A Northern Evil: Tape One is a short atmospheric horror game set in the remote north of Sweden. You explore an abandoned village where something is deeply wrong, uncover strange clues, and face an evil hidden beneath the quiet surface. It is free.

Steam 250 weekly chart: #39 on the Top 50 Games of the Past Week as a new entry, scored 6.94 from 28 reviews at 96% positive, released 23 October 2026. Chart position via Steam 250.

Key features

Free removes the only real barrier to short horror

Short horror games have a pricing problem: a 30-to-60-minute experience is hard to charge for, and Steam refunds anything under two hours anyway. Releasing free sidesteps the whole argument. It also explains the chart position — a free horror game during the run-up to Halloween gets tried by people who would never gamble even five dollars on an unknown studio.

Nordic rural isolation instead of American suburbia

The far north of Sweden is genuinely empty in a way that horror rarely uses. Abandoned northern villages come with real history behind them, depopulation, failed industry, long winter dark, so the setting supplies the unease before any monster appears. It is also simply cheaper to build convincingly than a city, which is why it suits a small team.

Tape One is a promise about scope

Naming it Tape One sets the expectation that this is an episode, not a truncated full game. That is an honest signal: players know going in that they are getting a self-contained short piece, and the studio gets to test an audience before committing to a longer series. The 96% rating suggests the framing worked.

Where to find it

A Northern Evil: Tape One is free on Steam, developed and self-published by Skuggspel. It is English-only with full audio and single-player only. Steam lists no content descriptors for it.

Frequently asked questions

Is A Northern Evil: Tape One free?

Yes. Steam lists it as free to play, with no in-app purchases listed.

Who made A Northern Evil: Tape One?

Skuggspel, which both developed and published it.

How long is A Northern Evil: Tape One?

The developer has not published a runtime. It is described as a short atmospheric horror experience and is titled as a single tape, so treat it as a one-sitting game.

Is A Northern Evil: Tape One in English?

Yes. Steam lists English only, with full audio support.

Will there be a Tape Two?

The developer has not announced one. The Tape One title implies an episodic plan, but nothing further has been confirmed on the Steam page.