrusive UI, make you read the world, not a minimap.

The real story: exploration without crutches lives or dies on world design

We’ve seen the pendulum swing toward diegetic navigation: Elden Ring’s vague breadcrumbs, Ghost of Tsushima’s guiding wind, even recent indies that ditch quest checklists. When it works, you feel like a clever explorer. When it doesn’t, you’re just lost and annoyed.

For Hell is Us, the success metric isn’t the buzzword—it’s whether Hadea quietly teaches you how to read it. Landmarks that naturally draw the eye. Environmental hints that reward observation. NPC dialogue that nudges without outright directing. If the demo nails those fundamentals, this “no intrusive assistance” shtick stops being a gimmick and starts being the point.

Combat is the other big question. Rogue Factor’s past work (Mordheim, Necromunda) was tactical and systems-heavy, but this is a third-person, up-close brawler. Melee lives on feel: camera behavior in tight spaces, hit-stun and poise, audio feedback, and the clarity of tells on those stone-like Calamity creatures. Use the demo to stress-test that: do parries make sense, do enemies telegraph fairly, and does the lock-on fight the level geometry?

Industry context: the AA space is where weird, personal worlds still happen

NACON’s catalog is uneven but often interesting—the kind of AA slate where ambition sometimes outruns polish. That’s not a dig; it’s where fresh ideas grow. Hell is Us looks like one of those swings: a singular art direction, a protagonist with personal stakes instead of “save the world,” and an exploration ethos that asks you to meet it halfway. It also carries risk. Mixing civil war imagery with supernatural horror can read thoughtful—or tone-deaf—depending on execution. The comic prequel might be our first hint at which side it lands.

There’s also pedigree in the background. Rogue Factor is Montreal-based, and the team’s previous projects show they aren’t afraid of sharp edges in tone or mechanics. If the writing is willing to sit with uncomfortable truths rather than using conflict as set dressing, this could stand out from the usual dystopian wallpaper.

What gamers need to know (and try) right now

• Timing: The demo disappears on August 28. If you’re marker-averse and love environmental storytelling, jump in now.
• Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC at launch on September 4, 2025.
• Homework that’s actually fun: the free 16-page comic. It should give you character context before you boot the demo.
• What to test: camera reliability in close quarters, enemy variety beyond “rock beast #3,” and whether exploration rewards curiosity instead of punishing it.
• Temper expectations: AA projects can wobble on performance at launch. If you’re sensitive to frame pacing or bugs, wait for day-one impressions.

Looking ahead

The story trailer sells mood and motive—Remi’s return, the personal mystery, the unsettling monument-creatures. That’s the right focus. If Rogue Factor sticks the landing on readable spaces and grounded melee, Hell is Us could be this fall’s “trust-your-instincts” adventure rather than another map-chore simulator. The demo window is short, but that’s also a statement: they want you to try it while the conversation is hot, then roll straight into launch.

TL;DR

Hell is Us is pushing exploration without hand-holding and pairing it with a personal story set in a country tearing itself apart, plus supernatural weirdness. The free comic and limited-time demo are the real value here—use them to see if the world design and melee click for you before September 4.