Two Major ‘Halloween’ Projects in the Works, and John Carpenter Is Involved

John Carpenter is returning to the Halloween franchise, but not for a big screen movie. More than four decades after Michael Myers first made his way to video games with Wizard Video’s short-lived Halloween game for the Atari 2600, IGN confirmed Monday that two new Halloween video games are currently in development from Boss Team Games, with Carpenter said to be “intimately involved” with at least one of them.

Details are scarce at this time, but IGN reports that the games will allow players to “relive moments from the film and play as classic characters from one of the most iconic and important horror films of all time.” Both titles are reportedly being developed in association with Compass International Pictures and Further Front and in conjunction with the producers of the Halloween franchise. One of the games is reportedly being built in Unreal Engine 5. That game is said to be “early in development” and will see Carpenter “intimately involved.”

“As a huge gamer myself, I’m thrilled to help bring Michael Myers to life again in this game, and my hope is to scare you silly,” the famed director said. Further details, include release windows, haven’t been shared.

The Halloween franchise got its start back in 1978 when The Shape haunted theaters in Carpenter’s original Halloween. Set in the fictional town of Haddonfield, Illinois on Halloween night, the movie centered around what would be dubbed “The Babysitter Murders.” When convicted murderer Michael Myers escapes Smith’s Grove Sanitarium, where he has been locked away for 15 years following the murder of his sister, he sets out on a bloody rampage, with Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode among the only survivors.

While the film was a massive success, going on to spawn a 13-film franchise, with an upcoming TV series also currently in the works, Halloween‘s presence in the video game world has severely lacked. In fact, the two upcoming games will be the only video games based on the franchise since the game for Atari 2600, which allowed players to play as a babysitter attempting to find safety from The Shape. The game was incredibly short-lived, and many game retailers refused to carry it due to its voice, some instead keeping it behind the counter and only selling it on a request only basis.

In the years since, little more has come from Halloween in the video gaming world aside from fan-made content. However, Michael Myers, Laurie Strode, and a Haddonfield map were recently added to Dead by Daylight, Behavior Interactive’s popular multiplayer horror game that has featured other horror icons like Freddie Kruger from Nightmare on Elm Street and Pinhead from Hellraiser.