This is the first real horror game I've ever written. "The Raptors Come at Night" is a kind of horror game as well, I suppose, but it leans much more into the jump scare part of the raptor attacks than the creeping dread. As such, I think that "Rise of the End" is a really good example of one of my favorite things in horror media, and I didn't even mean for that to happen; Hope against hope.

I love when characters are absolutely doomed, with no chance for success, and yet they find hope, or love, or joy anyway. Characters who know their time is coming to an end, but they choose to spend that time with their loved ones, or protecting those around them. I can't say too much because I don't want to spoil it, but in The Magnus Archives, hope against hope is a HUGE part of the plot as time goes on (no, I'm not saying characters do or don't die; it's a very complex story and a lot goes on, but it gets pretty dark). 

By the way, if you haven't listened to The Magnus Archives, you should.

Anyway, Rise of the End came about because I wanted to write a game about characters who were trapped in a house, with wave after wave of the undead coming to kill them, and what they would do when they realized their time was up. It evolved from there (and finding the Made to Rise system was certainly a HUGE step in that evolution), and eventually turned into what I've just released. 

Fun fact: while Rise of the End is my second Made to Rise game, I actually started working on it first before the idea for Therefore iAm popped into my head. But once Therefore iAm came to mind, I couldn't stop writing it.

I hope this game helps you find some joy in the darkest of times. Remember, just because the world is ending, that doesn't mean your life is over. Tell your friends you love them. Give your family lots of smooches. Read a book. Take an axe to the head of an angry skeleton who's trying to feast on your bones. Take your dog for a walk.