Taiwanese horror game Detention is getting a film adaptation

Detention, the ruminative Taiwanese horror game by Red Candle Games, is getting a film adaptation, and its set to hit cinemas in Taiwan this September. Set in Taiwan during the 'White Terror' period of martial law, the game is a cryptic and lonely exploration of political dissent and its ramifications, set entirely in an isolated mountainside high school.

The film adaptation is directed by John Hsu, who provided the following statement (via Taiwan News). "As a gamer, the original Detention game left me shocked and made a deep impact," he wrote. "Even then, I hoped the story could be adapted to film to reach even more people. My goal was to keep the film true to the spirit of the game, but to further develop a unique vision and emotion. I wanted to create a truly unique psychological thriller.”

The film stars Gingle Wang and is produced by 1 Production Film Co. and Filmagic Pictures. For anyone who has played the game, the set design in the trailer below will be very familiar: it's surprising just how true to the game it is.

As for Red Candle Games' more recent game, Devotion, the game remains unavailable following it was unpublished due to in-game assets which were interpreted to mock Chinese president Xi Jinping. The studio has made no further statement on the state of the game since February.

Here's the trailer for Detention:

Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day.