[Interview] Toni Kortelahti (98DEMAKE) Discusses Praise, Criticism, the Games Industry, and What’s to Come
2018’s September 1999 is an unexpected gem of video game horror. Lasting a total of five and a half minutes, players can only move about two rooms as the environment around them changes. Taking on the visual aesthetics of a found footage game, September 1999 forces players into the role of a silent observer; by offering little to no context of the game’s surroundings and avatar, September 1999 makes for one of the most unsettling horror gaming experiences in recent times.
Responsible for this game is Toni Kortelahti (also known by his developer name, 98DEMAKE). Before September 1999, Kortelahti created OK/NORMAL, a creepy horror game built upon 90s game visuals. While September 1999 was released this past October, Kortelahti has already been working on a follow up entitled, December 2000.
Speaking to his reasoning for creating December 2000, Kortelahti shares, “Mostly it was due to the overwhelmingly positive response. September 1999 was really something to test the waters with — to see how people would respond to a very experimental gameplay style like [that of] September 1999. I really enjoyed the opportunity to focus on the environment of the game and seeing how much of a story I could tell, without saying a single word. Also, as someone who’s mostly [known] for their PS1-styled shenanigans [regarding game design], it felt great to get to show off something a bit more realistic for a change!”
Toni made his name with retro demakes of modern gaming classics such as The Last of Us, Bioshock, and PT.
Criticism towards September 1999 primarily focused on stating the game was in fact not a game. Kortelahti has spoken to this critique in the past, indicating that even if September 1999 is more experimental and doesn’t play out in a formal manner, he still considers it a game. That said, Kortelahti was happy to see that the game received a solid amount of praise.
“All in all,” he says, “I was completely overwhelmed by the overall response. Since the game is very much a “walking simulator” and only 5 minutes and 30 seconds long, I was expecting people to kind of shrug it off. As it turns out, people didn’t. People who usually don’t enjoy horror games enjoyed September 1999. People who usually don’t enjoy walking simulators enjoyed the game as well.”
Regarding what he learned from the praise and criticism, he shares, “I guess it taught me that with an interesting enough idea, you can really get people out of their comfort zones.”
As an indie developer, Kortelahti is fascinated with the medium of video games; through games, he sees the ability to tell stories and share experiences that would not be possible through other art forms. He is also aware of how to establish a sense of horror through his work and how to make the gameplay more interesting for players.
Explaining his feelings regarding video games and horror, Kortelahti shares, “Video games are obviously a unique medium in that you put the audience right there in the middle of the action. I feel that something like September 1999 wouldn’t really work in any other medium since a game is often a far more personal experience than say, a movie.”
September 1999, Paratopic, and the Waiting Game
“As far as effective horror goes, I think it’s all about building suspense, and keeping that suspense and feel of dread. A lot of horror games tend to spill the beans too soon and too abruptly. Whatever scary things are out there, aren’t as scary as soon as the player sees said scary things.”
“I like to keep the player on their toes, without slapping them across the head with scary stuff.”
Speaking further to his craft, he adds, “I spend my evenings reading up on all sorts of real world and fictional horror stories and draw inspiration from there. I’m really messy when it comes to actually designing and building a game, and kinda [sic] just throw ideas at the wall until something sticks and feels right — hence the countless unfinished projects on my hard drive. It’s a lot of trial and error.”
Even with the praise September 1999 has received, it’s still tough for indie video games to catch a large amount of mainstream attention. For Kortelahti, he hopes that the industry as a whole will give indie titles more love; given the challenges they face among the significant competition, he sees the potential in players discovering fascinating works through indie games.
September 1999 was one of our games of 2018.
“Obviously as an indie developer, I’d like to see indies get more love,” Kortelahti states. “It’s getting there, but it’s still an industry dominated by the AAA studios. Like, take note of the games not selling hundreds of thousands of copies as well — there [are] some really good, worthy of attention [games] hidden [among them].”
Kortelahti has been hard at work in creating December 2000; with similarities to September 1999, the developer makes it clear that there will be differences for players to enjoy. “There’s a lot of different things. [December 2000’s] play area is larger, the house is far more detailed, and while the game will be short, it’ll still be considerably longer and more fleshed out; the challenge [in creating December 2000] was to keep the core gameplay concept interesting for a lengthier game.”
Without any spoilers, Kortelahti hints that both September 1999 and December 2000 are connected. His main goal is that gamers will find December 2000 to be a creepier experience compared to his last game. “Yes, [the games] do link together, but December is still a stand-alone experience that doesn’t require you to have knowledge of September. You should still play it though. I hope people get the same kind of a creepy, unnerving, unique experience as they did with September — but better!”
There is no release date yet for December 2000, but we’ll keep you posted on details as they come! For now, if September 1999 somehow went under your radar, you can play it for free via Steam; OK/NORMAL is also available on Steam and for a small price.
