Cronos merges classic survival horror thrills with some bold new ideas
4.17.2025
By Charlie Wacholz, Contributor
With a greater focus on combat and the ways it intersects with exploration and resource management, Cronos holes up in the comfortable halfway point between modern Resident Evil and Dead Space while carving out healthy space for its own mechanics—like merging—to shine.
This greater focus on combat doesn't steer Cronos away from Bloober's roots. The game is set in an alternate history Poland where an apocalyptic event hit before the Soviet Union collapsed. This let Bloober Team channel nostalgia into Cronos’ environmental direction, tapping into car and furniture designs they grew up seeing at their grandparents’ houses.
The demo I saw started out with the main character dropping into an eviscerated city set on finding the apartment of someone who died during the cataclysmic event, jumping back in time, and reclaiming their life. Although the demo ended by teasing this victory with a story sequence reminiscent of Bloober’s signature cerebral brand of horror, Cronos’ combat was far and away the highlight of the presentation.
The ground is littered with bodies covered in pulsating, wriggling tentacles; they spring to life once disturbed by another passing enemy. You have to act fast to stop the enemies from "Merging" together, or you’ll regret it (hence Cronos’ tagline: “Don’t let them Merge”). When enemies Merge, they get more powerful and take on each others’ attributes. To show off the mechanic, the developer on the sticks let four enemies slowly combine into a gruesome behemoth.
As they combine, enemies gain each others' powers Mega Man-style. For example, if an enemy with the ability to spit poisonous sludge Merges with an armored one, the homunculus has both thicker skin and a toxic waste projectile. Bloober didn’t spend much time breaking down just how many different abilities would be represented in the final version of the game, but given its scale, I have a feeling we should expect a good number of different mechanics.
Merged or not, these enemies are still dangerous. Armed with a futuristic pistol, a shotgun, and a flamethrower with highly limited ammo, the push-and-pull of combat is dictated by restricted resources and your guns’ rate of fire. Each gun fires with a satisfying, punchy crack. If you’re comfortable within the rhythm of shooting and ducking enemy attacks, you can also charge both the pistol and shotgun up to release a stronger blast. This still only uses one round per shot, so the tradeoff here is rooted in the risk it takes to fully charge up a shot, which does take some time.
Guns aren’t your only method of dispatching monsters. The only way to completely dispose of a baddie is with a blast from your flamethrower. Flamethrower ammo is as good as gold in Cronos, not just because it’s versatile, but because it’s highly limited. When you’re grabbed by a monster, you can use it to escape their clutches without taking much damage. You can also use it to burn the bodies of your defeated and active enemies, as well as removing the black sludge that blocks certain rooms. In the portion I saw, this sludge barricaded a room that held some special loot, including a flamethrower charge.
That room also housed a few crafting materials, which can be used to create resources like ammo and healing items. You can craft gear anywhere while you’re out in the field, but opening the crafting menu won’t pause the game. This subtle Dark Souls-ian nod adds extra tension if you run out of ammo in a tight spot and need to craft extra bullets mid-combat.
I walked away from my hour-long appointment with Bloober Team thoroughly impressed with the game they were cooking up. Cronos wears its influences on its sleeve with pride while innovating on the classic loop pioneered by Resident Evil 4 and Dead Space, and it promises to deliver something really cool. Throw in all the cool little things that make a Bloober Team game a Bloober Team Game, and I can’t help but be excited.
You can add Cronos: The New Dawn to your wishlist now on the Epic Games Store.