Key Highlights:
- Focus Home Interactive announced a new Obscure game for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on 7 February 2013.
- Mighty Rocket Studio redesigned the survival-horror series as a 2.5D action game with solo and four-player co-op.
- The project was later renamed Final Exam after developers acknowledged that fans expected something different from a game carrying the Obscure name.
Publisher Focus Home Interactive announced a new Obscure game on 7 February 2013, revealing a dramatically different take on the horror series for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
Developed by Mighty Rocket Studio, which included developers who had previously worked on the original Obscure games at Hydravision, the new project moved away from traditional 3D survival horror in favour of a colourful 2.5D action side-scroller.
Players would control one of four students, each with individual skills and abilities that could be developed throughout the game. Solo play was supported alongside local and online co-op for up to four players.
Combat placed greater emphasis on action than the earlier games, with combos, follow-up attacks and score multipliers used to earn experience. Levelling characters would unlock additional weapons, skills and abilities, while players fought through non-linear stages populated by monsters.
Despite the change in direction, Mighty Rocket said the game would retain elements associated with survival horror, including limited ammunition, scarce health supplies and the constant threat of creatures appearing unexpectedly.
Obscure was not the only established series being radically reworked in early 2013, with Capcom’s DmC: Devil May Cry reboot also dividing long-time fans after making major changes to its lead character, setting and overall presentation.
The project was originally expected to launch during spring 2013, but it never reached release under the Obscure name. Following criticism from fans who expected a more traditional successor to the original games, Mighty Rocket Studio renamed the project Final Exam later that year.
Studio director François Potentier said the team recognised that players expected different content from a game carrying the Obscure name. Final Exam ultimately became a separate action game while retaining references to Obscure and Obscure 2.
