Pathologic Classic HD

Pathologic Classic HD is a first-person survival horror adventure set in an isolated town on an ancient steppe. An unknown, inevitably lethal disease is decimating the townspeople. Three outsiders arrive, each hoping to find a cure or, failing that, an explanation: a ruthless investigator sent by local authorities; a farsighted surgeon known as the Ripper, who has come to seek his father’s terrible heritage; and an eccentric girl rumored to have mystic healing abilities, though she is plagued by fear and memories of recent horrors.

The town began as a small drover settlement around a monstrous abattoir, but something about the nearby butchery changed it. Over generations, it developed an unusual social structure. As the plague spreads, you face a conflict of ideas about life, death and miracles, shaped by the town’s many characters and factions. There are no simple solutions: you must decide whether to ease another person’s pain or save scarce medicine for your own protection.

Three intertwined stories

You can play as the Bachelor, the Haruspex or the Changeling. Each has a unique storyline, with separate events, quests, dialogues and subplots; the three plots are interconnected. The town’s fate is part of the story, alongside the ideological conflicts among its inhabitants.

Explore and survive

The open town is available to explore from day one, with no artificial boundaries. The story unfolds over 12 days, and events happen whether or not you are there to witness them. The game offers over 70 hours of real-time gameplay without grinding or repetitive quests; as time passes, more events arise for you to take part in and potentially change.

You must monitor your condition, keeping yourself fed and your immunity at a decent level. To obtain necessities, you can communicate, barter, rob or steal, with benefits and drawbacks to each approach. The town’s atmosphere is bleak and despairing, without cartoonish villains, jump scares or easy answers.

Restored edition

Pathologic Classic HD includes a new in-house English script and new voice-overs. It restores some text cut from the international version and features updated textures, support for higher resolutions and new visual effects. It also includes a fan-made Polish translation and an Italian translation donated by the game’s original translators.