The Bounds VR is an upcoming indie horror game from Build the Light Studio's Project Louisiana . As the first game in the project, The Bounds VR leads players to investigate a mysterious Louisiana mansion for the protagonist's missing daughter. It's a fitting horror premise, especially with its setting giving creepy haunted house vibes, as seen in popular horror games like Resident Evil and Alone in the Dark. Its setting is more unique than many horror games as, while Alone in the Dark is also set in Louisiana, most horror games are not really set in the American south. The Bounds VR leans into this heavily by adding various elements of voodoo into the mix, from voodoo dolls to the universally recognizable character of Baron Samedi.

In a recent interview with Game Rant, Build the Light Studio's project manager, lead 3D artist, and lead level designer Pierre Mauger, as well as lead developer and designer Géraud Toussaint, talked about The Bounds VR 's setting in a Louisiana mansion, including why the developers chose Louisiana for the location.

The Bounds VR's Louisiana Setting

And it's very important for me, at least. It allows us to speak about Louisiana's legacy, slavery, that kind of stuff. I've got a Creole family, it was a theme not so common right now, and I wanted to speak about it.

There's the legacy of the Legrasse family. It's a very well-known ancient slave owner, and the main character’s wife, Catherine, is in the hospital. You come from New York, and you learn of this Louisiana mansion. He doesn’t discover the whole thing, but he realizes how far it is, how dark it is, how heavy it is. And right now, there is a curse on the Legrasse family. That is the horror during The Bounds VR .

Voodoo Dolls and Culture in The Bounds VR

You have a very tight lore about what happened to the Legrasse family. What is that curse? And that's what we want to bring to the players.

At some point, you'll be using a kind of voodoo doll and using it, you'll be able to solve those kinds of enigmas, and you will be able to find some specific objects that will give you some specific powers.

These powers include attracting objects like axes when fighting mysterious entities, help with solving puzzles, or allow players to manipulate the environment. Powers could also add even more immersion to the VR experience, something Mauger and Toussaint also identified as important. Overall, The Bounds VR could offer players a unique setting to explore, and it'll be interesting to see how its mystery and gameplay develops with these core tenets in mind.

The Bounds VR is currently in development.