No, I’m Not a Human is an exercise in balancing fear and reason

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I don’t play many horror games because they often use repetitive concepts, blurring their individuality. However, I enjoy games like Resident Evil. At PAX East 2025, I previewed a unique horror game titled “No, I’m Not a Human.” In this game, the challenge isn’t about conserving resources or avoiding damage; instead, it’s about deciphering information based on your own perception to make crucial life-or-death decisions. This game catches my attention like an unusual Christmas tree decoration would.

Not Human, This World – A Place Like Ours, with a Twist: The Visitors

In this world that mirrors our own, there’s one striking difference – the existence of entities known as The Visitors. These beings are chilling doppelgangers who can almost flawlessly imitate humans. However, the clues to distinguish them aren’t the obvious signs you’d wish for. Instead, they are peculiarities such as odd teeth or unkempt fingernails, aspects that one might encounter frequently among people in real life, particularly in a small-town setting in rural America.

Given the catastrophic stakes at play, what can one do when a knock comes at your door other than stay cautiously alert?

When interacting with someone in No, I’m Not a Human, it can be challenging to discern if they are actually human or not because the game employs an intricate visual style that distorts proportions and may make your senses questionable when you’re feeling scared or on edge. Additionally, people can be quite unusual, and you never truly know if someone is human based solely on their appearance, even with repeated exposure to them.

As a survivor in this game, I’m holed up in a small shelter, my days filled with watching TV, sipping beer, and peering through the window. Each day brings new visitors, and it’s on me to decide if they’re friendly, hostile, or somewhere in between. Kick them out, and I might have doomed an innocent soul to a gruesome fate. Let them in, and I could be inviting danger into my sanctuary. At first, it’s tough to tell if the decisions I make are right or wrong. And if I feel I’ve made a mistake, I might get a second chance… with a shotgun. It’s a grim existence, indeed. The toughest part is that there’s no clear guide on what the correct choices are, at least not at the start.

Towards the closing moments of my gameplay, I began questioning whether “No, I’m Not a Human” was attempting to play a trick on me. What if it was an underhanded commentary, like “we are the real monsters,” and “The Visitors” were just a concoction of deceit and fear tactics? Since it’s 2025, I decided to challenge the game and invited someone who seemed to be the embodiment of all the warning signs I had encountered up until then. I didn’t even have time to re-enter before the ending unfolded. Well played, eerie video game! I was intrigued by what else might be revealed when “No, I’m Not a Human” officially launches.

The game titled “No, I’m Not a Human” is scheduled for release on PC in 2025, with a launch date yet to be announced for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. A demo of the game was made available by the publisher at PAX East 2025.

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2025-07-04 00:27