Pathologic Classic HD is coming later this fall

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Originally released in 2005, Pathologic is a first-person horror-adventure in which you play one of three characters investigating a plague that has gripped an ancient, isolated village in the Russian Steppe. Science can't help, prayer can't help, and most likely you can't help either, but here you are anyway. It's a game that inspires something similar to, but just short of, excitement in a very small number of gamers, for reasons Phil cited a couple of years ago: It's interesting, ambitious, and intensely strange.

Pathologic Classic HD is a "fully remastered" do-over, with updated graphics, innumerable bug fixes, and a completely redone English script, with new voiceovers and restored dialog. That's really the biggest bit of news here; bugs can be fixed, after all, but pervasive incoherence is an entirely separate matter. The fact that the new English script is cited as the first enhancement on Steam—"The game has cast off the major issue that had previously disallowed international audiences from accessing it," it says—speaks volumes.

To be clear, this is an entirely separate release from the Pathologic remake, which developer Ice-Pick Lodge is still working on. Pathologic Classic HD is being handled by General Arcade, which has previously restored the original Shadow Warrior and Duke Nukem 3D. Ice-Pick Lodge said in a statement that it decided to re-release Pathologic because some elements of the remake "have strayed rather far from the original," and it doesn't want to exclude players who prefer the game in its original state.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.